Andy Warhol's 1977 canvas of Chinese communist leader Mao Tse-tung was sold for GBP 7.6 million (US $12.7 million) at a Sotheby’s auction in London. In June 2000 the same piece was bagged by a bid of GBP 421,500 ($702,000).

A series of portraits of the late dictator were churned out by Warhol following former US president Nixon’s 1972 visit to China. The painting of a photograph incorporates a red and yellow colour scheme from the palette of the Cultural Revolution.

Head on a Green Sofa, by Lucian Freud, also sold for GBP 2.9 million ($3.22 million) but the top lot was an abstract by Richter entitled “Wand (Wall)”.

The piece sold for GBP 17.4 million pounds against a target of more than 15 million pounds, Sotheby’s said. According to Bloomberg, two phone bidders sought out the 1994 cadmium red and cobalt blue canvas.