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(CNN) - A British artist is challenging the sale of a “stolen” statue of Banksy, which could be sold at auction for 1 million pounds ($ 1.3 million).
Banksy's "The Drinker" is described by the Sotheby's auction house as a "subversive recreation" of "The Thinker" by Auguste Rodin, a bare and thoughtful bronze sculpture.
Adorned with a traffic cone like a hat, "The Drinker", made of industrial materials, was originally erected near Shaftesbury Avenue in 2004, before artist Andy Link, the leader of the Art Keida art group, "stole it" , according to Sotheby's.
Link, also known by the nickname AK47, told CNN that the statue had been "abandoned and rejected" by Banksy.
"The Drinker" by Banksy is a "subversive recreation" of "The Thinker" by Auguste Rodin.
"I did it as a trick, a joke," Link said in a telephone interview, adding that he made efforts to return the statue to the artist, and contacted the police to see if it had been reported lost or stolen.
The statue remained unclaimed, so Link said he kept it until 2007, when it was taken from his garden. Link said he reported the robbery to the police and recorded the loss in an art theft record.
The sculpture will be auctioned by Sotheby's in London on Tuesday. It is expected to obtain between 750,000 and 1 million pounds (970,000 to 1.3 million dollars).
According to Sotheby's, the work was "mysteriously recovered" by Art Kieda in an "anonymous robbery," and then acquired by its current owner in 2014.
"We are satisfied that the consignor has the right to sell the work and part of our due diligence prior to the sale, we consulted both the Metropolitan Police and the Lost Art Registry," the auction house told CNN in a statement.
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But Link argues that the statue still belongs to him and claims that he has original police documents proving his property.
The artist said he told Sotheby's that art ownership is claimed.
The enmity between the two artists was news and in 2016, the movie “The Banksy Job”, followed how the sculpture saga developed.
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The London metropolitan police told CNN on Sunday that there is no active criminal investigation into the matter.
CNN has contacted Banksy representatives to comment.
Banksy
