It’s been five years since Game of Thrones wrapped, Jon Snow headed north of The Wall with the wildings and Arya Stark voyaged west of Westeros.
Regardless of how you feel about the show’s divisive finale, there’s no doubt that the costumes, gear and props used in the show helped transport millions of people across the globe to this fantastical world.
And for the next month, fans will have a chance to bid on items used in the iconic TV show. More than 2,000 costumes, props, set decorations and other items used on the show will be auctioned off by Heritage Auctions in Dallas, TX.
The auction house and HBO, where Game of Thrones is available, worked together earlier this year to curate the selection of items. They ranged from Jon Snow’s sword, Longclaw, to the dress worn by Emilia Clarke when Daenerys Targaryen met her tragic end after a turn to madness.
The items sat in a warehouse in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where some parts of the show were filmed. They remained there in case HBO needed them for future shows, like House of the Dragon that just wrapped its second season, according to Joe Maddalena, executive VP of Heritage Auctions, who spoke to Morning Edition.
“Game of Thrones was a cultural phenomenon, still talked about to this very day. And you have just this legion of fans around the world who want more,” Maddalena said. “So we thought, working with HBO, that we would be able to give fans around the world an opportunity to reconnect with their favorite television show and to own something from Jon Snow, Daenerys or Cersei or Tyrion that means something to you. To have a studio-sanctioned auction where things are coming directly from the archive… it's truly a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Maddalena said that seeing the items first-hand felt surreal, adding that the magic of TV is you never know how something used in a show is truly like until you actually touch it.
“What's amazing is how well-made everything is,” Maddalena said. “The costumes are bespoke. I mean, the workmanship, the amount of detail, they're amazing. It’s like literally going back in a time machine to hundreds of years past, and these costumes, they appear real.”
So what’s for sale?
Heritage Auctions has more than 900 lots for sale, according to a news release.
Among the featured items that have opening bids in the four-to-five-digit range are Jaime Lannister’s full Kingsguard armor, his golden hand, the Iron Throne and Arya Stark’s sword, Needle.
“We literally have every moment of the show, so there's something for every fan out there,” Maddalena said. “If there's something you've been after or a moment in the show at any different level, we probably have it in the auction.”
Many fans are likely to be priced out of owning many of these items, but Maddalena said he feels the catalog is accessible to fans and that some items could sell for as low as $500.
“If you want some dragonglass, it's there. If you want one of Dany’s [dragon] eggs, they’re there. We have little baby dragons,” Maddalena said. “I just think it's so accessible for everybody.”
Fans can bid on items right here. The auction is scheduled for Oct. 10-12.
The radio version of this story was written by Lisa Thomson and produced by Nina Kravinsky. The digital was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi.
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