Own a piece of ‘Star Wars’ history in new memorabilia auction

LOS ANGELES -- "Star Wars" fans will soon have a chance to own pieces of the galaxy far, far away, including screen-used lightsabers, blasters and other weapons from the film franchise.

Heritage Auctions is offering a collection of "Star Wars" memorabilia that includes props associated with both the light and dark sides.

"I've been doing this for 35 years and I've never seen a compilation of screen-used lightsabers like this; you know, from the original franchise to the sequels," said Brian Chanes, senior director of Hollywood and entertainment at Heritage Auctions.

Among the items is what Chanes described as an "action weapon" that is strengthened with metal, cast with rubber and is practical to wield.

The auction also includes a weapon used by Jeremy Bulloch as bounty hunter Boba Fett in "The Empire Strikes Back."

"This particular one, really special, it's photo serial number matched and it's screen matched, and it was used by Jeremy Bulloch, when you saw him in his debut as bounty hunter Boba Fett in 'The Empire Strike Back,'" Chanes said. "It actually was an old WWI flare gun with a stock on it."

One of the centerpiece items is the lightsaber used by Darth Vader in "The Empire Strikes Back." Bidding starts at $1 million.

"It starts at a million and we already have a bid right now that is a million fifty-thousand," Chanes said.

Chanes said the lightsaber was used in the sequence in which Darth Vader severs Luke Skywalker’s hand.

“If you're going to have a face of the franchise, good vs. evil, 'Luke I am your father,' this is the lightsaber that was used in that scene when he severed Luke's hand off,” Chanes said.

He described the prop as particularly significant to collectors.

"It's the one on the set," Chanes said. "It's from the most iconic sequence of the entire franchise. From a memorabilia standpoint this is like the holy grail."

For Chanes, the appeal of the memorabilia goes beyond the objects themselves.

"I always tell people that memorabilia, the m-e-m portion is your memories, what you remember when you first saw the first 'Star Wars' film,'" he said. "It basically takes you to the happy place when you first saw it and it's a feel good thing!"

The auction begins Nov. 12 at Heritage Auctions’ website.

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