A provocative artwork by  graffiti artist Banksy is going up for sale again, after  a dispute that saw it removed from the side of a shop in north London.

The  stencil work “Slave Labour – (Bunting Boy)”  has been restored and will be sold through a private exhibition and sale at the London Film Museum on June 2nd.

 The piece vanished in  February, leaving a patch of exposed brick that was quickly plastered over.  The work  soon turned up for auction in Miami carrying a pre-sale estimate of $500,000 to $700,000 US.

The work depicts a young boy sewing Union Jack bunting on an antique sewing machine. It appeared on a wall of a thrift shop  last May, around the time of the celebrations surrounding Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee.

Area councillor Alan Strickland says residents feel  very strongly that the piece was given freely by Banksy to the area, that  it belongs to the community and it should be returned .

He says if the sale goes ahead – “every piece of street art will have its price.”