Princess Diana gowns go under hammer in America

Five dresses designed for and worn by Britain’s late Princess Diana have gone under the hammer in Los Angeles for a total of nearly half a million dollars. Three of the gowns were made by British dressmaker Catherine Walker, Diana’s favourite designer and close personal friend, as well as one by Caroline Charles and anothe r by Zandra Rhodes. The Catherine Walker dresses all fetched within or just above their estimated price of between $60,000 and $80,000. An off-the-shoulder petal pink gown embellished with bands of simulated pearls, faceted glass and beadwork went for $ 75,000. Also on offer was a strapless ivory silk crepe dress which went for $ 76,800, while a chartreuse silk georgette gown worn by Diana in 1993 fetched $81,250. The Zandra Rhodes evening gown created for Diana, which was estimated to sell for $ 80,000, $ 100,000, went for $ 100,000. The Caroline Charles burgundy wool coat dress was the surprise of the five, going for $ 125,000, easily beating its pre-sale estimate of $ 20,000 – $ 40,000. The dresses went under the hammer, along with other Diana-related items, Friday evening at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills.