The biggest auction of Princess Diana’s memorabilia since 1997, when the late princess sold dozens of outfits months before her death gets underway in California this week.
“Princess Diana’s Elegance & A Royal Collection,” brings together some of the style maven’s favourite designers, including Victor Edelstein, Murray Arbeid and Catherine Walker.
The auction is being organised by Julien’s Auctions. Following the sale of one of Diana’s evening dress for more than a $ 1.1 Million in December, co-founder of Julien’s Auctions Martin Nolan said that interest in selling more of her garments has skyrocketed.
“Because of that record amount, you’re got press, then of course, people started to come to us and say, ‘We have this to sell, we have that to sell,'” Nolan said. “So we built this sale. We’re still building it, in fact.”
More than 150 items will be on the auction block at Julien’s Auctions, and Nolan said people can start bidding on their, ahead of the online and in-person sale on June 27.
Highlights include Arbeid’s blue diamante ball gown, which the princess wore in 1986 to the London premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom of the Opera,” and a magenta lace dress by Edelstein.
Both pieces are expected to fetch up to $400,000, according to Julien’s Auctions
Diana was known for her fashion and how it was an instrument to express herself. Bethan Holt, fashion director at The Telegraph, told TODAY, that before her death in August 1997, she had used fashion to send messages “in so many ways.”
“You could really tell when she was feeling happy or feeling sad depending on the clothes that she was wearing,” Holt said. “You could tell when she was feeling brave you could really relate to Diana through the clothes that she wore.”
