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It is astounding how much individuals are willing to pay for an old sofa!

It is always surprising to see how much money some people will pay for certain items on sale at auction, and sofas are no exception. It seems that history itself commands a high price, especially when these historical items have been associated with royalty.

Memorabilia commemorating certain events, such as the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, or the wedding of Prince Charles to Princess Diana in 1981, has long been bought and treasured. However, whilst such memorabilia has been made specifically for these events, other items have their own worth because of their history and ownership, and items owned or used by royalty will always be sought after.

One such item is a sofa; not just any old sofa, though. This one played a large part in the courtship of King Edward VIII and the woman for which he gave up the throne in 1936. The sofa, which is now somewhat battered and well worn, occupied a space at Burrough court in Leicestershire when King Edward first met Mrs Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee. The three-seater sofa, upholstered in pink velvet, bore witness to a weekend of flirtation between these two historical figures, but did not actually belong to either of them. Rather they were guests of its owner, Lady Thelma Furness, who the King himself shared a close relationship with when he was the Prince of Wales. If rumour is to believed then this three-seater sofa was turned into a two-seater as an act of revenge over the burgeoning relationship with the new woman in Edward’s life.

Times being what they were in 1930’s Great Britain, the King’s affair with the woman who was described by the lurid press of the day as his mistress, caused a great deal of scandal, and, at the time, no-one would have wanted to share their home with a memento of it, especially something that bears witness to such intimacy.

With such a colourful history attached to a piece of furniture, it’s no wonder the old, worn, pink velvet sofa sold for £2,150, a sum far in excess of the auction house’s highest estimate of £400. Only a sofa with such a sensational past would yield such a financial reward.

Of course, not everyone is interested in royalty but, for those who are, the price the sofa eventually fetched would seem like a bargain considering how great a part it played in changing the line of accession to the throne forever. It would be interesting to know what other untold secrets it holds.