Darth Vader's lightsaber sells for $4.87 million at auction

The lightsaber used by Darth Vader in his iconic "I am your father" scene recently sold for over $4.87 million at an auction in Dallas, Texas.

The prop was used in the fifth Star Wars film, The Empire Strikes Back, as well as the sixth installment, Return of the Jedi. It was used by Darth Vader actor David Prowse and his stunt double, Olympic fencer Bob Anderson, for several fight scenes.

The lightsaber was most notably used in the Cloud City duel between Vader and Luke Skywalker, where the Sith Lord severed Skywalker's hand before revealing he was his father.

In Return of the Jedi, the prop was used during the confrontation between Vader and Skywalker in Emperor Palpatine's throne room on Endor.

The auction house was unable to confirm whether it has also been used in 1977's A New Hope, however they claimed it was "possible."

Heritage Auctions described the prop as Vader's "primary dueling lightsaber." It is the most expensive piece of Star Wars memoribilia ever sold, surpassing Luke Skywalker's Cloud City lightsaber (complete with a severed hand made using a mold from Mark Hamill), which sold for $3.75 million, also at Heritage Auctions, in July 2026.

The piece displayed damage "consistent with usage as a working dueling prop," according to Heritage Auctions. The prop has scratches, a crack, a missing portion of the upper shroud, and a partially broken grip.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by America's auction house (@heritageauctions)

Other notable props featured in Heritage Auction's 'Ultimate Star Wars Sale', such as Boba Fett's rifle from The Empire Strikes Back, Obi Wan Kenobi's lightsaber, and Rey Skywalker's lightsaber.

A miniature model of a Snowspeeder using during movie production, once owned by Princess Leia actress Carrie Fisher, sold for $200,000. Lightsabers used by Ray Park's Darth Maul and Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker both sold for $162,500.

There have been several Star Wars props that have sold for over a million dollars. These include a Red Leader X-wing Starfighter, which sold for over $3.13 million in 2023, and a complete R2-D2 unit that fetched $2.75 million in 2017.