An original Star Wars painting that was used to advertise the film back in 1977 sold at auction this week for $3.875 million.
Star Wars Painting Sold at Auction
The acrylic and airbrush poster painting by Tom Jung first appeared in newspapers on May 13, 1977. It also appeared on billboards, and in magazines and theater programs, introducing audiences to Star Wars before it hit theaters on May 25.
“For most of America, this was the first time they got a glimpse of the galaxy far, far away,” said Charles Epting, director of pop culture and historical consignments at Heritage Auctions. “Anyone who’s seen these movies or the marketing materials around it — you see this piece, your heart starts racing.” (via ABC News)
Star Wars producer Gary Kurtz held onto the painting, hanging it on his office wall. He passed it down to his daughter. The Kurtz family chose to put it up for auction through Heritage Auctions and bidding started at $1 million.
The final sale of nearly $4 million makes the painting the highest selling piece of memorabilia from Star Wars and for any movie poster artwork ever. Previously, the highest selling Star Wars item was Darth Vader’s lightsaber, which sold for $3.6 million.
The buyer chose to remain anonymous.
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