A SILVER spoon dating from the 15th Century was bought for £4,000 when it came under the hammer at a North-East auction.

The spoon, sold at Anderson and Garland, in Newcastle, was one of the oldest to be auctioned in the city and was one of nine spoons in the sale.

They fetched a total of £12,800 and all but two were snapped up by a leading London silver dealer.

Silver specialist Julian Thompson said: "The spoons, from a Corbridge property, are among the earliest pieces of silver we have auctioned, and attracted national interest because of their rarity."

Earlier in the four-day sale, which concluded on Friday, a painting by Sunderland-born Stanley Thompson realised a record £12,400 for the artist.