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On December 7, Heritage Auctions celebrated a historic sale. Judy Garland’s iconic ruby slippers, worn during her role as Dorothy in the film The Wizard of Oz, sold for an astounding $28 million at auction. According to Heritage Auctions, the final price of the slippers made them the most valuable movie memorabilia ever sold at auction.
Bidding commenced in November, with a starting price of $800,000. Pre-sale bids for the shoes had already clocked in at $1.55 million before fierce phone bidding shot the price up to $10 million in only three minutes. Including the auction fee, the glimmering shoes finally sold for a total of $32.5 million to an unknown buyer, over 10 times higher than the original $3 million estimate.
These ruby slippers are only one of four surviving pairs from the original filming of The Wizard of Oz, a factor that dramatically increased their rarity. They were also subject to an infamous theft in 2005, when they were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, by former mobster Terry Jon Martin. In 2018, the FBI managed to recover the renowned shoes and, in 2023, Martin was finally charged with theft of a major artwork.
Among the auction bidders on December 7 was the Judy Garland Museum itself, who’d been loaned the ruby shoes by Michael Shaw before their theft in 2005. The museum had campaigned for donations in an effort to buy the shoes back, while Minnesota lawmakers set aside $100,000 to assist in the purchase. In the end, $28 million far exceeded the museum’s budget and hopes.
Other than Garland’s sequined slippers, the auction featured another piece of memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz. A pointed hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked Witch of the West, sold for $2.93 million with buyer’s fees included.
“The legendary ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz [are] the ‘holy grail’ of Hollywood memorabilia,” the lot’s description reads. “One cannot find anything more desirable in this field than these prized [shoes].”
To stay updated on their upcoming auctions, you can follow Heritage Auctions on Instagram or visit their website.
The ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz sold for a stunning $28 million at auction this month.
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The slippers were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in 2005 and, once recovered by the FBI in 2018, were valued at over $3 million.
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Including a buyer's premium, the final price of the ruby slippers was $32.5 million, over 10 times higher than original estimates.
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Heritage Auctions: Website | Instagram | Facebook
Sources: Dorothy's ruby slippers sell for $28m at auction; Judy Garland's ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz” go for $28 million at auction; Man Charged with Stealing a Pair of Judy Garland's Original Red Slippers from ‘The Wizard of Oz'
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