Golden cow up for auction

Artist Damien Hirst is releasing a new collection of work for auction, reports the Independent.

The collection is entitled Beautiful Inside My Head Forever and the focus of auction will be the The Golden Calf.

For the piece Mr Hirst set a real bull in formaldehyde and then crowned its head with a solid gold disc.

The hooves and horns are cast in 18-carat gold and the entire 2.15-metre-tall piece is inside a gold-plated box.

With the auction planned for September at Sotheby's, the newspaper reported that the piece may fetch up to £12 million.

According to the Independent the artist has never put a collection straight to auction before, without first going to galleries or art dealers.

"Although there is risk involved, I embrace the challenge of selling my work in this way," said Mr Hirst.

Earlier this month television personality Chris Evans was in the news after he accidentally gave away a piece of Damien Hirst artwork to a charity shop.