Princess Diana
Iconic sheep sweater will be auctioned
Princess Diana in 1981 with her iconic sheep sweater.
© Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
It was one of Princess Diana’s most iconic pieces of clothing: the legendary sheep sweater. The original part is now being auctioned off.
With the choice of the sweater from the knitwear brand Warm & Wonderful, Diana triggered huge speculation at the time. The sweater with the sheep comes from the designers Sally Muir and Joanna Osbourne. The latter is also responsible for the find. Some time after Diana’s legendary performance, she received a letter from one of her secretaries asking that the sweater be replaced because the original was damaged. A new sweater was sent, the old one was forgotten until Osbourne stumbled across it again in her attic in February this year.
Sheep sweater is said to fetch between $50,000 and $80,000
The iconic piece will now be auctioned off at a Sotheby’s Fashion Icons auction during New York Fashion Week and is being offered at an estimate of $50,000 to $80,000. Experts suspect that a significantly higher price could be achieved. The special thing about it is that the sweater has never been on the market before and represents a real novelty in the auction world.
Designer Muir also speculates about the symbolism of the “black sheep” in “People” magazine. In her opinion, this was one of the first appearances of the future princess, where she chose her own clothes. It was the beginning of her breakout. “The first time she was a young girl and I think she found it amusing and funny, but the second time she wore it a lot cheekier with a shirt underneath and a black tie and she looked a lot more confident,” adds Osbourne added.
The sheep sweater originally cost $48, but production was discontinued in 1994. The two designers only found out after seeing the photos in the press that Diana had purchased their work and was even wearing it in public. In 1983 the Victoria and Albert Museum in London acquired one of the specimens for its permanent collection. The online auction of the original sweater starts on August 31st and runs until September 14th.