Banksy rat awaits fate as pub goes for auction

3 Feb 2010, 10:08

Liverpool auctioneer Sutton Kersh will include the Whitehouse pub on the corner of Berry Street and Duke Street in its next sale on 18 February.

The secretive Bristol-based graffiti artist was commissioned to create a piece in the Ropewalks area of the city for the 2004 Liverpool Biennial art festival. The giant rat holding a marker pen next to his red zig-zag doodles have been a prominent landmark ever since.

Sutton Kersh has set a guide price of £80,000 but the value only covers the building and does not include its worth as a work of art by one of the most famous contemporary artists in the world.

Whether the artwork is retained remains the decision of the purchaser. The panel of hoarding containing the Banksy signature, or tag, was stolen some years ago.

James Kersh, director of auctions at Sutton Kersh, said there has been strong pre-auction interest and the price may well exceed that of the guide.

The sale is on Thursday 18 February at the Marriott Hotel in Queen Square, Liverpool city centre.

Your Comments

9 Comments Add Comment

g;lad to see he's mentioned here with a marker. why do people insist on saying it's holding a machine gun? huh? Guns are not very Banksy unless stuffed with flowers. it was an art festival. clue,?…

comment by yobart | 03/02/2010 10:13:41

It looks like it's in shocking condition. Such a shame …

comment by Ian Richards | 03/02/2010 14:36:53

I love the way the article states in such a matter of fact way that the signature was stolen some years ago. No surprise, no shock. But then it is Liverpool lol…

comment by Manc | 03/02/2010 14:36:55

Should the sentence about the stolen tag begin a) Inevitably, being Liverpool,...b) Sadly and rather surprisingly,... or c) There was no outcry and absolutely nothing was done when...…

comment by grant mitchell | 03/02/2010 14:59:20

And Manchester is a crime-free place to live is it?…

comment by Scouser | 03/02/2010 15:54:47

Hope it gets demolished. It looks s*** at present. …

comment by anon | 03/02/2010 17:36:53

vision should combine a few directorships and use the spare cash to buy this and turn it into a chinese enterprise centre, or student cafe - it's next to jmu and liv commnty collge buildings. anything but demolition. it's the biggest banksy in the country for christ's sake.…

comment by bunk | 04/02/2010 06:43:37

Great idea, bunk. Lets waste some more tax payers. …

comment by ANON | 04/02/2010 10:30:40

out in March. http://www.banksyfilm.com/…

comment by me | 09/02/2010 11:14:17