A superb and rare Banksy work depicting Abraham Lincoln will sell as part of Neal Auction Company's July 13-14 Summer Estates Auction in New Orleans.
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The piece, which was created using spray paint on cardboard and is part of a varied series of three, will sell with a $30,000-50,000 estimate.
Banksy visited New Orleans in 2008, three years after Hurricane Katrina had hit the city and destroyed much of its architecture.
Leaving a trail of tags and artworks laced with social commentary in his wake, he created a large version of the homeless Abraham Lincoln stencil at a major intersection, which has now been destroyed.
The present work was created for a friend that he was visiting while in New Orleans, who has consigned it to the sale.
Another, different piece from the same Abraham Lincoln series sold for $68,500 at Sotheby's in March 2011, making a 128.3% increase on its $30,000 high estimate.
Banksy's work has continued to see strong results at auction recently, with a limited edition screen print of his celebrated piece Love is in the Air making an impressive $248,776 at Bonhams - a 63.2% increase on estimate.
Following the Bonhams sale, contemporary art specialist Alan Montgomery commented: "Prices for spray paint canvases by Banksy in our recent auctions demonstrate that his works are more popular than ever with high-profile art collectors, reflecting the continuing fascination with his art amongst the public as a whole."
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