
This auction has ended. View lot details
You may also be interested in
Lot 670¤
A Rudolph Valentino beauty contest trophy
30 November 2016, 12:00 EST
New YorkSold for US$2,500 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our Popular Culture specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot


Client Services (San Francisco)

Client Services (New York)

Client Services (Los Angeles)
A Rudolph Valentino beauty contest trophy
Brass award cup with two handles, engraved, "Presented by / Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph Valentino / to the / winner of the / Valentino-Mineralava / Beauty Contest / 1923," mounted on a wooden base. When Rudolph Valentino was suspended by Famous Players-Lasky, he found his finances depleted. To rebuild his fortune, he embarked on an intensive cross-country dance tour with his wife Natacha; along the way, he held a beauty contest as a tie-in with the tour's sponsor, Mineralava Beauty Clay. Women in several states were chosen as candidates for the leading lady of Valentino's next film and presented with a trophy like this one. With a contemporary newspaper clipping depicting Valentino holding a similar trophy.
Height: 17 in; cup (diameter): 6 ½ in; base: 7 ½ in
Height: 17 in; cup (diameter): 6 ½ in; base: 7 ½ in




















