UK Successfully Stops Kelly Clarkson's Bid For Jane Austen Ring

Kelly Clarkson is a huge fan of the author Jane Austen, and over the years she has built up an impressive collection of Austen memorabilia. When the singer tried to purchase a ring belonging to the 19th century British author recently, her attempts her scuppered by a successful campaign to keep the ring in the country, the Jane Austen's House Museum revealed on Monday, 23 September.

Clarkson is a big fan of the author

According to Reuters, the Jane Austen's House Museum began a fundraiser to outbid the singer following her acquisition in 2012, after Culture Minister Ed Vaizey placed a temporary export bar on the ring following the initial auction. The turquoise and gold antique ring was sold to Clarkson at an auction last year for over £150,000 ($227,000), however the purchase, and the prospect of it moving across the Atlantic, caused an outcry from Austen fans across the world, and a campaign to keep it in the country soon began. On Monday, it was announced that the campaign was a success.

"The museum is now able to reveal that their offer to purchase the ring has been accepted," museum curator Mary Guyatt said in a statement. She went on to reveal that an anonymous £100,000 donation was made, which was followed up by further donations from Austen fans across the globe. The ring is one of three surviving jewellery relics that the author of such classics as Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice once owned.

The singer was happy to let it stay in the UK however

Clarkson had no hard feelings about the campaign however, and even encouraged people to donate when it was first announced. In a statement from the singer following the success of the campaign, she said, "The ring is a beautiful national treasure and I am happy to know that so many Jane Austen fans will get to see it at Jane Austen's House Museum."

Clarkson already owns a sizeable Austen collection