Diana's 'Revenge Dress' to go under the hammer

Princess Diana's iconic 'Revenge Dress' has gone on public display at Sotheby's in London ahead of its upcoming auction, while her brother Earl Spencer prepares to release a memoir containing allegations about the days following her death. The black silk evening gown, designed by Christina Stambolian, is being displayed at Sotheby's Bond Street location from September 18 to September 24. It will later travel to Hong Kong and Geneva before arriving in New York on December 2. The dress will remain on public display at Sotheby's Breuer Building until December 8 before going under the hammer on December 9. It is expected to sell for up to $300,000. Diana wore the strapless gown to a Vanity Fair fundraising dinner at the Serpentine Gallery in London on June 29, 1994. She wore it hours after then-Prince Charles admitted to adultery during their marriage. The dress was previously auctioned in 1997 as part of a sale of 79 of Diana's dresses, with proceeds raised for cancer- and AIDS-related charities. Sotheby's Global Head of Handbags and Fashion Morgane Halmi said, "What makes this dress extraordinary is not merely that it was worn by the princess, nor that its appearance at the Serpentine event made headlines around the world. It is what it communicated." Earl Spencer's memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, is due for release on September 22. Spencer alleges that King Charles III reacted to Diana's death by saying, "Rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough." Buckingham Palace disputed the account, saying, "While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss." Spencer rejected the statement, telling the BBC, "Those are exactly the words he said. I've only ever had two calls on the line with Prince Charles. I was hyper alert to what he was saying, and those are precisely the words that he said." He added, "I'm telling the truth." In August 1997, Diana had died after a car crash in Paris; the incident led to extensive public mourning and global media attention. An inquest returned a verdict of unlawful killing due to gross negligence by a driver and the paparazzi pursuing her as found in Operation Paget, an investigation by the Metropolitan Police. Her legacy has had a significant impact on the royal family and British society.