By Lori Perkins
CREDIT: DAVID LEVENSON/GETTY IMAGES
On what is just about the 40th anniversary of the wedding of England’s Prince Charles and Diana Spencer, a single slice of their wedding cake was sold at auction at Sotheby’s for a little over two and half thousand dollars. The piece of preserved wedding cake was kept in a tin labeled “Handle with Care - Prince Charles & Princess Diane’s (sic) Wedding Cake” and wrapped in cling wrap for 40 years by Moyra Smith, a member of the Queen Mother’s household staff at Clarence House. The piece of cling-wrap-coated fruitcake (yes, fruitcake!) is decorated with the royal coat of arms in red, gold, and blue, featuring a lion and a unicorn.
The Sotheby’s auctioneer, Chris Albury, told CNN, “It really seemed to capture a lot of people’s imaginations, and wallets.”
But the most expensive slice of cake in the world was formerly owned by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, whose 1937 wedding cake sold at Sotheby's in New York in 1998 for $29,900 (£18,163) to Benjamin and Amanda Yin of San Francisco. The piece of cake was kept in a tin box which bore the inscription “A piece of our wedding cake WE 3-V1-37” and was found in the Windsors’ home. Speaking after the sale, Mr. Yim said, “It is almost unimaginable to have such an item exist. It is something totally surreal. It represents the epitome of a great romance.” When asked if they would be exhibiting the cake, Mr. Yim replied, “We're sure not going to eat it!”
Proceeds from the Windsor cake sale were donated to charities supported by Dodi Fayed and Diana, Princess of Wales, during their lifetimes. Mr. Mohammed Al Fayed opened the auction with the following statement, "This collection, as found in the Windsor House in 1986, captured the lives of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. It has never seemed to be my own collection because it had represented, and always will represent, the lives of the couple whose love changed the history of the nation and transfixed the world. My role has been to record and restore for posterity this precious piece of history. For over 10 years, my efforts have been directed toward the accomplishment of this aim. My work is now complete. Now it can go out into the world, and I will find great happiness and fulfillment from the knowledge of the good I hope will come from this, and that there will be children in need around the world who will benefit from the memory of my beloved son Dodi and Diana, Princess of Wales."