CORONATION robes of a royal countess are among the lots at an upcoming auction.

Around 100 lots from Waldershare Park in Kent – the family seat of the Earl of Guilford – are set to go under the hammer at a record three-day sale hosted by North Yorkshire auctioneers Elstob & Elstob from Thursday, October 29 to Saturday, October 31.

Central to the collection are the coronation robes worn by Mary Violet, Countess of Guilford (1882-1947) – wife of Frederick George North, the 8th Earl of Guilford (1876-1949) – when she attended the coronation of Edward VII and Queen Alexandra in 1902.

Made by the renowned London tailors Ede, Son and Ravenscroft, the robes are accompanied by a silver-gilt coronet, signed camphor trunk and framed photograph of the Earl and Countess. The lot is expected to reach £2,000 to £3,000.

The couple married the year prior to the coronation ceremony, which was held on August 9, 1902 at Westminster Abbey in front of 8,000 guests. The event had been dramatically postponed from earlier in the summer due to the King taking ill and requiring immediate surgery.

The young Countess gave birth to their first child only a few weeks before the coronation event, who was later tragically killed in a high-profile accident in 1940 when he and his sister stood on a landmine in the south-east coast area.

“The robes are truly stunning,” said Jessica Aldred, textiles specialist at Elstob & Elstob. “Made-to-measure from sumptuous crimson velvet trimmed with fur, they are set off beautifully by the coronet designed around eight upright leaves, interspersed with eight silver balls on raised spikes.

“It is also fascinating to think about them being worn at a high profile historical event and what it must have been like for the young Countess to make such a public appearance as a new wife and mother,” she added.

Other lots that have been consigned for auction by the family include: a Nicole Freres brass inlaid music box which carries a guide price of £500-£700; an oil painting by the Danish artist Paul Augustinus valued at £1,000-£1,500; a large George V silver two-handled tray estimated to reach £700-£900; and a collection of 19th century ‘boulle’ desk pieces, including a stationery box, inkstand, coaster, blotter stamp and blotter, with a collective price estimate of £300-£500.

The Waldershare Park collection contributes to almost 2,000 lots to be presented at the three-day sale at the end of the month, which includes some of the finest art and antiques in the region.

Elstob & Elstob, which is only in its second year of trading, has already established itself amongst the leading auction houses in the North of England. In January of this year, it relocated to larger premises at Ripon Business Park to meet a rising demand for its services and this is the first time that it has extended a sale over three days.

“We are astonished by the ever-increasing volume and quality of consignments for our sales,” said David Elstob, director of the auction house.

“We started off with single-day sales and more recently this has stretched to two-day events. The forthcoming auction is obviously our largest sale yet and reflects the excellent results that we have been achieving in recent months. This is prompting a high volume of consignments as well as keen interest from buyers – not just regionally but from around the world,” he added.

Elstob & Elstob has recently taken on additional office staff, as well as a specialist to run a new sporting and militaria department. There are currently 13 specialist departments and the auction house employs top-level experts that have held posts at institutions such as Sotheby’s, Bonhams, Christie’s and Doyle in New York.

Elstob & Elstob currently holds eight sales a year with two specialist sales of silver, jewellery and watches.

For further information about the lots in the forthcoming sale, as well as the sales and services provided by Elstob & Elstob, please Contact 01765-699200 or info@elstobandelstob.co.uk.