A Land Rover, which once belonged to former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, has been auctioned for a whopping price of £129,000 at an event in Elean Business Park, UK.
The Land Rover was gifted to Churchill on his 80th Birthday on Nov 30, 1954, and he had used it drive around his Chartwell estate in Kent. At the time of the auction, organizers expected a sale of 60,000 pounds, reported BBC.
It was registered in the name of "Rt Hon Sir Winston Spencer Churchill KG. OM. CH. MP. Chartwell, Westerham, Kent".
Churchill's vehicle, which marked 12,932 miles on the clock, was sold with the original logbook. The Land Rover was the most expensive item sold during the auction which featured several other products like motorbikes and cars.
"Make no mistake, this Land Rover is known by aficionados in the Land Rover world and the Winston Churchill world," Jeremy Curzon from auctioneers Cheffins said, according to Ely Standard 24.
"We are suitably thrilled at being given the opportunity to sell it. There has been a lot of interest from buyers all over the world," he added.
The 1954 Series 1 Land Rover features an extra-wide passenger seat, a padded fold down arm rest and heated footwell. The vehicle was modified by adding fitted box to keep Churchill's trowel.
The Land Rover used by Churchill was passed to his son-in-law Christopher Soames after his death. He used the Land Rover on his farm near Tonbridge Wells. In 1973 Soames auctioned the vehicle for £160 to Norman Mills.
Mills asked the help of his neighbour Frank Quay to take the land rover to his home town. Surprised by the historical importance of the Land Rover, Quay offered twice the auction price to Mills and bought the vehicle. He kept the vehicle in a shed since 1977. Although an earlier attempt was made to sell the vehicle, it was cancelled due to technical difficulties.
