London Routemaster bus sculptures to be auctioned

About 60 Routemaster bus sculptures will be auctioned for charity later this month, allowing the public to own a unique sculpture of one of the most famous icons in London.

Transport for London (TfL) said on Monday that the Year of Bus sculptures, which first showed in October 2014 as the 60th anniversary of the creation of the bus in London, are now for auction on i-Bidder, an online bidding site, while the live auction event will be held in central London on March 24.

TfL said all proceeds will be donated to Kids Company, a children charity, and Transaid, an international development charity, as well as London Transport Museum.

Each of the sculptures, 2.5 meters long, one meter high and 0.5 meter wide, was painted and adorned by well-known artists with obvious British elements, such as painted by London Eye, Tower Bridge, red telephone boxes and the map of London bus routes, and even one of the Queen's Guard completed with faux bearskin hat.

The bidding website shows each of the opening bid of those sculptures is 1,000 pounds (about 1,511 U.S. dollars).

"The search has begun to find new homes for the Year of the Bus sculptures, which have captured the imaginations of so many in our city. The auction gives individuals and organizations the opportunity to own a unique miniature version of one of the capital's most recognizable icons while raising money for three admirable charities at the same time," said Leon Daniels, managing director of Surface Transport at TfL.

It said the live auction will be the conclusion of the celebrations of Year of the Bus. Endit