MEDAL OF YAVIN LE
STAR WARS: EPISODE IV A NEW HOPE

In the unforgettable last scene of Star Wars: A New Hope, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker, heroes of the Rebellion, approach the platform where Princess Leia Organa stands amidst various generals and dignitaries, awaiting the heroes' arrival.  For their unswerving bravery and ingenuity in destroying the Death Star, the Princess bestows upon them the highest honor awarded by the Rebel Alliance, the Medal of Yavin.  Though unnamed in the film, the medal symbolizes the highest gratitude that the Rebellion's leadership can grant.

There appeared to be two Medal of Yavin props used in the movie, but after the completion of filming Star Wars: A New Hope, the two props apparently disappeared without a trace.  Twenty-seven years later, with a bit of detective work, Master Replicas was able to track down one of the original medal props, which was housed in a private collection.  We obtained permission from the collector to pull a casting of this prop for use in developing our replicas.  After creating the mold and casting several copies, our design team began creating replicas.

The Master Replicas designers decided to recreate the Medal of Yavin in die cast metal so that it would have the substantial weight and feel of the original prop.  We applied 18-karet matte gold plating to each replica to duplicate the rich look of the original prop's painted finish and to enhance the value and appearance of the replica.

Locating the original Medal of Yavin prop was quite an adventure and one we felt was necessary in order to make our replicas as authentic as possible. We hope you get as much satisfaction from the result as we did from the process of creating it.