London (AFP) -- A print of English poet William Blake's most famous poem "The Tyger" sold at auction for 228,600 pounds ($304,519) Wednesday, British auction house Christie's said.
The "exceptionally rare" print comes from the first issue of Blake's "Songs Of Experience," dating from around 1794.
The fee far exceeded its pre-sale estimate of 80,000-120,000 pounds and set a new record at auction for a Blake print, Christie's said.
It was snapped up by an anonymous buyer after more than two minutes of "fiercely competitive bidding" at Christie's headquarters in London.
"This is a notable period of time for competitive bidding on a work at auction," a Christie's spokesperson said.
"The Tyger" is one of the most anthologized poems in the English language.
Seven other prints from his "Songs Of Experience" work were also on sale at Wednesday's auction.
The group of eight works went for a combined total of 680,720 pounds to different buyers.
"William Blake's visionary words and images, seen so beautifully in this rare collection of color relief etchings, from one of the earliest issues of his collection of poems Songs of Experience, continue to fire the imagination," said Murray Macaulay, Christie's Head of Prints Europe, after the sale.
Largely unrecognized during his lifetime, Blake (1757-1827) is now viewed as a towering figure in English literature and art.
The print that sold for the record fee Wednesday once belonged to "The Wind in the Willows" author Kenneth Grahame.
