eBay Prop Watch: Screen-Worn Samurai Armor from ‘The Last Samurai’

eBay Prop-Watch is a regular examination of eBay in search of some unique, rare and otherwise interesting movie or television props, wardrobe and memorabilia. The Prop Blog has no affiliation with the sellers, the props or eBay and cannot verify a props authenticity. Based on item descriptions, products may be a hero, stunt version, double, back-up or replica. Additionally, in some cases, the item may turn out to be a fake. Bid and purchase at your own discretion.

It’s been quite some time since we’ve last done an eBay Prop Watch, and with the Profiles in History Lost Auction now out of the way, the timing seemed right.

Coming to you from our friends at Abacus Costumes and Props we have a screen-worn Samurai armor set, complete with a katana, starting at $2,500 ($29.88 for shipping and handling).

The listing reads as follows:

Composed of over ten pieces, including: a tan undershirt, brown pants, a brown coat, solid dark brown metal plated sleeve armor, brown hard plastic helmet with rope chinstraps, a pair of metal armor plated skin protectors, a pair of black cloth and rope lace shoes, and a brown chest plate. Also comes with an aluminum-bladed katana.

This set of armor is styled after samurai armor of the Meiji Restoration, a series of political events in late 19th century Japan which were focused on returning power from the Shoguns to the Emperor. This transition of power also heralded the end of the traditional role of samurai in Japanese society, as Western societal and military influences rapidly marginalized the samurais’ role in both society and warfare. This series of events provides the backdrop for the story of ‘The Last Samurai’. The armor of this period exemplifies samurai armor at its height, having undergone almost a millennium of improvements and innovations from when the samurai first emerged as a distinct class in Japanese society.

In addition to the standard item description, Abacus has added a new element to the eBay listing. The below videos show a 360 view of the available piece and an introduction to the piece courtesy of their Curator.

The set also comes with a Certificate of Authenticity courtesy of The Hollywood Studio Collection (now Abacus Costumes & Props).