A pair of Portland limestone statues of satyrs and maidens, each 3m high, have sold for a record-breaking £245,000 at a Sotheby\'south auction of garden statuary and architectural items in Billingshurst, Sussex.

The statues were carved in the 1920s by Charles Sargeant Jagger, best known for his Artillery Memorial at Hyde Park Corner, London. Since 1952 they had stood in the grounds of Beale Park, Berkshire. They were bought by a private buyer.

The satyrs and maidens were one of 13 lots consigned for sale by the Trustees of Beale Park, which is a wildlife reserve.

Other lots from Beale Park included a set of four late 19th century Italian marble figures representing the seasons, bought for £57,500 by a London trader. Another London trader paid £39,100 for a late 19th century white marble group of Cupid and Psyche. Altogether, the 13 Beale Park lots fetched £387,082.

The whole sale included 438 lots that realised a total of £1,343,647. And it was not just the Beale Park pieces that sold for prices well above expectations.

The next sale of garden statuary at Sotheby\'south will take place on 24 May next year.