Vader’s Lightsaber Becomes the Most Expensive Star Wars Collectible!
The multi-million dollar lightsaber!
Post Author- Ellis Nolan
Last Thursday, an auction set a new record for Star Wars memorabilia, when a screen-used prop of Darth Vader’s lightsaber sold for over $3.6 million. The prop was used by Vader actor David Prowse and stuntman Bob Anderson during the filming of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. This particular lightsaber was fashioned out of a camera flash (a Micro Precision Products (M.P.P.) Microflash to be specific).
A M.P.P. Flash, many of which were used to create the lightsabers of Star Wars!
For each lightsaber in the film, propmakers had to fabricate a bladed and non-bladed version for different scenes. As this belongs to the former category, it features a spur at the hilt where the “blade” was attached via screws. These blades were made out of wood and originally coated in a highly reflective material called Scotchlite. This made the blades stand out against the often dark backgrounds of the films, which made it easier for animators to create the blades we see in the final version of the film.
Vader’s lightsaber with blade attached!
The previous record-holder for most expensive Star Wars collectible was a screen-used model of Luke Skywalker’s X-Wing Starfighter created for A New Hope. It sold for approximately $3.1 million in 2023.
Other items in the auction included a screen-used HAL-9000 faceplate from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Ripley’s flamethrower from Aliens, the sports almanac from Back to the Future, and a shark-toothed clapboard used on the set of Jaws!
Want your own collectible from a galaxy far, far, away? Check out our authentic, film-used Krayt Dragon Specimen here!
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