Australia’s very first number plate is up for sale for the first time in a century – and it’s expected to fetch millions
The very first number plate ever fitted to an Australian car has sold for more than $10 million after the historic item was put up for sale for the first time in more than 100 years.
The 'NSW 1' registration plate is believed to be the first set of plates to be fitted to a vehicle in Australia after it was issued to the NSW Police Commissioner, Inspector General Garvin Thomas, in 1910.
Leading auction house Lloyd's is selling the prized item with the plates currently valued at a whopping $10,010,000 with 40 days to go until bidding closes.
Bids must be pre-approved before buyers can get their hands on the rare collectible, which will become the most expensive license plate ever sold in Australia.
The previous record was held by the NSW 4 license plates, which sold for $2.45 million in 2017.
The 'NSW 1' license plate (photo) will fetch millions at public auction
Lloyd's, which listed the sign on its website, said the item 'is the most sought-after Heritage sign in Australia'.
'Having been firmly in the hands of its current custodians for decades and never before offered at public auction, this historic 'NSW 1' number plate is… the must-have holy grail for any blue-chip passion investor or the number 1 gift for that person who has 'everything', they said.
“This is the first time 'NSW 1' has been offered at public auction in more than 110 years and is likely to be the last. It is a truly unique opportunity to secure the most sought-after and prestigious number plates in Australia.”
Signs such as these are usually passed down through families from generation to generation and are very rarely offered for public sale.
The sign was bought in the 1930s by businessman and politician Sir Frederik Stewart who put his Oldsmobile in it.
After his death, his wife Lady Majorie Stewart used the plates to register her 1981 Ford LTD sedan. In 1988, she was offered $200,000 by a buyer for the item.
When she died in 2000, the item was believed to have been kept by the family who chose to sell it through Lloyd's.
Lady Majorie Stewart (pictured left) placed the plates on her 1981 Ford LTD sedan (pictured center) after her husband purchased the plates in the 1930s
The records are expected to sell for more than the NSW 4 records (pictured), which grossed $2.45 million when sold in 2017