Queen Victoria's stockings found

Aug 14, 2008, 11:00 GMT

Britain's Queen Victoria's stockings are set to be sold at auction after a pensioner kept them in her loft for decades.

Mary Youings, 82, had no idea of the value of the black and white silk stockings until she saw auctioneer Charles Hanson sell a pair of the late monarch's bloomers for a staggering £4,500 last month.

Mrs Youings of Ripley, Derbyshire, said: "We don't really know exactly how our family came by them, but I've just kept them safe in a box up in the loft for all these years.

"It was only when I heard about Queen Victoria's bloomers being sold that I had any idea they might be worth something. I was astonished."

The stockings - which bear the royal crest - are said to have been Victoria's favourite design during the 1870s

Charles Hanson, from Derby's Hanson's Auctioneers, says he has no idea what the stockings will fetch at auction, and admits he was stunned by the prices Victoria's bloomers, chemise and nightdress sold for when they were auctioned off last month.

He said: "Before last month I would have set a reserve of maybe £200, but the market appears to have gone crazy.

"I'm sure there will be international interest. I appreciate Her Majesty would not be amused by all these revelations about what her subjects never saw, but for us it's extremely exciting!"

The stockings will be sold at auction in Mackworth, Derby, on September 3.