Princess Diana’s iconic black sheep sweater has just broken a new record in a bidding war at auction in New York.
The red sweater from Warm & Wonderful, which features a white sheep design but only one is black, went down in history as an iconic garment worn by the late Diana Spencer to watch a polo match in 1981.
How much did the black sheep sweater sell for?
Sotheby’s auction house, Sotheby’s, reported that the sweater sold for $1,143,000, but did not state who was the lucky winner of the 15-minute auction.
Notably, Sotheby’s auction house had estimated the sweater to sell for between $50,000-$80,000, but the figure was far surpassed thanks to a last-minute bidding war.
For over forty years, this wool garment had been considered lost, but was finally found by its designers; Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne.
Both found it in a box while rummaging through the attic, Sotheby’s said.
This iconic sweater sparked much speculation because of its possible symbolism. For many, it was a message that Princess Diana wanted to send to the royal family.
The truth is that Diana wore the sweater for the first time before marrying Charles, it was probably one of the first appearances of Lady Di in which she chose her own clothes.
Then Diana wore it again in 1983, already married to the then Prince Charles. For that occasion, she wore it with a black tie.
It should be noted that the sweater Diana wore suffered damage, and then the princess sent it back to the label along with a request for repair.
The auctioned sweater that was found in an attic was the original damaged version, as Muir and Osborne made a new sweater for the Princess of Wales rather than return theirs.
This was not the only record broken by a garment worn by the one-time wife of Charles III. In January of this year, $604,800 was paid for a Victor Edelstein dress that Lady Di wore in an official portrait in 1991 and on a cover of ‘Vanity Fair’ in the early 1990s.
The garments of the mother of Princes William and Harry often fetch large sums of money at the frequent auctions they are the subject of.
Recently, Julien’s Auctions auctioned three of Princess Diana’s dresses and they also exceeded expectations.
Two of the three dresses auctioned were created by designer Catherine Walker and the other dress was by designer Bruce Oldfield and together they fetched an incredible $1,651,000.
There is no doubt, for those who admire Princess Diana’s styling, her dresses are truly priceless treasures.