A British couple is thanking their lucky stars after a garage full of garbage bags that they inherited from a dead neighbor yielded a trove of Star Wars toys worth ￡400,000 (US$525,222).
The couple from Stourbridge, England, was initially unsure what to make of the jumble of dolls and spacecraft that their neighbor had spent decades collecting, The Times reported on Thursday.
Their son called in an auctioneer, who found a treasure trove of Star Wars memorabilia, including action figures still pristine in their sealed packaging.
“A lot of them were a bit damp because of how they’ve been stored, but generally it’s the best Star Wars collection I’ve ever seen,” Chris Aston of Aston’s Auctioneers told The Times.
“We had a huge amount of interest from all over the world and we’re expecting the sale to do very well,” Aston said of the auction.
Going under the hammer was a Star Destroyer Commander, one of only two known examples still in the original packaging, which sold for ￡42,500 including fees, The Times reported.
A Palitoy Jawa still in its box — believed to be one of only 10 — brought in ￡27,280.
A set of eight figures from Return of the Jedi, each costing just ￡1.59 when bought new in the 1980s, brought in ￡1,400.
From Storm Trooper helmets to R2D2’s eyes, memorabilia from one of the world’s largest film franchises can fetch staggering sums at auctions.
In 2015, a Luke Skywalker doll, which was launched as a children’s toy in 1978, sold for US$25,000 at an auction organized by Sotheby’s and eBay.
Aston said that the Stourbridge couple would be “delighted” with the unexpected windfall.
“I don’t know if they have any specific plans, but it must feel like they won the lottery,” he said.
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