A DAZZLING ornament belonging to a woman from North Yorkshire is set to earn its owner a fortune - after it was revealed to be the only one of its kind in the world.

The Royal Doulton statuette of a jester, entitled Two Heads Are Better Than One, is a unique piece by Staffordshire craftsman CJ Noake, and has attracted global interest ahead of an auction taking place in Boston Spa next week.

Auctioneer Malcolm Dowson, who spotted the 17-inch jester's worth, claims he has never seen a piece like it in 20 years in the job, and believes "the sky is the limit" when it comes to a price.

It was brought to him by a woman from Sherburn-in-Elmet, near Selby, who asked not to be named, and who received it as a present. She had no idea of the interest it would attract until she showed it to Mr Dowson. "This is going to be an absolutely extraordinary auction," said Mr Dowson.

"This is a piece which is so rare that no-one in the guide books has ever seen it. It was known about, but there were no pictures, no details - no-one even knew how big it was."

The piece has already attracted interest from the United States, Canada and Hong Kong.

Updated: 11:22 Thursday, August 30, 2001