Margaret Thatcher’s clothes to be auctioned off after museum turns them down
FORMER Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s clothes are to be auctioned off after the Victoria & Albert (V&A) Museum turned down the opportunity to display them.
Her signature outfits, including her famous blue suit and pearls, which helped take her to the top will be sold by London auction house Christie’s in December.
A total of 350 items will go under the hammer including her wedding dress and red despatch box which once contained secret documents.
The items are being sold off by Lady Thatcher’s children, Mark and Carol, and it is anticipated there will be a flurry of bids for each of the lots which will be auctioned singly.
International buyers from across the world will be able to buy a snapshot of British history as Baroness Thatcher was an eminent figure on the world stage.
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The items will be sold in two auctions, with the first being a traditional sale on December 15 and the second online which will run from December 3 to 16.
Baroness Thatcher’s collection was bequeathed to her children following her death in April 2013 at the age of 87.
The V&A is understood to have declined the offer to host Mrs Thatcher’s items which would have kept them in one place saying it is responsible for chronicling “fashionable dress”.
Earlier this year the museum unveiled a breathtaking collection of costumes by the designer Alexander McQueen and has previously hosted a collection of wedding dresses by David Bailey.
A museum spokesman said: "The V&A politely declined the offer of Baroness Thatcher’s clothes, feeling that these records of Britain’s political history were best suited to another collection which would focus on their intrinsic social historical value.
"The museum is responsible for chronicling fashionable dress and its collecting policy tends to focus on acquiring examples of outstanding aesthetic or technical quality."
Christie’s said the items presented a “unique opportunity” for buyers.
The spokesman said: "The property is being sold on behalf of beneficiaries of Baroness Thatcher’s estate as part of the arrangements following her death in 2013.
"These auctions present unique opportunities, across price levels, for collectors around the world to acquire property from the longest serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the 20th century and the only woman to have held office to date."
Among the items on offer are the cloak she donned when she met US President Ronald Reagan and a pale coat she wore while driving a tank.
In 2012 a green business suit worn by her in the 1970s when she was a Minister for Education was expected to fetch between £1,000 to £1,500.
However, when it was sold by Christie’s, the gavel came down on a bid of £6,875.