Yahoo Finance How Much Is a Slice of Princess Diana and Prince Charles' Wedding Cake Worth 40 Years Later?
Normally the idea of 40-year-old cake isn't particularly appealing, but this is no ordinary slice!
A 28-ounce cut of Prince Charles and Princess Diana's wedding cake sold at auction on Wednesday. And though it was expected to fetch £500 (nearly $700), the sweet piece of history actually ended up going for £1,850.
According to the BBC, luxury boat charterer Gerry Layton shelled out nearly $2,600 for the royal confection. Layton says he's already stipulated in his will that the cake must go to charity after his death, along with the rest of his estate — though he did quip, "I will have to think of a way to stop myself from trying to eat it though."
Before the auction, Dominic Winter auction house royal memorabilia specialist Chris Albury acknowledged he "wouldn't recommend eating" this "curious and unique" slice of history, and added, "but after 40 years it's clearly destined to last."
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In accordance with royal tradition, Charles and Diana served their guests fruitcake at the reception after their nuptials — and what a fruitcake it was! Their tiered centerpiece cake they served stood 5 feet tall and weighed 225 pounds.
Layton's score was one of 23 official wedding cakes created after the wedding, this hefty hunk was a gift from the Queen Mother to Moyra Smith, one of her employees at Clarence House.
Preserved in plastic wrap and stowed away in a decorative tin for 40 years, the slice measures 8 inches by 7 inches and is decorated with a royal coat of arms in blue, gold and red.
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And as a bonus, Layton also picked up order of service for the wedding and a Royal Wedding Breakfast program as part of his purchase.
RELATED: 14 Rare Photos of Prince Charles and Princess Diana's Wedding
The Prince of Wales' wedding to Diana Spencer took place at St. Paul's Cathedral in London on July 29, 1981. The ceremony was attended by 3,500 guests, with an audience of 750 million people around the globe watching the future king, then 32, say "I do" to his 20-year-old bride.
The couple welcomed Prince William 11 months later and Prince Harry in September 1984. Their separation was announced in December 1992 by then-Prime Minister John Major, and their divorce was finalized in August 1996, one year before Diana's death in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
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Charles and Diana's wedding cake is just one of many pieces of royal memorabilia and ephemera that have gone on display or auction in recent months.
Samir Hussein/WireImage; Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images Princess Diana
Diana's wedding dress — complete with its iconic 25-foot train! — is on loan from William, 39, and Harry, 36, and serves as the centerpiece of the Royal Style in the Making exhibition, which opened in June at Kensington Palace.
Also in June, a 1981 Ford Escort Ghia saloon Charles gave his bride-to-be in May 1981 as an engagement gift fetched £52,640 (nearly $73,000) at auction.
