Member Article

Angel of the North scale model sells for £2.28 million

A scale model of the Angel of the North has broken records by selling at auction for more than £2 million. The 6ft 6ins high replica of Antony Gormley’s 65ft high original was sold at Sotheby’s on Tuesday.

It was one of five smaller versions created by Gormley from a cast of his own body.

An anonymous buyer paid £2.28 million for the sculpture, which was expected to fetch £800,000. Mr Gormley received a flat fee of just under £10,000 from the sale.

A Sotheby’s spokesman said: “Sotheby’s evening sale of Contemporary Art tonight realised a phenomenal £94,701,550 - making it the most successful summer sale of Contemporary Art ever held in Europe. “Many of the works offered soared beyond expectations, with over 66.2% of the works sold achieving prices in excess of high estimate.”

People on Tyneside are celebrating the Angel’s 10th anniversary this year. The full size statue has a wingspan of 177ft (54m), whereas the replica sold at auction has a wingspan of 16ft.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .