Han Solo’s original blaster, one of the most iconic sci-fi weapons, is about to go for auction and is expected to fetch at least half a million dollars.
The prop firearm was used in the first movie of the franchise, Star Wars: A New Hope, and has been found by Rock Island Auction Co. (RIAC) in Illinois after it was previously missing and presumed lost forever.
It is the only prop gun left of the three that Hollywood actor Harrison Ford used over the course of filming the original Star Wars trilogy between 1977 and 1983. The iconic character’s blaster from Return of the Jedi was sold in 2018 to Ripley’s Believe It or Not for $550,000.
The prop blaster’s design was inspired by the German-made Mauser 96, one of the most recognizable semiautomatic handguns ever made, and intended to give Hans Solo’s character an Old West gunslinger feel.
How much is it worth?
The pre-auction estimate for Han Solo’s BlasTech DL-44 Heavy Blaster is $300,000 to $500,000. However, if previous auctions for Star Wars memorabilia are anything to go by, it could go for more.
In June 2022, an original X-wing miniature prop went for $2.3 million (£1.8 million). Meanwhile, in 2019 the Darth Vader helmet worn by actor David Prowse in The Empire Strikes Back sold for $898,420. In 2017, a model of R2-D2 was sold for $2.76 million.
Auctioning or selling off Hollywood props has become more and more lucrative in recent years with mega movie fans keen to get their hands on sought-after collector’s items from high-profile productions old and new: Later this year, items from Breaking Bad spinoff Better Call Saul are going up for sale, as well as iconic stunt cars from the James Bond franchise.