BANKSY
HMV, 2003
aka His Master’s Voice, or Rocket Dog
Screenprint in black on wove paper
Sheet: 35×50 cm (13 5/8 x 19 1/2 inches)
Printer & Publisher: Pictures on Walls, London
Editions: 600 unsigned, 150 signed

Signature and Numbering
Numbered in pencil lower right
Most have the BANKSY tag in Red ink (mostly on the left)
Very rarely the BANKSY tag is in Black ink

Auction Market Overview

Among Banksy’s earliest and most recognizable print releases, HMV occupies a distinctive place within the artist’s oeuvre. Released in 2003 as an unsigned edition of 600, the image appropriates the famous His Master’s Voice logo, replacing the obedient dog listening to a gramophone with a dog staring into the barrel of a tank-mounted cannon. It is a characteristically efficient Banksy intervention: a globally recognizable commercial image transformed into a critique of authority, militarism, and passive acceptance. More than two decades after its release, HMV remains one of the artist’s most accessible early prints and provides a revealing case study of how the Banksy print market expanded, overheated, corrected, and ultimately stabilized.

Unlike some of Banksy’s later and more emotionally charged images, HMV belongs to the artist’s formative period, when visual wit and graphic clarity were often deployed as direct political commentary. The image combines anti-war sentiment, anti-establishment humor, and corporate détournement in a manner that feels unmistakably Banksy. It also benefits from being visually simple, instantly recognizable, and easy to display, characteristics that have historically supported liquidity in the secondary market.

Before the Boom: 2019

Before the extraordinary expansion of the Banksy market, HMV traded at relatively modest levels. During 2019, the unsigned edition achieved a median auction price of approximately $11,650, with results generally ranging between $9,770 and $15,000. Liquidity was already healthy, with six recorded sales across multiple auction houses.

This period is particularly important because it represents the last genuinely pre-boom market environment. Prices reflected collector recognition rather than speculative enthusiasm. Collectors appreciated the image for its historical importance within Banksy’s print catalogue, but demand remained measured and rational. At this stage, HMV was viewed primarily as an accessible early Banksy rather than a vehicle for aggressive capital appreciation.

Pandemic Expansion: 2020

The pandemic fundamentally altered the trajectory of the Banksy print market. Online auctions expanded participation, bidding became increasingly international, and collectors who previously focused on traditional contemporary art began entering the street-art sector in significant numbers.

HMV benefited dramatically from this broader market expansion. The median price surged from approximately $11,650 in 2019 to more than $66,000 in 2020. Such a move was extraordinary even by Banksy standards. Three sales above $66,000 occurred during the second half of the year, culminating in a Bonhams result exceeding $84,000 in December 2020.

The speed of this appreciation demonstrated that buyers were no longer simply valuing the image itself. Rather, they were beginning to treat Banksy prints as a distinct asset class within the contemporary art market. Scarcity, brand recognition, and cultural relevance converged to produce a rapid repricing of many early editions.

Peak Market Conditions: 2021

If 2020 represented acceleration, 2021 represented outright exuberance. The unsigned HMV market recorded seventeen auction sales, the highest annual liquidity observed in this dataset. The median price remained above $42,000, while several results exceeded $65,000 and the strongest example achieved more than $81,000.

This period reflected the peak of collector enthusiasm for Banksy prints. Demand was exceptionally broad, competition was intense, and buyers frequently appeared willing to prioritize acquisition over valuation discipline. The image’s early publication date, combined with its relatively modest edition size compared to certain later releases, further reinforced its appeal.

Importantly, the large number of transactions demonstrates that these prices were not generated by a handful of isolated trophy sales. Liquidity remained substantial throughout the year, confirming that demand extended across a broad collector base.

Correction and Stabilization: 2022–2023

The correction that followed should not be interpreted as a rejection of the image. Rather, it represented the normalization of a market that had advanced too far too quickly.

During 2022, the median price declined to approximately $31,750. Although significantly below the highs of 2020 and 2021, the work continued to trade regularly, with eleven recorded sales. Several examples still achieved results above $40,000, illustrating that collector demand had not disappeared entirely.

