'Wizard of Oz' dress sells for $1.56 million in New York

A Judy Garland-worn 'Dorothy' dress from The Wizard of Oz is displayed during a press preview on November 19, 2015 in New York (©AFP PHOTO / TIMOTHY A. CLARY)

NEW YORK - A dress worn by Hollywood screen siren Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" as the character Dorothy sold for $1.56 million in New York on Monday, Bonhams auction house said.

The dress was chief highlight in a sale of nearly 400 pieces of Hollywood memorabilia organized by the auction house and Turner Classic Movies that netted total sales of more than $4 million.

The "Dorothy" dress went to one of three phone bidders, smashing its pre-sale estimate of $800,000 to $1.2 million, Bonhams said.

It is one of only two complete Dorothy costumes in existence, said Bonhams' director of entertainment memorabilia, Catherine Williamson.

"The dress is considered a true and timeless icon of classic Hollywood," she added.

Garland was one of the best-loved actresses of the Hollywood Golden Age who starred in the 1939 "The Wizard of Oz" as a teenager.

The movie won two Oscars, for best song and best music, and remains a much-loved family classic more than 70 years later.

The second most expensive item in the sale was a suit worn by Marilyn Monroe in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," which fetched $425,000.

A golden ticket, a prop from "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," based on the book by British author Roald Dahl, sold for $35,000.