Princess Diana’s ‘Black Sheep’ Sweater Sells for $1.1 M at Sotheby’s – ARTnews.com


A famed red sweater that was worn by Princess Diana sold for $1.14 million at a recent Sotheby’s auction. The colorful jumper, which depicts one black sheep among a crowd of white ones, headlined an online sale called “Fashion Icons.”

The final amount for the sweater blasted past its high estimate of $80,000 and far exceeded the previous record for a garment worn by the former Princess of Wales. That amount was $604,800, more than six times its high estimate, for a deep purple strapless gown designed by Victor Edelstein that was also sold by Sotheby’s in January.

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The knitted garment worn by Diana was created by British designers Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne for the pair’s brand Warm & Wonderful. Diana wore the sweater in June 1981 at a polo match, shortly after she and Prince Charles announced their engagement.

According to Sotheby’s, coverage of Diana wearing the wool item was “the advertisement of a lifetime” for the two-year-old company, and was later credited as giving the small business a “stratospheric launch.” The design was so popular that the American clothing brand Rowing Blazers reissued a cotton version in 2020. It was also featured in the television show The Crown.

Interest in items worn by Diana has skyrocketed, with a rare amethyst cross necklace auctioned by Sotheby’s in London earlier this year. A representative for Kim Kardashian beat four other bidders on the necklace, dubbed the Attallah Cross, worn by Diana at a charity event in October 1987. It sold for £163,800 ($200,000).



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