Fans of Star Wars Can Now Purchase Princess Leia’s White Gown

Star Wars fans can now have the chance to buy one of the series’ most iconic costumes: Princess Leia’s flowing white gown from the final scene of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977). According to the company, which is auctioning the dress as a part of a larger sale of entertainment memorabilia in Late June, the white dress is expected to be sold for between $1 million and $2 million, with a starting bid of $500,000.

Princess Leia’s Iconic White Dress

Princess Leia wears the dress while placing medals around the necks of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) in the throne chamber of the rebel base on Yavin IV, with her hair in her signature braided updo. The ceremony follows Skywalker’s X-wing starfighter’s effective destruction of the Death Star.

According to the auction house, it is the only documented Princess Leia costume from the original film to still exist.

Also up for grabs are a pink coat worn by Kate Winslet’s role as Rose DeWitt Bukater in Titanic (1997), a robe and glasses worn by Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), and Christian Bale’s Batman’s batpod vehicle from The Dark Knight (2008).

The dress was designed by costume designer John Mollo and features long, gauzy sleeves, an empire-waist corset, and an armor-adorned belt. The use of an entirely white silk fabric was intended to represent Leia’s “purity and beauty,” according to the listing. It has a concealed zipper on one side and hook-and-eye closures on the shoulders.

Filmmakers Thought the Dress Was Lost!

In addition to this star-studded history, the dress has an enigmatic past: for decades, Star Wars collectors believed it was lost. The majority of Princess Leia’s costumes were discarded after filming concluded, but one crew member kept the dress as a souvenir. According to Nicole Lampert of the New York Post, it spent the majority of the last few decades clumped at the bottom of a plastic bag in a London residence.

A crew member’s acquaintance once wore the dress to a costume party, where it was ripped and stained with food and drinks; therefore, the textile conservators restoring the dress had their work cut out for them. According to the ad, they spent eight months cleaning and re-stitching the gown to return it to “museum-quality” condition.

Star Wars contributed to Carrie Fisher’s international fame. The actress was posthumously honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her passing in 2016 was met with an outpouring of love and support from her fans. As part of the ceremony, a photograph of Fisher donning the dress was displayed.