The 1904 Ivel tractor was sold by the widow of a tractor collector and restorer in Western Australia.
It is believed to be an Australian auction record.
The tractor was restored by mid-west farmers John and Sue Illingworth, who collected more than 150 tractors.
The auction was part of a sale of more than 150 vintage tractors and machinery on September 25.
This collection was assembled over 50 years, with a highlight being the first commercially produced tractor in the world, the 1904 Ivel agricultural motor tractor.
This tractor is one of only eight left in existence, with other examples scattered around the globe, including one in the Science Museum in London.
Mr Illingworth was born in the United Kingdom and was one of the first people in his district to apply for a tractor for ploughing, which was still carried out by horses at the time.
He migrated to Australia and established a sheep and wheat farm near Arrino, in the Three Springs region.
Mr and Mrs Illingworth spent weekends searching for tractors that had been decommissioned years earlier and were languishing in barns, sheds and even fields.
The collection grew to such an extent, that they constructed a ‘super shed’ to house the collection on the farm, and built up a reputation among the vintage tractor community.
Following the death of her husband, Mrs Illingworth decided it was time for the collection to be passed onto new custodians, with the hope the new owners will get as much enjoyment from them as they had.
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