ideshow Toy/Weta has been producing merchandise from the film series based on J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy since before Peter Jackson's first installment met the big screen. They have produced metal cast helmets, polystone environments, figures busts, medallions and weapon sets. Each is gorgeously crafted from original props made by their New Zealand partner, Weta Workshop, the people responsible for designing the actual props for the films.
The latest Cool Stuff from Sideshow/Weta is the Lord of the Rings weapon sets. There are several sets available, including weapons carried by the hobbits, Gimli, Aragorn, Legolas, the orc Lurtz and the Nazgul, to name but a few.
This particular item, Arms of the Fellowship, Collection 1 (#9601R), consists of five 1:6 scale weapons carried by Frodo, Gandalf the Grey and Aragorn of the Fellowship of the Ring—or rather, four weapons, one of which is represented both sheathed and unsheathed.
Sting's history began before the trilogy, in J.R.R. Tolkien's earlier book, The Hobbit, in which Bilbo is coerced into joining a party of 12 dwarves and the wizard Gandalf, whose aim is to kill a dragon and restore the dwarf Kingdom Under the Mountain. Sting is also represented in scabbard.
Glamdring was found with Sting when Bilbo defeated a trio of trolls about to serve up the party as soup early in their adventure. Gandalf has held Glamdring ever since.
Gandalf's staff, of course, is vital to every aspect of the story, as it is the focus for his magical power.
Narsil is perhaps the most important sword in the history of Middle-earth. Wielded by Elendil, who fell during the seige of Mordor, the sword shattered, but its hilt was picked up by his son, Isildur, who used it to overthrow Sauron and claim the Ring of Power. Its sacred shards are later forged into a new sword, Anduril.
Each weapon is molded directly onto a matte black oval plaque etched with a copy of the map of Middle-earth. The weapons' faces are carved in detail and hand-brushed to match textures used in the original film props, and are then extruded back to the plaque. They are not removable.
Sting, Glamdring and the shards of Narsil were carved by Peter Lyon, Gandalf the Grey's staff was carved by Jamie Beswarick, and Sting in scabbard was carved by John Harvey, all sculptors for Weta.
Blades that are a cut above the rest
This particular set, one of many such beautifully detailed sets of weapons, is especially notable, as it holds some of the most important weapons in the Lord of the Rings tale—the elven weapons Sting (named by Bilbo after using it to kill some very large spiders) and Glamdring, the revered, historic Narsil and Gandalf's ever-present wooden staff.
So while many of the other sets are desirable and beautiful, this set is arguably the one to have, since the history of these weapons is knitted deeply into the very life's blood of the world of Middle-earth.
These swords are not made of metal. The reason this is important to note is because they sure seem to be. The paint used on these items is not standard silver paint, which rarely looks like true metal—it is quite realistic. Even after careful examination, the illusion remains—these blades still look like steel.
Gandalf's staff is painted fairly well, if a little plainly, with little attention to the wood grain of the shaft. The stone mounted into the gnarled root at the top looks absolutely authentic. One could easily mistake it for a small gritty pebble.
The elegant plaque has a mounting notch in the back and also comes with an antiqued base suitable for shelf mounting. Packed well in styrofoam in a numbered white box, the set also comes with a printed certificate highlighting the weapon names.
With so much going for it, only a few things stand out that may detract from this set's worth, and even then not by much.
Sting unsheathed has a scroll pattern etched into the blade, yet it is not well detailed. In photos of this weapon, elf writing appears to be etched into the scrollwork, which is completely non-evident here. Even the silver scrollwork on the scabbard is better executed than the etching on the blade itself, which is surprising, considering the importance and reverence Sting commands.
Another minor problem with this set is the fact that Sting is here twice. Why they would include Sting in a scabbard is a mystery when we could have been treated to the reforged Anduril, or an ax of Gimli's, or Boromir's sword—something different and more relevant. Redundancy in this case is misplaced, especially considering that Sting's scabbard is not as important as the weapon itself.
A relatively low run of 2,500 hand-numbered copies of this set are available. This fact, and the fact that these are modeled from the original weapons and hand-brushed to capture the actual textures of the original props, certainly make this set highly desirable.
