Robinson Mitchell was an English auctioneer who pioneered the auctioning system which is widely used today, as he realised taking bids from buyers was more efficient than the haggling between individuals which went on before. At

Cockermouth Cockermouth is a market town and civil parish in the Cumberland unitary authority area of Cumbria, England. The name refers to the town's position by the confluence of the River Cocker into the River Derwent. At the 2021 census, the built u ...

in 1865, he set up what is believed to be the first purpose-built livestock auction market in the country. The business he founded moved their livestock operation out of town in 2002. Sainsbury's acquired the vacated site and paid for this statue, by sculptor Liz Gwyther, to be erected outside the supermarket. It has suffered persistent and expensive vandalism – a hand with a pointing finger has been lopped off the left arm, and a

gavel A gavel is a small ceremonial mallet/hammer commonly made of hardwood, typically fashioned with a handle. It can be used to call for attention or to punctuate rulings and proclamations and is a symbol of the authority and right to act officially ...

prized away from the right. A photo of how the statue used to look can be seen on the Cockermouth website.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Robinson British auctioneers Year of birth missing Year of death missing People from Cockermouth