An eco-house in the Cotswolds, UK, has sold off-plan for a record-breaking £7.2m for a country house.
The house, modelled on the Bee orchid found nearby, is the size of an average semi-detached.
At £3,000 pounds per square foot, it is a world record price for a country home.
Expected to take three years to build, Orchid House was designed by Featherstone Associates, which is also designing part of the 2012 London Olympic athletes' village.
Orchid House will be part of the Lower Mill Estate, built on a 550-acre privately-owned nature reserve near Cirencester.
It is hoped it will produce more energy than it uses, with an underground pump and geothermal heating.
The mystery buyer, reportedly in the entertainment industry, is spending around £2m of the £7.2m on the interior.
The house will feature laminated veneer lumbar ribs and timber shingle cladding.
By Elizabeth Clifford-Marsh
