Sidney Nolan's Constable Fitzpatrick and Kate Kelly has seen the highest bids in Bonhams' Important Early Works from the Estate of Sir Sidney Nolan (1917-1992) auction on August 20 in Melbourne.

Nolan is most famous for his works on Ned Kelly, the notorious Australian bushranger

The circa 1973 piece is a tapestry, based on the original 1946 work in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia. It sold for £77,723 ($121,715), as one of just six tapestries hand woven during the Australian artist's career.

The piece originates from Nolan's first series on Ned Kelly, the famed Australian bushranger. The auction record for his work is held by a piece from this series entitled First-Class Marksman, which made $5.4m in 2010.

First-Class Marksman is the only painting from this inaugural series that is not housed in the National Gallery's collection.

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