This Meaningful Dress of Princess Diana's Sells for $520,000 at Auction
Diana wore this recognizable floral frock on multiple occasions.
The Gist
- A dress owned by Princess Diana fetched over half a million at auction.
- Julien's organized the Princess Diana's Style & A Royal Collection sale.
- Diana wore the "Caring Dress" on multiple occasions between 1988 and 1992.
One of Princess Diana's dresses sold for over half a million dollars on Thursday. Her recognizable Belville Sassoon shift was put on the block as part of a charity auction of her clothing and accessories, which was organized by Julien's.
Renae Plant, founder and curator of The Princess Diana Museum, secured the frock for a total of $520,000, far surpassing its estimated sale price of $300,000.
Entitled Princess Diana’s Style & A Royal Collection, the auction was held at the Peninsula Beverly Hills in Los Angeles. Over 300 units were for sale, including multiple looks that hit the market for the very first time.
While royal rewears are relatively common today, Diana flouted protocol at the time by sporting her Belville Sassoon dress on several occasions. Diana's daughters-in-law, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, have since following her sustainable style footsteps.
Between 1988 and 1992, Diana wore the blue crepe-de-chine number for many hospital visits, which is how it earned its nickname: the "Caring Dress." Featuring puff sleeves and a gathered bodice, its silhouette is emblematic of the era's bold trends.
"It was colorful, approachable, likeable and huggable," Julien’s co-founder and executive director Martin Nolan told People. "When she would go to visit kids and people in the hospital, they gravitated toward the colors and felt they could hug her."
Diana has worn the "Caring Dress" in multiple countries, including Australia, Brazil, Nigeria, Spain, and of course, the United Kingdom.
