BANKSY (British Street Artist, b. 1974). ’Rat with Placard’ (London, 2004) Stencil and spraypaint on plywood Size: 70 cm x 48 cm (27.5 x 18.9 in)Estimate : 70,000 - 90,000 euro CONDITION: Excellent and Authentic(Please refer to department for Condition report) DESCRIPTION: This ubiquitous image by the artist, depicts a rat clutching a large blank placard on the end of a pole and around his neck is a large peace (CND) symbol necklace. Produced on a piece of 12mm plywood, a number of renderings of this image were produced around London and Brighton in 2003/4, with many of them being produced without any text on the placard, inviting contributors to fill the available space with whatever they wished, which invariably they did in short order. Surviving examples of this stencil without any text on the placard, we believe to be extremely rare. PROVENANCE: Originally located on the exterior of a newsagent’s shop near the corner of Gray’s Inn Road and Calthorpe St, this example was salvaged by the current owners shortly after it was produced and was subsequently box framed, securing its excellent, age related original condition. The owners’ home featured in an interiors piece in Elle Decoration in December 2004 (No.148) in which the piece can be seen. A copy of this magazine is included in the lot sale. NOTE:- The internationally recognised peace symbol was designed in 1958 by Gerald Holtom, a British graphic designer who trained at the Royal College of Art, and was originally designed as the symbol for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament used by British anti-nuclear activists. It was later embraced by anti Vietnam War demonstrators and became a generic peace symbol recognised worldwide.