Edward VIII's wisdom tooth fails to sell at auction

One of Edward VIII's wisdom teeth, which was expected to go for up to £10,000 at auction, has failed to sell.

The former king was made Duke of Windsor following his abdication in 1936 in order to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson.

The tooth was being sold by the grandson of the dentist who originally extracted it in 1940.

The lot also included an X-ray and dental card, dated 9 September 1940 and signed "Edward Wallis Windsor".

Auctioneer Paul Fairweather previously said "huge interest" was expected in the "truly unique item".

He said: "Edward's romance and subsequent abdication was one of the more remarkable events in contemporary royal history, and interest in his life remains significant, especially amongst collectors."

Dr Hugh Johnson, who pulled the duke's tooth out, was later quoted as saying he was "highly strung" and quite "jumpy" during the procedure.

Edward, who has faced accusations of being a Nazi sympathiser, died in 1972 in Paris, and was buried near Windsor.

His tooth went under the hammer at Omega Auctions, the auctioneers who sold one of John Lennon's teeth for £19,000 eight years ago.

A pocket watch once given to the duke by his lover Wallis Simpson also failed to sell at auction last year.