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The screen-matched "Jedi mind-trick" sandtrooper helmet from George Lucas' Star Wars: A New Hope. Imperial Sandtroopers, or desert stormtroopers, were stationed on Luke Skywalker's (Mark Hamill) home planet of Tatooine and could be regularly seen on patrol in the spaceport of Mos Eisley. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) successfully used his Jedi mind-tricks to convince a platoon of sandtroopers that "these are not the droids you're looking for." This helmet screen-matches to the trooper that Obi-Wan performed the Jedi mind-trick on, who then told the group to "move along." The match is evidenced through unique paintwork on the teeth, paint runs on the side of the helmet, the organic forms of the hand-cut eye openings, and a distinct crack around the right side of the jaw.

Stormtroopers were part of George Lucas' earliest concepts for Star Wars and played prominently in each film of the original Star Wars trilogy. Lucas conveyed his ideas to seminal designer Ralph McQuarrie, who memorialised them in a series of concept sketches and production paintings. The costumes were realised for the film by the UK production crew, including costume designer John Mollo, sculptors Liz Moore and Brian Muir, and plastic-former Andrew Ainsworth. The exact count of stormtrooper helmets made for A New Hope is not known, but common consensus is less than 30, including only six sandtrooper helmets and body armours. Three sandtrooper helmets are known to survive: this example, one in George Lucas' archive, and another owned by a private collector.

This helmet has "Harding" scribed into the interior for stunt performer Reg Harding. It retains the original microphone tips at the front of the helmet, rubber trims at the brow and neck opening, and the interior foam padding. The original ears and green strip of acetate in the eyes were removed from the helmet during production, so these components have been replicated to complete the aesthetic. The replica ears were moulded directly from an original pair to ensure the highest degree of accuracy.

The helmet exhibits some wear from age and production use, most notably scuffs, scratches, paint wear and several small cracks.

The helmet is an exceptional example on account of the specific screen usage in one of A New Hope's most memorable scenes, the original unrestored paint finish, its overall condition and aesthetic, and its scarcity as a sandtrooper variant of the classic stormtrooper. Dimensions: 30 cm x 31 cm x 30 cm (11.75" x 12.25" x 11.75")

Estimate: £250,000 - 500,000 M

View all lots from STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE (1977)

View all lots from STAR WARS - ALL ITEMS