Peckham Rock

In 2005, Banksy installed a piece of concrete in The British Museum’s Roman Britain gallery. A bison, a person who looks like they have spikes protruding from their back, and a supermarket shopping wagon are drawn in marker on the concrete. Entitled Peckham Rock, the installation mimicked standard museum practice with a label that had a title, description, and even a fake identification (accession) number. The label read,

“This finely preserved example of primitive art dates from the Post-Catatonic era and is thought to depict early man venturing towards the out-of-town hunting grounds. The artist responsible is known to have created a substantial body of work across the South East of England under the moniker Banksymus Maximus but little else is known about him. Most art of this type has unfortunately not survived. The majority is destroyed by zealous municipal officials who fail to recognize the artistic merit and historical value of daubing on walls.”

Peckham Rock remained in the gallery for three days until museum took it down when they learned about it through Banksy’s own website.

This postcard was available to buy in The British Museum's gift shop in 2018 when the original work went on sale in the Ian Hislop curated 'I Object' exhibition and comes with a copy of the original receipt.

Year first published: 2018

Technique: Wooden postcard

Classification: Open Edition

Dimensions: 18cm(h) x 2cm(w) x 0.2cm(d)

Condition: Mint

Framing: Sold unframed