Thatcher portrait that was lost for decades sells for over a thousand pounds at auction

A portrait of Britain's first female Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, was auctioned today for £1,400 after being lost for decades.

It had been expected to go for between £500 - 700.

The portrait, which shows Ms Thatcher seated in a blue dress and includes a brass plaque detailing who it was presented to, was left locked in a storage unit in central London for years.

According to the auctioneers, the seller’s father worked in the waste industry and had been surprised to find a cache of material relating to the former Prime Minister in the early 2000s.

He later took them home as souvenirs and passed them to his son when he died five years ago.

The brass plaque shows that the portrait was presented ‘From a true friend and admirer with sincere best wishes on your birthday, 13th October 1995.'

The dedication was signed by Professor Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, a minister and future Prime Minister of Indonesia.

Ms Thatcher, who was born in Grantham in Lincolnshire, died in 2013.

Also included in the auction were other items found in the storage unit. They included a picture of the former Conservative leader with members of 22 SAS, after the latter stormed the Iranian embassy to free hostages in 1980.

There was also a bronze bust of Ronald Reagan - thought to be one presented to the Prime Minister in 1982. Ms Thatcher had a close relationship with the US President, who made four trips to the UK over the course of his eight year presidency.

It was that that went for the highest amount - £11,700