Titanic dress, Sound of Music guitar, Indiana Jones' Holy Grail, and more up for auction
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
While the streets of Hollywood are not literally paved with gold, its past is full of priceless objects.
On Dec. 13, Heritage Auctions will hold their Hollywood & Entertainment Signature Auction, featuring some of the most iconic costumes and props in film history, including the Wicked Witch's hourglass from The Wizard of Oz, Maria's guitar from The Sound of Music, and the Holy Grail itself (or at least the one featured in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade).
Everett Collection (2)
EW has your first look at some of these timeless pieces as they prepare to hit the auction block.
"I am always excited to announce a new auction, but this one is especially thrilling," said Heritage Auction's Executive Vice President Joe Maddalena in a statement. "It's an epic event, without question, filled with memories and magic from some of our favorite movies — from the wide-screen marvels and musicals that delighted us as children to the modern masterpieces and superhero films and space operas that keep us going back to the big screen."
Here's a small sampling of some of the auction's highlights and the stories behind them
The Wizard of Oz hourglass
Heritage Auctions
Fans of the 1939 classic, rated the "most influential film of all time" by Vanity Fair, will undoubtedly recognize this iconic object. The Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton) wields it as she puts a timer on Dorothy's (Judy Garland) life — when the sand runs out, Dorothy either has to give up the ruby slippers or die.
The hourglass, made of wood, papier-mâché, and handblown glass filled with red glitter, has made a rotation through museums and traveling exhibitions, but now, it needs a new home. "Margaret Hamilton's hourglass, which hasn't been to auction in more than two decades, is an instantly recognizable prop from one of the most beloved and influential films of all time," says Maddalena. "The Gothic design on the hourglass frame is a testament to MGM's artisans, featuring winged gargoyles perched atop three spiraled columns."
The Sound of Music dress and guitar
Heritage Auctions
Few heroines have won audiences' hearts the way that Maria (Julie Andrews) in The Sound of Music has — and now two of her most beloved pieces are up for grabs.
The first is the simple dirndl dress she wears to the Von Trapp ball, not having any finery to rival the glamorous gowns of the Baroness (Eleanor Parker). We see her in it in both "So Long, Farewell" as the Von Trapp children bid the party-goers good night, and even more memorably, in the scene where she and Captain Von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) dance the Laendler. It was first auctioned in 1993 from a collection at Hollywood mainstay, Western Costume.
Heritage Auctions
Then, there's also her guitar, which she uses to teach the children to sing while playing "Do-Re-Mi." The auction listing explains: "This guitar was lent to Warner Bros. by the Goya Music Corporation, and is prominent in that one of the bridge pins holding the strings on the guitar was broken during filming and a member of the crew fashioned a hand-made bridge pin which prominently protrudes above the others which is evident on screen in the famous 'Do-Re-Mi' sequence."
Titanic dress
Heritage Auctions
We'll never let go of our love for Titanic, which is on resplendent display in this gown worn by Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater. Fans will remember it as the dress Rose wears as she and Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) stand on deck the night that the Titanic hits the iceberg. It gets plenty of play in the film's climax, as Rose sloshes through rising water levels in it to rescue Jack from his below-deck prison. It's the dress she's still wearing when the ship goes down.
It's one of many looks designed by Deborah Lynn Scott, who earned an Oscar for Best Costume Design for her work on Titanic. Several of these gowns were made for production (the one up for auction is the one Rose wears for the largest percentage of the movie's run time), but very few ultimately survived, destroyed by strenuous use in the water. This dress exhibits some signs of water staining, indicating it was used in some "wet" scenes. This was acquired directly from 20th Century Fox.
Indiana Jones' Holy Grail
Heritage Auctions
The last of the original trio of Indiana Jones films, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, finds Indy gallivanting across Venice and beyond along with his father, Henry (Sean Connery), in their quest to find the legendary cup of Christ. In the film's climax, Indy chooses wisely, selecting this plainer cup instead of some of the jewel-encrusted, gilt versions, then using water from the cup to heal his mortally wounded father.
"In truth, this Grail is crafted of resin and painted to resemble weathered earthenware with bright gold leaf finish on the cup's interior with gold leaf patches embellishing the exterior," says Maddalena.
View the rest of the auction items here.
Related content:
