A slice of Queen Victoria’s wedding cake, preserved since the 19th century, has been sold at auction for £1,500 by notable collector David Gainsborough Roberts.

A presentation box, inscribed with the words “The Queen’s Bridal Cake Buckingham Palace, Feby 10, 1840”, was also sold with the cake, along with Queen Victoria’s signature on a piece of paper with the royal cypher.

Roberts, a Jersey resident, has spent his life collecting rare memorabilia, and his collection (which includes paintings of Winston Churchill and Marilyn Monroe’s dresses) is said to be worth about £10m – he has recently started to sell off items to charity.

Gainsborough Roberts told the BBC: “I have been collecting for many years, I’m 70 years of age now, I don’t have a wife and children so I thought I must sell things.”

In September last year, a 68-year old slice of the Queen’s wedding cake was sold at an auction for £500.