Diana's 'revenge dress' heads to Sotheby's auction in December 2026

Princess Diana's celebrated "revenge dress" will return to the auction block at Sotheby's in New York on December 9, 2026, close to three decades after it was last sold.

The off-the-shoulder black silk gown, designed by Greek designer Christina Stambolian, is expected to fetch between USD 150,000 and USD 300,000 (GBP 110,000 to GBP 220,000). It will be offered as part of a standalone fashion evening auction.

Before the New York sale, the dress will be displayed publicly at Sotheby's in London from September 18 to 24. It will then travel to Hong Kong and Geneva as part of an international exhibition tour.

Diana wore the figure-hugging gown to a Vanity Fair gala dinner at London's Serpentine Gallery on June 29, 1994. The appearance came on the same evening that her then-husband, now King Charles III, publicly admitted to being unfaithful in a televised documentary watched by millions.

The choice of a striking black cocktail dress also stood out against royal fashion conventions of the time, when black was traditionally associated with royal funerals. Completed with a pearl choker and scarlet nails, Diana's look was widely read as a statement of confidence, independence and self-expression.

The gown was last sold in June 1997, when Diana auctioned 79 of her dresses to raise funds for breast cancer and AIDS charities. The upcoming sale marks its return to auction nearly 30 years later.

A portion of the proceeds from the 2026 sale will be donated to NHS Lothian Charity on behalf of the Royal Edinburgh Hospital.

Auction officials have said the dress has endured beyond the circumstances of its most famous outing, becoming a lasting symbol of Princess Diana's confidence, resilience and use of fashion as a powerful form of self-expression.