Hero Blank-Firing Imperial Stormtrooper E-11 Blaster Rifle with Original Dressing Components

Catalogue copy

A hero Imperial Stormtrooper E-11 blaster rifle with dressing components from Richard Marquand's Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. Stormtroopers carried their E-11 blasters throughout the film, and this example is believed to have been used in a battle sequence inside the Endor bunker that was ultimately cut from the final release but appears among the Blu-ray bonus features. It was also likely used in Star Wars: A New Hope and/or The Empire Strikes Back prior to its appearance in Jedi.

Most of the Stormtrooper blasters created for Return of the Jedi were built from non-firing Sterling L2A2 replicas manufactured by Model Gun Corporation (MGC) of Japan. This example, however, was constructed by the UK armory Bapty & Co. from a live-firing Sterling submachine gun and configured to fire blanks. It is believed that Bapty repurposed a Sterling with a cut-down magazine from the earlier films, while the U-shaped rails installed over the barrel's cooling holes are unique to Return of the Jedi, confirming its use on that production. Instantly recognizable to Star Wars fans, the E-11 blaster is among the most iconic weapons in the franchise.

Finished in black paint, the heavyweight blaster is built from a genuine Sterling SMG (since deactivated) with steel and plastic dressing components. While the U-shaped rails are original to Jedi, the scope and scope rail were likely installed at Bapty after the film's production. The scope matches the style used in the earlier Star Wars films and may have originated from one of those props. Due to the deactivation process, the cut-down magazine has been secured, though the trigger remains mobile.

Return of the Jedi earned a Special Achievement Academy Award for Visual Effects and won five Saturn Awards, including Best Science Fiction Film, Best Actor (Mark Hamill), Best Special Effects, Best Costumes, and Best Make-Up. This is an exceptionally rare blank-firing Stormtrooper blaster from Bapty-one of only a few known examples-with wear consistent with age and production use.