Darth Vader’s iconic lightsaber from 1980s Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back has made history. The prop sold for $4,875,000 at Heritage Auctions on Nov. 12, setting a new auction record for a Star Wars collectible.
The sale surpassed the previous franchise record and far exceeded the weapon’s initial estimate of at least $1 million.
Darth Vader’s Empire Strikes Back lightsaber sells for $4.875 million
The lightsaber appeared during Darth Vader’s confrontation with Luke Skywalker in Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back. The filmmakers also used the prop in 1983’s Return of the Jedi.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the $4.875 million sale set a new record for the most expensive Star Wars collectible ever auctioned.
Heritage Auctions initially expected the lightsaber to fetch at least $1 million. However, the final price far exceeded that estimate.
The sale surpassed the previous record of $3.875 million for Tom Jung’s original half-sheet key poster painting for Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope.
It also broke the record for a screen-used Star Wars prop. In July, Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber and severed hand effects rig from The Empire Strikes Back sold for $3.75 million.
Another Darth Vader lightsaber from the same film fetched $3.6 million in 2025.
Heritage Auctions’ Ultimate Star Wars Auction featured 27 additional lightsabers from across the franchise. These included weapons used by Ewan McGregor’s Obi-Wan Kenobi and Hayden Christensen’s Anakin Skywalker in Revenge of the Sith.
Both props initially carried estimates starting at $10,000.
Other Star Wars collectibles have also attracted multimillion-dollar bids. Red Leader’s X-wing fighter miniature sold for $3.1 million in 2023, while a full-size R2-D2 droid fetched $2.8 million.
Meanwhile, Han Solo’s blaster from A New Hope sold for approximately $1 million.
