It may not be as famous as her “revenge dress”, but an eggplant velvet piece is still one of Princess Diana’s most iconic dresses. The late royal wore it both for an official royal portrait in 1991 and for an intimate Vanity Fair release in 1997, shortly before her death.
For the first time in over 25 years, the dress is up for auction and is expected to fetch $120,000 at a Sotheby’s New York sale later this month.
Designed by couturier Victor Edelstein, the strapless gown features a sculptural neckline and a tulip-shaped skirt. It last sold for $24,150 in 1997 during a Christie’s charity auction of 79 dresses donated by Diana.
Collective sales reached $3.25 million (R$ 18.2 million), benefiting AIDS and cancer organizations, including the Royal Marsden Hospital, where she served as president for eight years.
In the Vanity Fair story photographed by Mario Testino, the magazine focused on the auction, calling her decision to sell the dresses “a powerful symbol of her changing life” following her divorce from Prince Charles, as if she was “dismissing a life that never was.”
The Princess of Wales was more reserved when discussing her decision to sell the clothes, saying only that it was “a headache to part with these beautiful dresses”. She told the magazine: “However, I am extremely happy that others can now share in the joy I had using them.”
The purple gown was part of Edelstein’s fall 1989 collection, though he’s been designing custom looks for the princess for more than a decade, according to Sotheby’s.
It was featured in a painting by Douglas Hardinge Anderson in 1991, as well as a Franklin Mint doll in 1998. Edelstein was also behind Diana’s midnight blue “Travolta Dress” – the long velvet dress in which she danced with the actor during the White House – which sold for £264,000 ($347,000) in 2019 to a charity after failing to sell at auction.
This Edelstein dress will be part of Sotheby’s “The One” auction on Jan. 27, featuring other notable fashion and entertainment items, including a ticket to former President John F. Kennedy’s 1962 birthday – where Marilyn Monroe did a serenade for him – and LeBron James’ Miami Heat, jersey from the 2013 NBA Finals.
Source: CNN Brasil
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