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Andy Dufresne's (Tim Robbins) screen-matched rockhammer Bible from Frank Darabont's prison drama The Shawshank Redemption. Early in the film, Warden Norton (Bob Gunton) handed Dufresne the bible and told him that "Salvation lies within", a reference to the religious regime that operated at Shawshank. During the final payoff, the warden discovered that his secret and illegal bookkeeping accounts had been switched with the Bible during Andy's escape. In the front of the book, Robbins' character had penned "Dear Warden, you were right, salvation lay within". Turning the page to the very appropriate Exodus chapter, Norton then found the perfect outline of the tiny rock hammer Dufresne used to patiently tunnel his way out. Knowing he was cornered, the warden killed himself to avoid arrest and a lifetime in his own prison.

The leatherbound book screen-matches the one seen on screen in several ways, including markings and creases on the cover, Andy's handwriting on the inside cover, and creasing and minor tears on the first page of the hammer cutout.

Only one rockhammer Bible was finished for the pivotal scene, as the process of cutting the hammer outline was precise and time-consuming. Since production, the Bible has undergone some minor, careful and sympathetic restoration, most notably at the base of the hammer cut-out and inside the cover. Dimensions: 24.5 cm x 17 cm x 5 cm (9 3/4" x 6 3/4" x 2")

Estimate: £100,000 - 150,000 M

View all lots from SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, THE (1994)