No-one ever gives car number plates a thought anymore, it is just something you need to get done with your registration. However, there are strange people around who seem fascinated by registration plates and seem to want to collect them. So you can imagine what a big deal Edinburgh's first registered car number plate must be to them. The 'S1' registration was first bought in 1903 which is the year registration numbers were introduced. It was owned by Sir John H A MacDonald, a former Lord Justice Clerk of Scotland and motoring pioneer. He was also one of Scotland's first car owners and maybe that's where he derived the name Lord Kingsburgh from. He was a founding member of the Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland, which later became the RAC. He was also the first president of the Scottish Automobile Club, founded in 1899. The plate was featured in an auction held by Bohams at Chichester, West Sussex and this is the first time it was offered for sale. Its estimated price was somewhere between $370,700 to $463,000. Josephine Olley, from auctioneers bonhams, said: "There was a bidding battle between several people on the telephone and a bidder in the room. The bidder who was present eventually secured the lot to a round of applause." The winning bidder does not wish to be named but is from the company Bold Registrations. He paid a massive amount of about $740,000. He said: "I believe that number plates in general are a good investment, even at this price. The registration number will remain in the UK and will be going on an old red Skoda which will be seen around the Midlands.

I think I'll have to do my investments in stocks and such. I simply cannot understand how a car number plate could fetch so much!

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