Sgt Pepper doll sells for £30,000 at auction

A doll that featured on the cover of The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper album has sold at auction for £30,000.

The doll of Hindu goddess Lakshmi might be overlooked, but it was one of several props used in the unforgettable pop art cover and can be seen, front and centre, under the word “Beatles”.

The piece of pop history had a pre-sale estimate of £6,000 but sold for five times that figure.

The cover for Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was designed by pop artists Peter Blake and Jann Haworth.

It features John, Paul, George and Ringo dressed as Sgt Pepper’s band with a tableau of celebrities and historical figures behind them.