A very unusual auction is expected to take place in London, the capital of Great Britain, this November. The auction house RM Sotheby's, which brings together famous collectors and car enthusiasts from around the world, is putting up for sale the state symbol "1F," the Daily Mail reports.
According to the organizers, the price of this symbol, similar to the Formula 1 number, could range from 800,000 to 1.2 million pounds sterling. If this sale is successful, "1F" will become the most expensive figure in British history. As a reminder, to date, the record belongs to the number "25 O," which was sold for 518 thousand pounds and is currently installed in the Ferrari LaFerrari supercar.
The auction will be held on November 1. According to reports, the "1F" number was first registered in Essex County in 1957 and has been used in several exclusive cars, including the Ferrari 812 GTS models.
The sales director of RM Sotheby's in Britain, Sholto Gilbertson, noted that interest in unique numbers is still very high. "Short combinations are always valuable among collectors. "1F" has been valued at a high price before, and there is a high probability that a new record will be set this time," he said in an interview with the Daily Mail.
The UK's personal license plate market currently stands at £2 billion, making it one of the largest in the world. Experts note that the cost of personal numbers has increased several times over the past 30 years.
If in the 1990s such figures could be bought for 2,000-10,000 pounds, today some rare figures are valued above 50,000 pounds. Some investors even invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in numbers and then sell them at a high price. In some cases, such investments exceed the returns in the watch, jewelry, or classic car market.
However, Britain's "1F" won't break the world record. Because in 2023, in Dubai, the number "P-7" was sold for 55 million dirhams (about 12 million pounds sterling). This number is currently listed as the most expensive car number in the world.
Interestingly, the previous record also belonged to Dubai-based entrepreneur Said Abdul Ghaffar Khuri. He purchased the number 1 in 2008 for £7 million and installed it on his Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Mercedes G-Wagen.
Thus, this auction in London is attracting the attention of collectors not only from Great Britain, but also from around the world. Fans will find out on November 1 whether the number "1F" will set a new record or not.
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