MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Texel “Double Diamond” sold for 350,000 guineas in Lanark

Bidding started at 10000 guineas (some US$ 13,000). Bidding drove up the price until an agreement was reached for the sheep to be shared between three farms.

A young ram was sold for a record 350,000 guineas -- some US$ 490,000 at an auction in Scotland this week. The lamb, named Double Diamond, had generated buzz before the Scottish National Texel sale in Lanark started, according to a news release from the Texel Sheep Society.

Bidding started at 10000 guineas (some US$ 13,000). And a bidding war drove up the price until an agreement was reached for the sheep to be shared between three farms.

“It's just like every other business -- horse racing or the cattle business,” Jeff Aiken, one of the winning bidders, told The Guardian. “Every once in a while something special comes along and yesterday an extra special Texel turned up. Everyone wanted a piece of it.”

Texel sheep originated in Holland and are a butcher favorite, according to the Texel Sheep Society.

It is traditional for livestock to be sold in guineas at auction in the United Kingdom, and one guinea translates to about US$ 1.40. The previous record for one sheep was 230,000 pounds -- some US$ 310,000 for a sheep named Deveronvale Perfection in 2009.