After watching eight seasons of the epic saga “Game of Thrones,” fans can now enter what may be a competition on par with the battle for the Iron Throne: an auction of prized memorabilia from the HBO series.
Fans can now bid on a slew of costumes, props, set pieces and memorabilia from the hit show that ended in 2019. More than 2,000 items — including a melted version of the coveted Iron Throne — distributed across 900 lots will be on the auction block in October through Heritage Auctions.
Other notable items include Daenerys Targaryen’s memorable cloaks, coats and leather ensembles (some that feature dragon chokers and accents) worn by Emilia Clarke, Jon Snow’s notorious Longclaw sword wielded by Kit Harington, and the Hand of the Queen Pin donned by Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister. Even items that didn’t boast much screen time, like the bell wielded during Cersei Lannister’s walk of shame or bloodstained garb from the infamous Red Wedding, are expected to draw fans’ attention during bidding.
“‘Game of Thrones’ was a zeitgeist moment in our culture. It was a zeitgeist moment in high-end television. It was a zeitgeist moment in terms of HBO,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press. “This is something we all grew up with. It’s impacted every single one of our lives. It’s impacted the culture, and ‘Game of Thrones’ has meant something to every single person.”
Although the series started in 2011 and several items in the auction date back to then, they have not been “collecting dust,” Roewe said. HBO had been carefully preserving thousands of props, costumes and set pieces since the series began for use on potential spinoffs or sequels. With “House of The Dragon” having recently completed its second season and other projects firmly in development — while others have been discarded — Roewe said the studio now knows what they’ll need to hold on to and what they can part ways with.
“These items have been curated and taken care of since we finished filming. They are the quality that they were when we finished filming, and we’ve had people working on them for years to keep them in shape,” he said. “We don’t need them anymore. It’s time to finally open it up to the world.”
Beyond the preservation and quality of the items, the sheer scale of the auction required months of collaboration with HBO and countless hours of research and planning to organize, said Joe Maddalena, the executive vice president of Heritage Auctions.
Auction details
Maddalena wanted to ensure fans and collectors didn’t feel like there were any “glaring holes” in the collection by including a wide variety of characters’ costumes and props, displayed in a 750-page catalog. There are even multiples of crucial items like Arya Stark’s rapier Needle, of which there were several versions throughout the series’ run.
The intricate nature and craftsmanship of the costumes and props are part of what make the show so memorable, Maddalena, a fan himself, said. Emmy-winning costume designer Michele Clapton has been praised since the series’ start for the detailed and intentional designs that fueled storylines. The catalog features interviews with Clapton, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and several of the cast members commenting on the episode-specific usage and significance of hundreds of the items. Maddalena called this kind of access and information “uncharted territory” in the auction world.
“You don’t usually get studio-sanctioned auctions like this. This is studio sanctioned,” he said. “Everything comes from the archive. Everything was handpicked, scene specific. You know where your piece was used. You know it was actually used on screen.”
For fans who want to snag a piece of “Game of Thrones,” the vast collection is now open for preliminary bidding with the auction taking place Oct. 10-12 through Heritage Auctions in Dallas. The collection will be available to preview in the auction house’s New York and London locations starting Sept. 17 through Oct. 4.
The ‘Mother of Auctions’
Five years on from its epic finale, fans of Game of Thrones can battle over costumes, props, set pieces, and memorabilia from HBO’s hit television show.
In what Heritage Auctions has labelled “the Mother of Auctions,” 2,000 items spread across 900 lots will leave the archive and hit the auction block for a first time. Following Fall previews in London, Chicago, and New York, the auction is set to take place from October 10 to 12 at Heritage Auctions’ Dallas headquarters, where it has a 240,000-square-foot facility.
Since first airing Game of Thrones in 2011, HBO has preserved thousands of pieces used in the series ahead of potential spinoffs and sequels. Now, with the television network having completed two seasons of House of The Dragon and put plans for further projects in place, the studio is aware of which items it is free to offer up to fans.
“Seldom have we held an entertainment auction on such a grand scale, highlighted by our exhibitions in New York, London, Chicago and Dallas,” said Joe Maddalena, the auction house’s executive vice president. “It’s always a joy working with HBO.”
What’s on offer?
Since opening for online bidding at the start of September, Heritage Auction’s designated webpage has already seen more than 100 bids and more than 60,000 page views. With opening bids ranging from $500 to $20,000, the auction house believes the range of price points allows everyone to participate.
Among the key items up for auction are Jon Snow’s Valyrian steel sword Longclaw (which has already received a bid of $11,500), Jaime Lannister’s golden hand (currently at $5000), the Hand of the Queen pin received by Peter Dinklage’s Tyrion Lannister (currently at $3,000), a 310 lbs Iron Throne made from the swords of defeated enemies (currently at $6,500), and Daenerys Targaryen’s original Dragon Egg used in the first season (currently at $2,100). Even the famed Shame Bell (currently at $3,000) is up for grabs.
Costumes will be auctioned off as well
Michele Clapton, the British costume designer who received an Emmy Award for her work on Game of Thrones, is excited the costumes will have an afterlife.
“You design things for a television show, and usually that’s the extent of their lifespan: They get put in boxes and stored away,” Clapton said. “I find it’s rather comforting to know they will carry on, that they’re still loved and talked about. Now they can all go off and have their great lives.”
