Banksy’s face mask artwork worth £7.5m scrubbed from London Underground train

Cleaning staff apparently did not realise the significance of the spray-paint before cleaning it away ‘like any other graffiti’

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest creation on the London Underground in an effort to underline the importance of wearing a mask on public transport amid the coronavirus outbreak.

A coronavirus mural painted by world-famous street artist Banksy has been cleaned off a London Underground train, apparently by cleaners who did not understand its significance.

The cleaners did not know who had painted the pro-mask message on the inside of a London Tube train and treated it like any other graffiti, the BBC reported.

Banksy uploaded a video titled If You Don't Mask – You Don't Get on to his Instagram page on Tuesday.

It shows the reclusive artist wearing protective gear and spray-painting pictures of rats sneezing on the inside of the train to illustrate how not wearing a mask helps to spread Covid-19.

It was not immediately clear how long the work was actually on the train.

Joey Syer, from MyArtbroker.com, said the mural could have been worth about £7.5 million (Dh34.6m/$9.4m).

Some people have criticised the cleaners and Tube operator Transport for London for removing the painting, while others praised them for diligently doing their job.

Others suggested the mural was an act of publicity and that Banksy knew the work would not be in place for long.

"It was treated like any other graffiti on the network," a transport authority source said.

"The job of the cleaners is to make sure the network is clean, especially given the current climate.

"We'd like to offer Banksy the chance to do a new version of his message for our customers in a suitable location."

The pro-mask message is in line with official advice that travellers on London public transport should wear masks.

The work includes rats, in Banksy’s usual style.

One image features a rat holding a bottle of antibacterial hand wash, while another shows a rat using a face mask as a parachute.

The video closes with the words, "I get lockdown" painted on to the wall of an Underground station, followed by "but I get up again" sprayed on the inside of a train door.

There have been almost 292,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the UK and more than 45,000 deaths.

The country is emerging from national lockdown orders and trying to reopen its economy.

Last month, Banksy shared a new piece of art on his Instagram page, inspired by the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter protests.

Scroll through more of Banksy's work in the gallery below:

People take pictures of a new Banksy artwork in Islington, London, in March 2024. Getty Images

A work by Banksy is removed in Peckham, south-east London, in December 2023. Getty Images

Graffiti created by British artist Banksy under a protective screen on the damaged wall of a residential building in Irpin, Ukraine in April 2023. Getty Images

An artwork painted on the side of a property in Herne Bay, Kent in March 2023. PA

The artwork by street artist Banksy, titled 'Valentine's Day Mascara' on the side of a building in Margate, Kent in February 2023. PA

A Reveller walks by a graffiti attributed to Banksy as he arrives at Worthy Farm in Somerset during the Glastonbury Festival in June 2022. Reuters

A Banksy artwork in Nottingham in October 2020. Reuters

Show me the Monet by Banksy at Sotheby's Galleries in London in October 2020. AFP

Banksy's Sunflowers From Petrol Station, inspired by Vincent van Gogh. PA

Banksy captioned the photo of this work Game Changer. Photo: Instagram

A customised stab-proof vest by street artist Banksy at the Design Museum in London. EPA

A Banksy stencil posted on Instagram in June 2020, with a caption asking 'What should we do with the empty plinth in the middle of Bristol?' Photo: Instagram

A Banksy piece inspired by the death of George Floyd and subsequent Black Lives Matter protests. Photo: Instagram

Girl with a Pierced Eardrum, in Bristol. Getty

Banksy released a new piece in his bathroom as he worked from home during the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. Photo: Instagram

A Valentine's Day piece by Banksy appeared in Bristol in February 2020. Reuters

A Christmas mural by Banksy in Birmingham, December 2019. The piece made a statement about homelessness. Reuters

Banksy's pop-up shop called Gross Domestic Product in Croydon, London in 2019. AFP

A view of Banksy's migrant child mural, half-submerged in high water in Venice, November 2019. EPA

Devolved Parliament at Sotheby's auction house in London, featuring chimpanzees as MPs in the House of Commons. EPA

A Banksy artwork in Marble Arch, London, at the site of an Extinction Rebellion protest camp. EPA

Love is in the Bin at the Frieder Burda Museum in Baden-Baden, Germany. EPA

There is Always Hope. EPA

Season's Greetings (2018) was painted on a garage in Port Talbot, Wales. Getty

Part of the unauthorised exhibition entitled Banksy, Genius or Vandal? in Madrid, December 2018. EPA

A piece by Banksy, acquired by actor Robin Williams, was among auction items on display in Los Angeles, September 2018. EPA

A Brexit-inspired mural by Banksy in Dover, south-east England. EPA

A veiled woman in mourning beside the Bataclan concert venue in Paris where 90 people where killed by terrorists in November 2015. EPA

An artwork attributed to Banksy showing Napoleon's horse rearing, in Paris, June 2018. EPA

A mural depicting a rat on a popped champagne cork, in Paris, June 2018. EPA

A rat in the inner portion of a clock in New York City, March 2018. EPA

A Banksy mural highlights the imprisonment of Turkish artist and journalist Zehra Dogan, on the Bowery, New York City in February 2019. EPA

A Banksy painting appeared on the first day of the 2017 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. EPA

Flying Copper on display in Berlin. EPA

The Bridge Farm Primary School where a new mural appeared during half term in Withchurch, England. The mural was a thanks to the school for naming a school wing after Banksy. EPA

The Son of a Migrant from Syria depicting Apple's Steve Jobs in the refugee camp called The Jungle in Calais, France. EPA

Dismaland, a temporary exhibition that opened at a derelict seafront lido in Weston-Super-Mare, England in 2015. Getty

Bomb Hugger after it was defaced in Hamburg, February 2015. EPA

Banksy appeared to comment on methods used by Britain's intelligence services with this piece in Cheltenham. EPA

The Twin Towers in Tribeca appeared in New York in 2013. EPA

A mural by Banksy in Queens, New York. EPA

Three years after Hurricane Katrina wrought havoc in the Gulf of Mexico, Banksy created some commemorative pieces in New Orleans, Louisiana. EPA

Another mural by Banksy in New Orleans. EPA

A Banksy in London, May 2008. EPA

A piece to mark Queen Elizabeth II's golden jubilee appeared on Clink Street, near London Bridge, in May 2002. EPA