Star Wars: Darth Vader's lightsaber, carefully preserved for 40 years, is being auctioned off at a crazy price

A piece of history for fans of the saga. Darth Vader's famous lightsaber, which was used to sever Luke Skywalker's hand in the Star Wars episode "Return of the Jedi," went on display in London on Wednesday, before being auctioned in Los Angeles in early September.

This "Holy Grail" risks costing its future buyer an arm and a leg: it is estimated at up to 3 million dollars (2.6 million euros).

“It’s simply an incredible piece of cinematic history,” said Brandon Alinger, director of operations at auction house Propstore, during a presentation in London of the sale’s top lots.

The weapon was wielded by Darth Vader during legendary fight scenes in "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) and "Return of the Jedi" (1983).

David Prowse, the actor behind the black mask, and stuntman Bob Anderson actually used two models. One, bladeless, attached to the villain's belt, and the other, for fight scenes, equipped with a wooden blade.

It is the version used for combat, but without its wooden blade, which is put up for sale , after having been kept for 40 years by an American private individual.

"Someone (...) came to us and said, 'I have this for sale .' We were amazed," said Propstore founder Stephen Lane, comparing the significance of the piece to the red slippers worn by Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz."

Experts authenticated the object by comparing its dents and scratches to those seen in the films.

“Look at the big dent in the back, it's probably from (Luke Skywalker actor) Mark Hamill's lightsaber blade,” says Brandon Alinger.

Despite its value, the object consists of part of an old camera flash, to which salvaged parts, including a calculator, have been added.

Other items on offer at the auction, which runs from September 4 to 6, include the whip, belt and holster used by Harrison Ford in " Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989).

But also a "neuralyzer" used by Agents J (Will Smith) and K (Tommy Lee Jones) to erase memories in "Men in Black" (1997). The luminous object, whose LED display still works, could reach $150,000 (around 129,700 euros).