Is this a Banksy mural in Brownhills?

That is the question on the lips of shopkeepers and passers-by in Brickiln Street, where the mysterious mural has materialised.

While reaction to the piece, which is believed to have been created overnight on Sunday, has been good, some are happier about it than others.

Sharon Shardlow, owner of entertainment shop We Pay Cash For, which is just around the corner in High Stteet, said: "I think it's fantastic. It's good graffiti. It's well drawn. There's a lot of detail there.

"It's good for the area. People have been talking about it."

Mark Kay, from Shire Oak, said the graffiti was very striking, adding: "It's brilliant. We've got our very own Brownhills Banksy.

"The council should leave it where it is. I'm sure they will cover it up, but someone has put a lot of effort into this. It really catches your eye."

However, Damien Whittaker, who runs Laptop Traders, was less impressed.

He said: "I find it a bit weird, to be honest. The way it looks, it's like its possessed or something like that.

And one Brownhills, shopper who didn't want to be named, said she thought the artwork looked messy, and that it should be cleaned up.

Bal Moosan, from Crazy House Furniture, said he liked the picture but didn't understand the message behind it.

"A lot of effort has gone into this picture. I'm trying to understand what he's portraying here though.

"Even so, you have to have a lot of talent to do something like this.

"If it's a Banksy painting, obviously we have to keep it.

"If it's someone else, we need to find out who, and not in a negative way.

"The thing about artists is they need to be doing it. Dancers have to move their feet, artists need to paint."

It is not the first time the sudden appearance of graffiti in the West Midlands has been linked to Banksy – the world's best-known-unknown street artist.

A piece in Sutton Coldfield and Kidderminster has also been attributed to the graffiti artist, whose true identity has never been revealed.

Banksy pieces have sold for hundreds of thousands of pounds, with collectors reputedly including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

Owners of the walls on which his artwork have appeared have even cut out chunks of masonry and plaster to remove them for sale.