AN original Banksy artwork has sold at a North East auction house for £1m after the piece was displayed in the region earlier this month.

The Merrivale Stable, a small fibreglass model, which was secretly added to Merrivale Model Village in Great Yarmouth last summer by the anonymous British street artist, formed part of Banksy’s ‘Great British Spraycation’ tour.

This unique piece was offered to the market for the first time today (January 27) as part of The Modern Art & Design Auction at Anderson & Garland Auctioneers in Newcastle, and comes after it was on public display on Monday and Wednesday of this week.

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Anderson & Garland managing director, Julian Thomson, said: “We were thrilled to be chosen by the owners to sell the piece on their behalf.

“Although now based in East Anglia, they have strong ties to the North East and their parents frequented our saleroom.

“From the moment this great story hit the press, it grabbed the attention of collectors from across the globe. Interest was high and that ultimately produced plenty of bidders on the day. There was a fantastic buzz in the saleroom and after a bidding battle the hammer finally came down achieving a great result for the client”.

Here's some photos of the Banksy artwork:

The Northern Echo:

The Northern Echo:

The Northern Echo:

The owners, Frank and Frances Newsome, decided to auction the piece to secure the future of the tourist attraction, with the Merrivale Stable finally selling to a private UK collector.

Speaking about the artwork, Mr Newsome said: ”My family and I are absolutely delighted with the result achieved today. It’s a fantastic result for the park. We were delighted to be able to sell the model in the North East. We’ve enjoyed the whole auction experience and Anderson & Garland have been a pleasure to work with.”

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