Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker Lightsaber With Severed Hand Sells for Record $3.75 Million at Auction
A screen-used Luke Skywalker lightsaber from Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back has sold for $3.75 million at Heritage Auctions, setting a new world auction record for a screen-used Star Wars prop.
The lightsaber sold on July 15, 2026, during Heritage’s Hollywood & Entertainment Signature Auction. The auction listing identifies the piece as Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker screen-used lightsaber with the severed-hand effects rig from the Cloud City duel with Darth Vader. It was listed as Lot #89667 and sold for $3,750,000.
According to Heritage, the prop was used during the climactic Cloud City sequence in which Darth Vader reveals his relationship to Luke Skywalker before severing Luke’s hand. Heritage said the result establishes a new auction record for a screen-used Star Wars prop.
The lightsaber was constructed from a modified three-cell Graflex flash unit fitted with a Kobold flash attachment forming the lower section. The auction listing says studio modifications included black plastic T-track grips and a custom faux clamp box replacing the standard Graflex clamp assembly. The lightsaber measures about 10 inches long.
The lot also included the original severed-hand effects rig created by the makeup department under Academy Award-winning makeup artist Stuart Freeborn. Heritage said the rig used a resin-cast wrist section hidden beneath Hamill’s costume sleeve and a separate resin severed hand fitted to the lightsaber hilt. Hamill would grip the concealed wrist mechanism, while a spring-loaded trigger released the hand-and-lightsaber assembly for the effect.
Heritage said the hand was created from a cast of Hamill’s hand by Freeborn’s makeup department. With the hand and wrist assembly attached, the complete rig measures about 14 inches by 9 inches. The listing notes painted wound effects at the severed wrist cross-section and thumb area, as well as a metal pin joining the hand assembly to the wrist section.
The provenance is a major part of the lot. Heritage said the lightsaber descended directly from Freeborn, whose work on the original Star Wars trilogy included the creation of Yoda and other makeup effects. The listing says the piece was acquired directly from Freeborn in 1994 and was accompanied by a signed letter of authenticity from the consignor, along with a certificate of authenticity from Heritage Auctions.
The piece has also been published in J.W. Rinzler’s The Making of The Empire Strikes Back and in the Lucasfilm-sanctioned French reference work Star Wars, Objets du Mythe by Patrice Girod and Arnaud Grunberg. Heritage said those references further cement the lightsaber’s place in Star Wars history and collecting.
Joe Maddalena, Executive Vice President at Heritage Auctions, called the lightsaber one of the most important surviving Star Wars artifacts. He said collectors were bidding on more than a prop because the piece comes from the emotional climax of The Empire Strikes Back.
The sale also gives Heritage records in three major Star Wars collecting categories. The auction house now says it holds the auction records for the most valuable screen-used Star Wars prop, the most valuable Star Wars filming model and the most valuable original Star Wars artwork sold at auction. Heritage previously sold the screen-matched Red Leader X-wing Starfighter for $3.135 million in 2023 and Tom Jung’s original half-sheet key poster painting for Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope for $3.875 million.
The auction listing notes expected age and screen-use wear, including a missing test bulb, scuffing, oxidation to the finish and an intentional-looking gap between the T-track grips to accommodate placement of the resin fingers during filming. The hand and wrist rig also showed oxidation, paint loss, surface cracking and some looseness to the metal clamp portion.
With a final price of $3.75 million, Luke Skywalker’s Cloud City lightsaber now stands as the most expensive screen-used Star Wars prop ever sold at auction.