Darth Vader lightsaber sells for record $3.65M at Propstore auction

A lightsaber prop used by Darth Vader in the original Star Wars films sold for a record sum at a Propstore auction in Los Angeles on Thursday, fetching a hammer price of $2.9 million and a final price, including the buyer's premium, of about $3.65 million. The sale, part of Propstore’s Entertainment Memorabilia Live Auction, made the weapon the most valuable piece of Star Wars memorabilia ever sold at public auction, auctioneers said.

Propstore described the item as the primary hero dueling lightsaber used by Darth Vader in the climactic sequences of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). The prop was handled on screen by actor David Prowse, who physically portrayed Vader, and by stunt double Bob Anderson in fight scenes. The auction house noted the piece is believed to be the only hero lightsaber with verifiable screen use ever offered publicly. The prop’s construction, Propstore said in its catalogue, began with a British press camera flash handle that was dressed with grips, wiring and a small circuit board to create the finished saber.

The lightsaber arrived at the sale with a presale estimate of $1 million to $3 million. The identity of the winning...