Christmas cards sent by the Queen sell at auction

The collection of Christmas cards includes this one from 1971

A collection of Christmas cards sent by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh over a 40-year period has been sold at auction.

The 35 cards, signed Elizabeth R and Philip, were sent between 1959 and 2001 and show the growing Royal Family.

The Queen has been sending official Christmas cards to friends and employees every year since 1952.

They were sold for £1,530 at auction in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, on Friday.

A spokesman for auctioneers Moore Allen and Innocent said: "The cards have created a fascinating record of the Royal Family growing year by year, with photographs taken by The Duke of York, Lord Snowdon, and official photographers.

"The top individual lot price was the £280 paid for the earliest cards - those from 1959, 1960 and 1961."

1972: The Queen and Prince Philip with their children Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward

1973: An informal snapshot of the Royal Family

1976: Captain Mark Phillips (third from left) joins the growing Royal Family

1983: Prince Edward, the Queen, Prince Philip, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew with Peter and Zara Phillips

1998: The Queen and Prince Philip with their children, grandchildren and corgis the year after Princess Diana's death

Early Christmas cards sent in 1959, 1960 and 1961 took the top individual lot price