A pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz” sold at auction Saturday for $28 million.
In an email sent to CBS News, Robert Wilonsky, vice president of communications at Dallas-based auction house Heritage Auctions, revealed that, including the buyer’s premium, the price tag for the iconic slippers rounded out to $32.5 million.
Estimations by Heritage were initially set at a modest $3 million. It only took a couple of days for the bid to skyrocket to $1.55 million, with over 800 potential buyers tracking the item.
In 2005, the slippers were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum by ex-mobster Terry Martin. Because the slippers had been insured for $1 million dollars, he had falsely assumed they were made from real rubies. Martin was indicted by the Minnesota U.S. District Court and charged with theft of a major artwork in October 2023. The slippers were recovered by the FBI in 2018.
“The Ruby Slippers are a vintage pair of Innes Shoe Co. red silk faille heels with uppers and heels covered with hand-sequined silk georgette, lined in white leather, and the leather soles are painted red with orange felt adhered to the front foundation of each shoe,” reads Heritage Auctions’ description of the slippers. “The bows are made of hand-cut buckram cloth and are slightly different in size. Rhinestones rim the bows, which are filled with bugle beads surrounding three center jewels.”
The latest installment in the “Ozverse” “Wicked” has proved a box office smash hit for Universal. The “Oz” prequel, which tells the story of Elphaba (The Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda (The Good) before the arrival of Dorothy, has grossed a staggering $392 million worldwide through three weeks in theaters.
