Princess Diana’s engagement portrait shirt might fetch £79,000

Nov 26, 2023 at 6:52 PM
Princess Diana’s engagement portrait shirt might fetch £79,000

A shirt worn by Diana, the Princess of Wales, for her engagement portrait is up for public sale.

Worn by the royal for her portrait in 1981, the pink crepe shirt has a ruff-like collar and free pleats to the entrance.

Julien’s Auctions has put Diana’s garment up for public sale and estimated its worth to be between $80,000 (£63,490) and $100,000 (£79,360).

In 2019, the shirt was on show at Kensington Palace as a part of the exhibition Diana: Her Fashion Story.

It was created by David and Elizabeth Emanuel – who later went on to design Diana’s marriage ceremony robe for her marriage to King Charles, the then-Prince of Wales – and was captured by royal photographer Lord Snowdon.

The National Portrait Gallery stated the image, printed in Vogue journal, coincided with the official announcement of the engagement of Charles and Diana in February 42 years in the past.

Julien’s Auctions and TCM Present: Hollywood Legends can be held in Beverly Hills, California, and on-line from 14 to 17 December.

A pink crepe blouse worn by Diana, Princess of Wales for her engagement portrait in 1981
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Worn by Diana for her engagement portrait in 1981, the pink crepe shirt has a ruff-like collar

An night gown, additionally worn by Diana, can be accessible on the identical public sale.

Designed by Moroccan-born designer Jacques Azagury, it was worn in Florence, Italy, in April 1985 and is estimated to be price between $100,000 and $200,000 (£158,720).

It comes after the royal’s famous black sheep jumper fetched a record-breaking $1.1m (£904,495) in September.

The auctioneer Sotheby’s stated bidding for the sweater jumped from $190,000 (£150,754) to its closing worth after a 15-minute bidding battle.

it was initially supplied with an estimate of between $50,000 to $80,000.

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Nezha Bernoussi, marketing and communication associate at Sotheby's looks at Princess Diana's jumper on display
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Diana’s black sheep jumper fetched a record-breaking $1.143m (£904,495) in September

It was found in an attic in March by designer Joanna Osborne, and encompasses a whimsical black sheep amongst white ones.

It can also be among the many preliminary designs by Osborne and Sally Muir for Warm and Wonderful knitwear, which was based in 1979.

The garment broke the report set by Diana’s Victor Edelstein aubergine night robe, which bought for $604,800 in January.