A FINE art dealer told a court an LS Lowry-style painting at the centre of a fraud trial is the best copy he has ever seen.

Maurice George Taylor, aged 60, is charged with six counts of fraud relating to a Lowry-style mill street scene painting. He is also charged with one count of forgery relating to an invoice.

Taylor denies knowing the painting was a copy when he sold it for £330,000 to fine art dealer David Smith.

At Chester Crown Court yesterday, Lowry painting specialist Ivan Aird told a jury he was impressed with the painting, but there was a good chance it was not an original.

The court heard that Mr Aird had known Taylor, of Kermincham, near Congleton, for around six years and had sold him a number of paintings including a Lowry drawing and oil painting.

Mr Aird said: "I first became aware of the painting around 20 years ago. It could only be sold 'in the manner of' which means it wasn't an original.

"It had nothing with it. No history. No papers stating where it had been exhibited. It's like having a car with no tax, MOT or log book."

Mr Aird told the court there were a number of aspects to the painting that were not quite right, such as the way the figures bend, the harshness of colour in places and the feature of a lamp post.

He said: "It's got a red lamp post in it and I had never seen a red lamp post in any of Lowry's work so I thought it could never be a Lowry.

"But then I saw a red lamp post in another Lowry original so you just don't know.

"Every artist can do different variations and Lowry's style did change over the years.

"If it is a copy, though, it's the best copy I've ever seen in my life."

Taylor claims that when he bought the mill street scene painting from an art dealer called Martin Heaps, the sale was facilitated by Mr Aird and Mr Aird changed the invoice to pocket £500.

Mr Aird denied this and said the only involvement he had was that he allowed Mr Heaps to drop off the painting at his home for Taylor to look at.

Sion Ap Mihangel, prosecuting, said: "When the defendant produced what looked like the original receipt for the sale of the painting, the word 'after' had been removed and the £7,500 had been scribbled out and replaced with £8,000.

"It will be suggested that it was you who altered the invoice."

But Mr Aird told the court: "Mr Heaps sent an invoice in an email to me.

"Taylor printed off the invoice. He always used to use my computer. I just left him alone.

He said he told Taylor about the painting because he knew he liked Lowrys.

"I said it hadn't got any history so there was a good chance it wasn't a Lowry but if it ended up with history and turned out to be a Lowry he would have won the lottery."

The trial continues.