Queen Victoria's nightdress up for auction
A nightie worn by Queen Victoria is up for auction.
The nightdress and her devoted daughter Beatrice's bloomers and a toy box were discovered in a house on the Isle of Wight. The voluminous nightie could sell for thousands of pounds at auction after the garments emerged among an enormous collection of treasures gathered over a lifetime by a retired antiques shop owner.
Marilyn Rose, 90, opened her first antiques shop in the mid-'70s in Gurnard on the Isle of Wight and went on to run an outlet in Newport.
Her son, Tim Rose, 64, a retired forester from Warwickshire, said: "My mother is moving and we have been clearing the period property. The bloomers and nightie were among several fascinating finds, some of which are new to us.
"Mum can't remember exactly how or when she came to own the bloomers and nightdress but it's not surprising items relating to Queen Victoria and her family emerge on the Isle of Wight because the queen spent a huge amount of time at Osborne House, her holiday home there."
Queen Victoria's extra-large, pale cream lawn cotton nightdress is edged with Honiton lace and embroidered with 'VR' - Victoria Regina - and its estimate is £1,500-£2,000. The bloomers which belonged to Princess Beatrice (1857-1944), the fifth daughter and youngest child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, have also been valued at £500-£1,000.
However, Victoria's nightie could sell for more because Hansons auction house sold a Queen Victoria nightdress for £5,200, bloomers for £4,500 and a chemise for £3,800 in 2008.
The items will go under the hammer at Hansons on 1 October.
