A model of the original design of Nelson’s Column is to be sold at auction.

The 4ft 6in bathstone model shows how the monument to Horatio Nelson was intended to look before a funding shortfall forced its architect to agree to a scaled-down version. Under William Railton’s 1839 plans, the column would have risen to 62 metres, around nine metres taller than the final version which stands in Trafalgar Square today.

Railton also designed four sets of stairs leading to the base of the monument from all directions, but these were scrapped when the government took control of the project after publicly-raised money ran out. The architect is believed to have sent the model to Lord Lincoln, the Commissioner of the Office of Woods and Forests, as he unsuccessfully made the case for keeping the original design. The UK government insisted on the cost-cutting measures, leaving Railton so frustrated he refused to attend the official unveiling in 1843, auctioneers Bonhams said.