The “Bowcaster” used by Chewbacca in the original “Star Wars” trilogy is headed to auction at Propstore, carrying a high estimate of $500,000.
Beloved to be the sole Bowcaster used in the trilogy, the auction house — which has handled some of the most expensive props from the franchise, including an original Stormtrooper helmet, which fetched more than $410,000 — called it “one of the rarest Star Wars hero props in existence.”
After filming, some components were removed, though the Propstore says the key elements remain. The item is screen-matched to stills from each of the three films and restored to the configuration seen in “Return of the Jedi.”
In the world of movie props, many films have a large quantity of props made for production, many of which are never seen in the film, which makes the attribution of the Bowcaster to each film a significant value-driver.
“Star Wars” props have been among the most valuable in the entire collecting hobby, with an eye-popping $3.135 million sale of an X-wing Starfighter miniature and other million-dollar sales for an R2-D2 prop and a Darth Vader helmet.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.