Princess Margaret jewellery auction raises millions

Wed, 14 Jun 2006

The personal belongings of Princess Margaret are being sold by her children, to raise money to pay £3 million inheritance tax on her estate.

Belongings including jewellery and furniture went up for sale at Christie’s auction house in London . The sale has been a controversial one with rumours of Lord Snowdon being unhappy about some of the items being put forward for auction.

The auction started yesterday and has already raised £10 million, with some of the proceeds going to the Princess Margaret Fund at the Stroke Association and other charities .

Among the items was the Princesses cigarette case which sold for over £100,000. A 9ct gold Cartier case with a sapphire clasp which was given to her by King George VI in 1949 was estimated at being sold for up to £5,000. The actual price it sold for was £102,000. The famous diamond wedding tiara sold yesterday for £926,000 and a romantic portrait of the late Princess painted by Pietro Annigoni in 1957 were also sold at the auction.

The sale today included a wooden chair that belonged to Queen Mary with velvet upholstery which was made especially for the Coronation in 1937. The estimate given was £300 - £500 but it in fact sold for £38,000.

A short statement from Buckingham Palace confirmed that the Queen was told of the sale and of which items were to be sold.
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