77-Year-Old Slice Of Cake From Queen Elizabeth’s Wedding To Prince Phillip Selling At Auction

A slice of cake from the wedding of late royal couple Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip was found in a suitcase under a bed. The 77-year-old piece has now sold at auction for $2,800, which is four times the estimated final bid.

The buyer purchased this rare cake slice over the phone, and James Grinter of Reeman Dansie auction house called it a little time capsule. The dessert dates back to 1947, when it was served to over 2,000 guests at the royal ceremony.

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s wedding cake sells at auction

The original cake was a gift from the housekeeper at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, Scotland, Marion Polson, who served from 1931 to 1969. She got back a slice, which she had kept in its original box and under the bed, along with a letter from the late Queen.

The thank-you letter dated November 1947 read, “My husband and I are deeply touched to know that you shared in giving us such a delightful wedding present. We are both enchanted with the dessert service. The different flowers and the beautiful coloring will, I know, be greatly admired by all who see it.”

Marion Polson’s family auctioned the cake

Polson’s family found the little slice from the nine-foot-tall 500-pound cake from the ‘40s and contacted Reeman Dansie earlier this year. Grinter said it arrived intact with its original contents, though it is no longer edible.

Grinter noted that the royal couple’s cake, which was laced with alcohol, was so enormous that it took up half the room as seen in photos. The four-tier cake was also considered a lavish gift during the wartime era when rationing was the order of the day. News of the auctioned slice made it to social media, sparking conversations about how fresh or rotten it might be.