A slice of Queen Elizabeth II’s wedding cake with Prince Philip was sold this week for 2,200 euros (about R$16,000). The delicacy is 77 years old and was served at the Queen’s wedding reception on November 20, 1947, according to auction house Reeman Dansie.
Despite being carefully packaged, the cake no longer appears to be edible. The relic is preserved in its original packaging, in a small box with the silver emblem of Elizabeth (as a princess) printed on it and an elaborate napkin inside.
The box was the original packaging for sending the cake from Buckingham Palace to Marion Polson, the housekeeper at Holyrood House in Edinburgh, Scotland, in return for a gift sent to the royal couple. Along with the piece of cake, there is a letter from the queen to the recipient.
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Almost 3 meter cake
Originally, Elizabeth and Philip’s wedding cake was 9 feet tall and weighed more than 500 pounds. It was served at the wedding in 2,000 slices to guests, and hundreds of other slices were sent to charities and other organizations.
The cake even had an entire floor saved for the christening of the couple’s first son, Prince Charles (now King Charles III), who was born almost a year later and was baptized on December 15 of the year following the wedding.
Of the remaining slices, many were sold at auctions. In 2013, according to the auction house Christie’s, a slice fetched around 1,750 euros (R$13,000) at the current price.
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The tradition of saving slices and even whole pieces of cake remains in vogue. In 2018, one of the layers of the wedding cake for the current Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate, was even served at their youngest son’s christening. The wedding took place seven years before the event, and other layers of the cake were served to guests at other family celebrations.
Although the tradition seems strange to Brazilians, the recipe for royal cakes allows them to be stored for many years. Cakes are usually made with nuts and dried fruits, as well as alcoholic beverages, which helps with long-term storage and even maturation. These cakes last up to nine months outside the refrigerator, but can be edible after many years if frozen.
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