From the famous Fabergé eggs associated with the Russian royalty to commemorative cups and coins, royal memorabilia attracts fans from all across the globe. The pomp, the ceremony, the tradition...there's something fascinating and appealing about royal houses. And this has made the market for royal memorabilia boom. This was evidenced by the international hype surrounding the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middelton. New pieces of memorabilia flew off shelves and into people's collections. From commemorative objects to personal items, people can't get enough of royal memorabilia from all 26 royal families around the world. But how much are these objects worth? Which pieces are growing in value and are the best for investment? Find out here.
Commemorative Pieces
Royal commemorative items are produced for special events such as weddings, coronations, jubilees and the birth of royal babies. For every special occasion, large amounts of royal memorabilia are produced and sold. To put the impact of commemorative pieces into context: British fans spent a whopping €184 million on objects released for William and Kate's wedding. But be warned: there is no trademark on royal families, which means that anyone is free to produce any object depicting the royals. This means that not many of these mass produced items will hold value. However, if you can get hold of specially made limited edition objects, these do gain in value. A good example is the popular Minton vase that was produced for the wedding of Charles and Diana - this can be worth around €400. And like with many historical objects, often the older the object, the more valuable it becomes. If you can find commemorative objects from 300 years ago or more which were made in limited quantities, you could be in luck.
Mass produced royal memorabilia items will not hold their value - for investment potential, look for limited edition releases and older objects
Personal Objects
If you're searching for real investment potential - look for personal objects, pieces that were actually touched or used by royal family members, such as autographs, letters, pieces of clothing or historical objects. Pieces used by popular royals such as Diana, William and Kate are of particular interest. The dress that Kate Middleton was wearing when William saw her for the first time sold for around €89,700 in 2011. The bicycle that Lady Diana was forced to stop riding by the royal officials before her wedding to Prince Charles was auctioned in February 2018 for €10,400. And some particularly remarkable sales were Queen Victoria's bloomers, sold in 2011 for almost €11,000, and Queen Elizabeth’s underwear sold at auction for almost €12,000 in 2012.
- Personal objects that have been owned or used by a royal are very valuable - Queen Victoria's bloomers sold in 2011 for almost €11,000
- Image source: Mirror
Recent Auctions
Here on Catawiki, we frequently sell royal memorabilia, and not just British royal memorabilia. In 2018 a bust of Beatrix, the former queen of the Netherlands, was sold for €2,150. And many signed photographs of different monarchs have been sold, such as Juan Carlos I the former King of Spain and Dutch royals Juliana and Bernhard. These can sell for hundreds of euros or more.
We've also seen 2 impressive royal classic cars come up for auction. One was the armoured 1978 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL which was formerly owned by the Spanish Royal House and used by King Juan Carlos I. It achieved a winning bid of €39,500 in our Classic Car auction in 2017. The other royal car that came up for auction on Catawiki, although its reserve price wasn't met and it didn't sell, was a one-off custom 1933 Rolls-Royce which was used as a hunting car by the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir.
This figure of Diana Spencer sold for €244 on our auction in 2016
Remember, if you're looking for a great royal investment, seek out rare objects, highly personal items or especially old pieces. And even if investment isn't on your mind, royal memorabilia can still be enjoyed simply because you love the royals and want to celebrate what they represent, whether that's in the form of a mug, a stamp or a signed postcard.
Interested in investing in royal memorabilia? Find your next collectible in our monthly Royalty & Government auction and build your own collection. Whether you're looking to invest or cash in on a royal investment, you can do it quickly and easily here on Catawiki. Anyone can participate in our auctions and you only need one account to bid, buy and sell on our auctions. Sign up for a free account today and explore the royal selection curated by our in-house experts.
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