Giant Banksy pub rat to be painted over

Photo by Paul Stevenson

Remember that dilapidated pub in Liverpool that sold at auction this week for £114,000? And how most people assumed that it sold for that price because there is a huge rat painted by Banksy on the outside of the pub worth at least £114,000? Turns out, the buyers plan to knock the pub down, artwork included. It’s a shame really. Sure, nobody expects street pieces to last forever, but this is a well-executed and well-preserved piece. It seems nuts that a developer would just knock it down.

The buyer said this to The Telegraph:

“I’m not a fan of modern art, I can’t say I know much about it really”



I’d urge somebody to start a campaign to save this piece, if only I could think of any logical way for it to be preserved (could they cover it in a layer of anti-graffiti paint?). After all, it just takes one jerk with a can of spray paint to destroy the entire thing.