This could be yours for sixty thousand pounds - not really. Picture: Lisa Ferguson

The prankster responsible for the cheeky advert was eBay user nicelgin, who posted the ad in the ‘For parts or not working’ section.

The page includes a photo of the bridge and a product description.

It reads: “Approximately 50 years old. Used daily until midnight last night. Not structurally sound but has exceptional scrap value.

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Picture: ebay

“Buyer to uplift. It will have dismantled itself by auction end.

“Only those silly enough to bid will not receive any financial return. I have no right to sell this and don’t legally own it.

“If bids are made, every penny will go to the charity of choice of the winning bid.

“I also have lilos and a ferry for sale.”

The ‘For parts or not working’ section on eBay is for items that do “not function as intended or is not fully operational”, which can be those that are “defective in ways that render them difficult to use”, “require service or repair” or those that are “missing essential components”.

At the time of writing the current winning bid is £60,100.

The auction will end on Friday 11 December at just after 5pm.

After a fault was discovered beneath the southbound carriageway the decision was taken to close the bridge while repair work could take place.

Early estimates have the thoroughfare being out of action until January 5 at a cost of £50 million to the Scottish economy.

EBay user nicelgin was overwhelmed by the amount of views his advert received. And while he knows it’s unlikely anyone will actually pay money for something that clearly isn’t his to sell, he has offered the idea of charities receiving donations through the stunt.

He wrote: “There has been an overwhelming response to this advert which is slowly getting out of control.

“I will not hound or be hounded for what should be considered a bit of fun.

“With the view count sitting at 26,000 in 2 days, I am now going to work on something with you all. Scotland has been seriously disrupted by this but at the end of the day it is just an inconvenience. We don’t fall ill as a result but it is nearly Christmas.

“The likelihood of the winning bid actually handing over the money is very slim but would anyone like to help promote a justgiving page that money can be raised for two childrens charities that are close to each side of the bridge. Lets give something to the local charities that put up with our daily commutes.”

The page can be viewed here.