King Kong figurine sells for �120,000 in London

A figurine used to make King Kong come to life in the 1933 film sold for more than 120,000 pounds Tuesday in London, Christie's auction house said.

The metal skeleton standing just 22-inches (56-centimetres) high was the base for the giant gorilla used in the movie's climax at the top of the Empire State Building in New York.

An anonymous bidder bought the model for 121,250 pounds (134,224 euros, 200,305 dollars), Christie's said.

"This King Kong armature was instrumental in filming one of the most recognisable sequences in cinema history, and as such it is an exceptional relic of film memorabilia," said Neil Roberts, the firm's head of popular memorabilia.

The armature, which has ball and socket joints, was once covered in cotton and rubber to form muscles, a latex covering for skin and then rabbit fur, for the movie, which wowed audiences at the time with its special effects.