The adjustment continued during 2023, when the median fell further to approximately $21,850. Buyers became noticeably more selective, and condition, provenance, auction venue, and estimate discipline once again became meaningful factors in determining price. The market began differentiating more clearly between exceptional examples and ordinary examples, a hallmark of a maturing collecting category.

Current Market Position: 2024–2025

The most recent data suggests that HMV has now entered a period of relative stabilization. The median auction price stood at approximately $19,130 in 2024 and approximately $16,070 in 2025. While these figures remain dramatically below the speculative highs recorded during the boom, they continue to sit meaningfully above the pre-pandemic baseline.

Measured from the 2019 median of roughly $11,650, the current market remains approximately 38% higher despite experiencing one of the sharpest corrections among Banksy’s unsigned editions. From another perspective, the market has surrendered roughly three-quarters of the gains achieved during the frenzy of 2020 and early 2021.

This pattern is increasingly common across the broader Banksy market. Prices have returned to levels that appear sustainable relative to collector demand, while liquidity remains sufficiently healthy to provide reliable market transparency.

Liquidity Analysis

Liquidity remains one of the most attractive characteristics of HMV. The dataset contains fifty-four auction transactions between 2019 and 2025, representing approximately $1.85 million in cumulative auction turnover.

For an unsigned Banksy edition of 600, this level of activity is significant. It places HMV among the more frequently traded early Banksy prints and provides collectors with a relatively deep body of comparable transactions. Unlike thinner markets where a single sale can distort perception, HMV offers sufficient trading volume to establish a credible market consensus.

The highest level of liquidity occurred during 2021, when seventeen examples appeared at auction. Although transaction volumes have moderated since then, activity remains steady enough to support price discovery and collector confidence.

Market Interpretation

The auction history of HMV reveals a work that participated fully in the Banksy boom and subsequent correction, yet retained a meaningful portion of its long-term appreciation. Unlike images such as Girl with Balloon or Love Is In The Air, HMV does not benefit from universal cultural recognition outside the art market. Nevertheless, it possesses several qualities that continue to attract collectors: an early release date, a clear political message, strong graphic design, and direct links to Banksy’s formative visual language.

The image also occupies an interesting position within the artist’s broader catalogue. It shares with Barcode an interest in subverting commercial imagery and corporate identity, while anticipating the sharper institutional critiques that would later culminate in works such as Morons. In this sense, HMV functions as an important bridge between Banksy’s early anti-establishment interventions and the more sophisticated conceptual works that followed.

Current pricing suggests that the market now views HMV as a solid secondary-tier Banksy icon rather than a speculative growth story. That distinction may actually strengthen its long-term investment profile. Markets tend to become healthier when prices are supported by collector conviction rather than momentum.

Key Takeaways

The auction history of HMV unsigned encapsulates the entire modern Banksy market cycle. The work advanced from a relatively stable pre-pandemic valuation, experienced a dramatic repricing during the boom years, corrected sharply after 2021, and has now entered a more rational phase characterized by narrower price dispersion and steady liquidity.

While the spectacular gains of 2020 and 2021 are unlikely to be repeated in the near future, the current market appears considerably healthier than the one that produced them. For collectors, the appeal of HMV lies not only in its affordability relative to Banksy’s most famous images, but also in its historical significance as one of the artist’s earliest and most effective appropriations of popular culture. More than twenty years after its release, the image continues to demonstrate that a simple visual joke can sometimes carry remarkable staying power, both artistically and commercially.

HMV (unsigned)

2025 Auction Results

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 287/600

Deutscher and Hackett: 26 November 2025 Melbourne, AUSTRALIA Estimated: AUD 20,000 – 30,000

AUD 24,545 GBP 12,000 / USD 15,885

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Forum Auctions: 15 October 2025 London, UK Estimated: GBP 8,000 – 12,000

GBP 8,200 (Hammer) GBP 10,818 / USD 14,495

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

SBI Art Auction: 12 July 2025 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 1,500,000 – 2,500,000

JPY 2,415,000 GBP 12,450 / USD 16,385

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 323/600

Lyon & Turnbull: 26 March 2025 London, UK Estimated: GBP 10,000 – 15,000

GBP 12,600 GBP 12,600 / USD 16,255

2024 Auction Results

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# Lots sold: 8 Lots
Average Price:
GBP 14,525 / USD 18,715

