Rare collection of Barbie dolls sells for £2,320

A Marie Antoinette Barbie doll sold for £640 at auction

A private collection of rare Barbie dolls has fetched £2,320 at an auction in Kent.

The four figures were offered at Canterbury Auction Galleries on Saturday alongside collectables such as Pokémon cards and a carry case of Happy Meal toys.

A Marie Antoinette doll fetched the highest price among the Barbie collection, at £640.

In total, the entire lot of rare toys and paintings sold for more than double its expected hammer price, at £12,280.

A Queen Elizabeth I doll made £600, while a figurine depicting Italy's Empress Josephine was sold for £540.

A "haunted beauty vampire" Barbie was also sold for £540.

The sale took place over three days and also included ink and watercolour illustrations by Bagpuss co-creator Peter Firmin.

A Queen Elizabeth I doll sold for £600

Auctioneer David Parker previously said he would not have been able to sell the Barbie dolls if they "were not in boxes".

He added that the lot offered collectors a chance to "buy back the dreams of their youth".