British graffiti artist Banksy made his way back into Queens, but then was taken out.
According to reports, the ghost-like and notorious artist, who has been going around New York and leaving various types of art works as part of his one-of-a-kind show titled “Better Out Than In,” created a small replica of the great Sphinx of Giza out of smashed cinderblocks near a mechanic auto shop on 35th Avenue and 127th Street in Willets Point.
The sculpture was reported to be seen early Tuesday but in only a few hours was dismantled onto a truck and taken away.
A driver for the moving company that picked up the Banksy piece on Tuesday said the mechanics of the nearby auto shop asked to have it moved to a home in Ozone Park, where it was placed inside of a garage.
The driver said he was worried about the statue, but was told by the mechanics they would be made responsible for it as they carefully placed the figure inside the truck.
“I didn’t really know what was going on,” said the driver who wished to remain anonymous.
Along with tagging up Manhattan and Brooklyn, Banksy made his first Queens appearance on October 14 in Woodside.
On a blank wall located on 69th Street and 38th Avenue, the artist wrote the quote, “What we do in life echoes in Eternity” from the movie “Gladiator” and stenciled a man trying to wipe off the words. Another graffiti artist painted over the piece that same night.
The artist began his “exhibit” on October 1 with his first piece appearing in Manhattan with reports saying it was on a building in Chinatown. Each day the official website for Banksy, www.banksyny.com, gets updated with images of the new stencils.
On Wednesday, instead of a new piece being published, a post appeared on the artist’s official website that said “Today’s art has been cancelled due to police activity.”
