Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Seeking to free the Rebel Alliance’s most iconic weapons from the clutches of dusty old boxes in attics on Hollywood Boulevard, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! has been on a quest to give fans new hope that they can see their favorite props—handled by their favorite characters—in real life.
We just bought Han Solo’s blaster for $550,000, our most expensive Star Wars purchase yet. Han Solo’s blaster is only eclipsed by lightsabers and death stars. The fast-firing modified DL-44 blaster is closer to Han than even his furry friend, Chewbacca.
Han’s blaster started as a real pistol. The base is a German Mauser C96 model made by a Japanese company. The accouterments included bits of spare parts that were later replicated with resin molding. A scope and iron sights sit atop the frame, supposedly allowing Han to quickdraw more easily. Apparently, he got a little too zealous on set, though, as our model has a damaged scope.
Firing and non-firing versions were made for Return of the Jedi, and ours is a non-firing type. Unfortunately, this means we won’t be doing any blaster-forensics to determine whether Han actually shot first. Since it didn’t necessitate a firearms safety officer on set, it was likely used quite a bit before it was broken.
Source: Holding Han Solo’s Blaster
