Pig auction raises £217,000

Organisers of a public arts project which was the talking point of the city this summer have spoken of their delight after raising a staggering £217,000.

The King Bladud's Pigs in Bath project came to an end earlier this month as the 105 life size models, which could be seen all over the city, were removed from the streets.

And on Friday people were given the chance to take home their favourite pig as 70 of the life-size models were put up for auction.

Despite earlier concerns over ticket sales, about 250 people packed the Assembly Rooms event.

The aim of the auction was to raise thousands of pounds for the Two Tunnels project, which will create a new cycleway and footpath through old rail tunnels to the south of the city.

Before the auction, project founder Gitte Dawson expressed concern over how many people would bid for the unique sculptures, which commemorate the city’s mythical founding father.

But organisers were delighted with the outcome and the auction raised £217,000.

All 70 of the pigs were sold with each going for an average of £3,100 - well over twice the £1,250 reserve price.

From the amount raised for each pig, a quarter goes to the artist while £750 goes back to the firm which sponsored the sculpture.

The rest will go to the tunnel project, suggesting that at the moment it will benefit to the tune of nearly £120,000.

The highest bid received for a single pig was £21,000 for acclaimed artist Sir Peter Blake’s Tattooed pig, which was sponsored by villagers in Wellow, where he once lived.

Two other pigs - Carmina and Pig in Clover - each fetched £6,800.

One of the pig auction's organisers, Sue Yates-Price, said today: “We just did not know what to expect.

“We were worried because of the credit crunch and thought people might not come or might not bid.

“But it all went really smoothly and we are absolutely thrilled to bits.

“We were hoping for high prices because they are unique pieces of art.

“In the end people just wanted a pig and would pay the money for them.”

The remaining 35 pigs will be sold in an online auction at www.kingbladudspigs.org. Final bids will be accepted at noon on November 15.

A plain pig will also be added to the auction so aspiring artists can buy and decorate their own model.

The pig project commemorated the city's legendary founder, King Bladud, whose pigs discovered the healing properties of the area's natural hot spring.