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Forum Auctions: 4 December 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 8,000 – 12,000

GBP 11,000 (Hammer) GBP 14,740 / USD 19,135

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Forum Auctions: 29 October 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 10,000 – 15,000

GBP 10,000 (Hammer) GBP 13,400 / USD 17,395

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 37/600

Christie’s online: 1 October 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 10,000 – 15,000

GBP 15,120 GBP 15,120 / USD 20,110

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 285/600

Tate Ward Auctions: 18 September 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000

GBP 15,000 GBP 15,000 / USD 19,485

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Tate Ward Auctions: 19 June 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000

GBP 15,000 GBP 15,000 / USD 19,125

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

New Auction: 27 April 2024 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 1,800,000 – 2,800,000

JPY 2,645,000 GBP 13,155 / USD 16,700

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 350/600

Christie’s online: 26 March 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 10,000 – 15,000

GBP 17,640 GBP 17,640 / USD 22,370

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 250/600

Bonhams online: 20 March 2024 London, UK Estimated: GBP 8,000 – 12,000

GBP 12,160 GBP 12,160 / USD 15,420

2023 Auction Results

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# Lots Sold: 4 Lots
# Lots Passed: 3 Lots
Average Price:
GBP 16,730 / USD 21,065

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 427/600

Bonhams London: 20 September 2023 London, UK Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000

GBP 11,520 GBP 11,520 / USD 14,055

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

SBI Art Auction: 15 July 2023 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 2,000,000 – 3,000,000

JPY 3,680,000 GBP 20,250 / USD 26,515

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

SBI Art Auction: 26 May 2023 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 2,500,000 – 3,500,000

JPY 2,875,000 GBP 16,425 / USD 20,445

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Mainichi Auction Tokyo: 18 May 2023 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 2,000,000 – 3,000,000

JPY 3,220,000 GBP 18,730 / USD 23,250

 

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 427/600

Bonhams London: 20 September 2023 Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000 PASSED

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Tate Ward Auctions: 14 September 2023 Estimated: GBP 14,000 – 18,000 PASSED

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Tate Ward Auctions: 14 September 2023 Estimated: GBP 14,000 – 18,000 PASSED

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: Aside

LA Modern: 11 January 2023 Estimated: USD 15,000 – 25,000 PASSED

2022 Auction Results

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# Lots Sold: 11 Lots
# Lots Passed: 1 Lot
Average Price:
GBP 26,535 / USD 33,805

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HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

SBI Art Auction: 28 October 2022 Tokyo, JAPAN Estimated: JPY 2,000,000 – 3,000,000

JPY 3,910,000 GBP 22,875 / USD 26,515

 

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 460/600 DN

Bonhams London: 21 September 2022 London, UK Estimated: GBP 15,000 – 20,000

GBP 19,125 GBP 19,125 / USD 21,670

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: XXX/600

Forum Auctions: 1 September 2022 London, UK Estimated: GBP 12.000 – 18,000

GBP 15,000 (Hammer) GBP 20,100 / USD 23,185

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 192/600

Sotheby’s online: 17 August 2022 London, UK Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000

GBP 25,200 GBP 25,200 / USD 30,240

HMV (unsigned), 2003 Edition: 458/600 DN

Bonhams London: 27 April 2022 London, UK Estimated: GBP 15,000 – 20,000

GBP 21,037 GBP 21,037 / USD 26,505

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# Lots Sold: 17 Lots
# Lots Passed: 1 Lot
Average Price:
GBP 37,085 / USD 51,110

2018 Auction Results

HMV (signed)

 

HMV (signed), 2003 Edition: 59/150

Bonhams London: 11 November 2021 London, UK Estimated: GBP 40,000 – 60,000

GBP 62,750 GBP 62,750 / USD 84,715

HMV (signed), 2003 Edition: Aside Inscribed ‘Chu’ and dedicated with a gift sign in pencil

Forum Auctions: 27 October 2020 England, UK Estimated: GBP 50,000 – 70,000

GBP 62,000 (Hammer) GBP 80,400 / USD 106,130 AUCTION RECORD FOR HMV (SIGNED)