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The Windsor auction held until February 28th 1998 by Sotheby's in New York met incredible success with a record turnover of US $ 19,467 million over seven out of nine days of sales.
Sotheby's expected a total result of US $ 6 million and can be pleased with that sale which included the souvenirs, paintings, furniture and other items that belonged to the royal couple.
Eleven cushions in pug shape feteched US $ 37,375 against a high estimate of US $ 1,700 while a big cushion of similar pattern sold for US $ 13,800 against an estimate of US $ 600, a silk handkerchief on which was printed the abdication speech made by King Edward VIII went for US $ 25,300 against a high estimate of US $ 300!
Janine Metz, the Duchess' former personal secretary, was however highly critical of the sale which she described in an interview with the French daily «le Figaro» as a «mental and spiritual rape».
«I cannot understand how such a commercial operation can have been allowed. That sale should never have been organised as I hoped that Mr Al Fayed would have kept his promise to maintain intact the content of the Paris residence of the Windsors as when they died. France greeted them during their exile and I cannot understand why the French accepted to let go what should have remained kept in a museum. Why did it not come to anyone's mind that this was a royal residence ? ,» she said.
Janine Metz added that she had been shocked on learning that Mr Mohammed Al-Fayed had bought the residence and its content. «At least I felt secured when he promised to keep everything intact and to open there a museum for researchers. Finally there has been nothing of the sort and everything has been dispersed at auction while nobody has gone against this», she lamented. «This is a physical, mental and spiritual rape», she said while recalling the extreme attention the Duchess gave to all objects placed in the residence. She added that none of her portraits painted by artists such as cecil Beaton or gerald Brockhurst really gave a hint of her true personality. The Brockhurst portrait, much too rigid, painted in 1939 and bought by the London National Portrait gallery for US $ 107,000 showed a woman with quite a severe face which did not correspond to her legendary kindness, she objected.
She also complained that whilst in Paris a few years ago she expressed the wish the visit the residence once again but that Mr Al Fayed's spokesman had swiftly turned down her request.
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The Windsor auction held until February 28th 1998 by Sotheby's in New York met incredible success with a record turnover of US $ 19,467 million over seven out of nine days of sales.
Sotheby's expected a total result of US $ 6 million and can be pleased with that sale which included the souvenirs, paintings, furniture and other items that belonged to the royal couple.
Eleven cushions in pug shape feteched US $ 37,375 against a high estimate of US $ 1,700 while a big cushion of similar pattern sold for US $ 13,800 against an estimate of US $ 600, a silk handkerchief on which was printed the abdication speech made by King Edward VIII went for US $ 25,300 against a high estimate of US $ 300!
Janine Metz, the Duchess' former personal secretary, was however highly critical of the sale which she described in an interview with the French daily «le Figaro» as a «mental and spiritual rape».
«I cannot understand how such a commercial operation can have been allowed. That sale should never have been organised as I hoped that Mr Al Fayed would have kept his promise to maintain intact the content of the Paris residence of the Windsors as when they died. France greeted them during their exile and I cannot understand why the French accepted to let go what should have remained kept in a museum. Why did it not come to anyone's mind that this was a royal residence ? ,» she said.
Janine Metz added that she had been shocked on learning that Mr Mohammed Al-Fayed had bought the residence and its content. «At least I felt secured when he promised to keep everything intact and to open there a museum for researchers. Finally there has been nothing of the sort and everything has been dispersed at auction while nobody has gone against this», she lamented. «This is a physical, mental and spiritual rape», she said while recalling the extreme attention the Duchess gave to all objects placed in the residence. She added that none of her portraits painted by artists such as cecil Beaton or gerald Brockhurst really gave a hint of her true personality. The Brockhurst portrait, much too rigid, painted in 1939 and bought by the London National Portrait gallery for US $ 107,000 showed a woman with quite a severe face which did not correspond to her legendary kindness, she objected.
She also complained that whilst in Paris a few years ago she expressed the wish the visit the residence once again but that Mr Al Fayed's spokesman had swiftly turned down her request.
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