Earliest paintings of Peter Rabbit sold for £40,000

Two watercolours by Beatrix Potter of embryonic versions of two of her best- loved characters were sold at auction yesterday for more than £40,000. The previously unseen illustrations of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny were probably intended as Christmas cards when they were drawn in 1892 or 1893 but were never published.

The first painting, in which the two characters are building a snowman, went under the hammer at Bonhams auctioneers for £21,510. The second watercolour, which featured them on the verge of a snowball fight, sold for £19,120. Melanie Way, a book specialist at Bonhams, said: "They are very early illustrations and the characters seem very similar to the famous Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny. Having an original illustration is a collector's dream."

The paintings were bought by a books dealer called Jonkers, which specialises in Potter's work. Sam Jonkers, who is based in Henley-on-Thames, said: "The illustrations are really unusual."

The paintings were created about 10 years before Potter published her first book, Peter Rabbit. The book began life in 1893 as a picture letter to her former governess. Seven years later, Potter decided it would make a good book for children and it was published in 1902. She went on to create about 20 other children's stories involving animals.