NEW YORK (AP) – A copy of John James Audubon’s “The Birds of America” sold Thursday for $5.6 million at a Christie’s auction, ending three years of legal battles over a decision by a financially strapped Providence, R.I., library to dispose of its most valuable holding.

The Providence Athenaeum is among several nonprofit institutions that have parted with works of art to meet rising costs. The 1838 edition of ornithologist Audubon’s most famous work went to one of two people bidding by telephone, said Christie’s spokeswoman Benedetta Roux, who did not identify the winner. There were no bidders in the auction room, she said.

The complete collection of 435 color engravings of birds in the wild, based on Audubon’s drawings, had been expected to fetch between $5 million and $7 million. The sale figure was $5 million plus a buyer’s premium of $616,000 paid to Christie’s by the purchaser.

Another complete copy of “Birds of America” was sold by Christie’s for $8.8 million in 2000, a record for a printed book sold at auction. Fewer than 120 complete copies of Audubon’s masterwork are known to exist, Christie’s said.

The Athenaeum, founded in 1753 and the fourth-oldest library in the United States, bought the work from Audubon.

It sold the book to raise money for its endowment, which it has tapped in recent years to pay for building repairs and to cover higher expenses – a decision that ignited controversy and legal disputes among its shareholders. A judge ruled in favor of the board, and the Rhode Island state Supreme Court upheld that decision.

On the Net:

Christie’s: http://www.christies.com

Providence Athenaeum: http://www.providenceathenaeum.org/