Photograph Albums of American Socialite Barbara Hutton Featuring Husband Cary Grant to be Auctioned

A remarkable collection of seven photograph albums formerly owned by American socialite and heiress Barbara Hutton will be offered for auction at London auction house Roseberys. The albums, featuring rare and intimate images of Hutton’s life from the 1930s to the 1940s, will be offered in Roseberys’ first Fine & Decorative auction of 2025 with an estimate of £2,000 - £3,000.

Among the highlights are photographs of Hutton with her third husband, Hollywood icon Cary Grant. The couple married in 1942, divorcing in 1945. The images capture the couple during joyful moments, cycling together and sharing smiles. Following her marriage to Cary Grant, Hutton said “my money has never brought me happiness. In fact, after three unsuccessful marriages, I guess I'm considered a very poor risk. You can't buy love with money.”

Dubbed “Poor Little Rich Girl” by the press due to a lavish debutante ball held at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in 1930 during the Great Depression, Hutton was the heiress to one third of the estate of retail magnate Frank Winfield Woolworth. Despite her vast wealth, she endured troubled marriages, marrying and divorcing seven times, and the death of her only son, Lance Reventlow, who died in a plane crash in 1972. 

Three white leather-bound volumes spanning 1935-1938 highlight Hutton’s travels. The 1935 album documents her trips to Egypt, the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, and Venice with her second husband, Count Kurt Heinrich Eberhard Erdmann Georg von Haugwitz-Hardenberg Reventlow.  In 1935, Hutton married Reventlow, with whom she had her son.

The 1937-38 volume, titled India, includes images from Hutton’s travels around Switzerland, Northern Italy, and India. The 1938 album, India Volume II, contains photographs of a safari featuring elephants and fellow travelers. Another black album, His Highness The Maharaja of Jaipur's Camp - February 1938, offers additional images from her time in India. 

High res images available for editorial use here. Please credit Roseberys. 
For media enquiries please contact: aliciaglenn@roseberys.co.uk

Operating in London for more than 30 years, Roseberys Fine Art Auctioneers is a privately owned specialist fine art and antiques auction house and valuers, located in the heart of South London.

The team of world renowned experts and consultants offer both buyers and sellers a range of specialist art market services and a calendar of over 30 specialist auctions a year covering all areas of Asian Arts, Islamic & Indian Art, Jewellery & Watches, Old Master, 18th & 19th Century Art, Modern British & Contemporary British Art, Urban & Contemporary Prints & Multiples, 20th Century Art & Design, Impressionist, Modern, Post War & Contemporary Art and Decorative Arts, Fine & Decorative sales including Silver, Ceramics, Works of Art and Furniture.

In addition to hosting over 30 specialist auctions annually, Roseberys offers single-owner collection sales. Recent highlights include the Mary & Alan Hobart Collection (founders of Pyms Gallery), an Important Private Collection of Chinese Imperial Porcelain and The George Farrow Collection.

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