Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Possessions

Associations of inanimate objects with their owners can add hugely to their value. Think how much a football shirt worn by David Beckham makes at auction compared to one bought off the shelf. Presumably that shirt is unwashed, so the difference in price is the value of David Beckham's sweat. One of the Queen's most prized possessions, apparently, is a shirt which belonged to Charles I (I'm not sure if it was the shirt which he wore to his execution). A friend of mine owns a small piece of tarnished metal. You or I may just throw it on the scrap heap. He knows its past, however: it was the flap used by Rudolf Hess to get the attention of his guards in Spandau prison.

7 Comments:

Blogger Mopsa said...

Bits of metal...I have a piece of Katyusha rocket shrapnel that fell on the kibbutz I was living in. It gets lost and then reappears, reminding me of 5 days spent in a bomb shelter.

9:49 am  
Blogger Whispering Walls said...

Oh mopsa, is that your talisman?

10:34 am  
Blogger kinglear said...

I have a tooth.....

5:20 pm  
Blogger Eurodog said...

WW,
Have a look on my blog. I left a message for you.

8:03 pm  
Blogger Welshcakes Limoncello said...

Does your friend display this object somewhere? Wouldn't Charles I's shirt be getting a bit tatty by now?

8:38 pm  
Blogger Whispering Walls said...

Whose tooth is that, KL?

I can't open the message section of your blog at the moment, ED, shall try again later.

It's on his mantelpiece, WL, with no explanatory note! I should imagine that shirt must be quite fragile these days. It would be interesting to know what is the oldest royal attire owned by the Queen. I presume it's all kept in airtight containers in huge trunks in the vaults of Windsor Castle or somewhere.

10:07 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Perhaps you could auction the black Givenchy dress you wear while writing this blog in the manner of Audrey Hepburn ?

8:46 pm  

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