London:
A revealing piece of royal history was sold on Thursday for 78-thousand pounds or a whopping $125,871, when an unidentified buyer bought the famous transparent dress that Kate Middleton wore back in 2002 when she and Prince William were university friends.
Some reports maintain that the sight of Middleton in the transparent dress as she walked down the catwalk at a St. Andrews University charity fashion show helped convince William that she was someone he wanted to get to know better.
Whether or not the see-through black dress was a major factor, they soon became partners, starting a long-term romance that will bring them to the altar of Westminster Abbey on 29 April.
The dress was supposed to be a skirt, but Middleton wore it as a dress, with black underwear beneath.
It was bought by an unidentified male British buyer at a London auction on Thursday for 65-thousand pounds and an additional 13-thousand pounds of buyer's premium.
"He thinks it's an iconic piece," said an unnamed man who represented the buyer, who he said was "a private bidder in Jersey."
Three to four bidders competed for the dress in the packed room, while some also bid by phone.
Gasps rang around the room when the bidding drove the price up to 65-thousand pounds.
No one would mistake the dress for high fashion. It was put up for sale by designer Charlotte Todd, who did not go into fashion but works in an aquarium.
After the auction she said she would need to "take a step back and think about the money" and then perhaps consider a change of career.