10 of the World’s Most Recognisable Dresses of this Century

2. Marilyn Monroe’s White Halterneck Dress

The white pleated dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in the 1955 film The Seven Year Itch is regarded as an icon of film history and the image of Monroe in the white dress standing above a New York subway grate on the corner of Lexington Avenue and 52nd street, blowing the dress up has been described as one of the iconic images of the 20th century.Created by costume designer William Travilla, the halterneck dress was kept locked away in his archives – presumed lost by many – until his death in 1990, when it joined a private collection owned by Debbie Reynolds at the Hollywood Motion Picture Museum. The dress was later sold for over $5.6 million (£3.5 million) at a 2011 auction.