Revealing mistake: Having been deserted by their porters three white people and a native journey on. During their journey an antelope is shot by Allan Quartermain for food. The sound of the shot is dubbed in as there is no recoil from the high powered rifle he uses.
Continuity mistake: When Deborah Kerr is climbing a tree her boots are clearly shown as dirty and scuffed. Shortly afterward she is seen wearing a pair of shiny new looking boots. She would hardly be carrying a spare pair whilst trekking through the jungle.
Continuity mistake: When Allen Quatermain and his friends find the white man in the village, he says he hasn't seen a white man for five years. When Allen asks him about Elizabeth Curtis' husband, he says that he saw him one year ago. Note: The husband is a white man.
Other mistake: When Quatermain and the others start out to cross the desert, he has a pistol and what appears to be a belt of ammunition. When the party is past the desert, he only has a rifle and 3 bullets. What happened to his pistol and ammunition?
Continuity mistake: After the bearers leave the group, they head through the jungle to the Karawana village. There are only 5 people and they're carrying what they can, having left most supplies and equipment behind. All of a sudden a couple of lions appear and run by them. They duck out of the way, but in the long shot as the leopards are running by there is a pile of packs and equipment in front of the group. One lion jumps right over the pile of gear. There should be nothing on the path in front of them - the bearers all went back the other way. (There is the chance that the gear is left from Henry Curtis, the person they are trying to find, but it would be a major find and a major plot point and the gear is never mentioned or shown again).
Answer: It's possible all these goods were traded for. Realistically, everything came from the MGM costume and prop department. Movies from this era seldom strove for historical or cultural accuracy. Native costumes and other possessions were often the embellished invention of imaginative costume and set designers, with little thought or regard to authenticity. The intent was to produce an exciting, colorful, entertaining movie.
raywest ★