The Braveheart prop used by the Scots freedom fighter in the film attracted a flurry of bids
Mel Gibson in a scene from the film ‘Braveheart’, 1995(Image: 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images)
A weapon used by Mel Gibson while he played the Scots hero of William Wallace in Braveheart has sold for over £8,000 at auction. Fans of the award winning film were given the opportunity to snap up the war hammer prop which the 13th-century freedom fighter used to take down his enemies in the movie.
Gibson, wielded the weapon, which has a long carved wooden shaft and aluminium metallic head, when he fought against the English during the Battle of Stirling in the 1995 hit film. The prop was expected to sell for an estimated £2,000 at Heritage Auctions’ Hollywood Entertainment sale in Dallas, Reax.
However, it brought about a lot of excitement at the auction and ended up selling for a final price of £8,560. A description of the prop read: “Original hero SFX War Hammer used by William Wallace (Mel Gibson) in the Battle of Stirling in the 1995 period epic Braveheart.
“Measuring 31 inches x 10.5 inches the War Hammer is constructed of a long carved wooden shaft expertly distressed to appear worn and topped with an aluminium metallic head featuring a unique adze with four points and a two-piece retractable claw to mimic piercing an enemy’s armour for SFX shots.
Braveheart stars Mel Gibson as William Wallace and shows Scotland’s fight for independence(Image: Rex)
“This War Hammer is used by Wallace as he bludgeons the head of a British cavalryman during the Battle of Stirling, the first major victory of the Scottish rebellion against the British.
“This is one of the most memorable sequences in the film, preceded by Wallace’s stirring rallying cry as his countrymen face down the large numbers of British who clearly outnumber them.
“Item exhibits some oxidation to the aluminium head and some scuffs to the shaft, as expected with production used weaponry.”
Other items in the auction included a sword and wooden stick used by Scottish soldiers during the battles scenes of the film which both sold for over £1,000, the Sun reports.
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Last year, the iconic sword used by Gibson during Braveheart sold for £60,000 at auction.
Originally designed by armourer Simon Atherton, the weapon was used for many close-up shots and Gibson held it on many of the promotional images and posters for the film.
Braveheart scooped up five Academy Awards, including best picture and best director for Gibson, and sparked a huge wave of tourism to Scotland.
Despite its success, Gibson admitted there were some historical inaccuracies in the film. For example, there was no bridge in any of the scenes during the pivotal Battle of Stirling Bridge and the American- Australian actor admitted he may have ‘distorted history’.
Addressing this, Gibson previously said: “Yes, there was a bridge involved in the Battle of Stirling Bridge.
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“We didn’t have a bridge because that would’ve made it too puny. I wanted to do it big, so we nixed the bridge.
“I’ll admit where I may have distorted history a little bit. That’s OK. I’m in the business of cinema. I’m not a f***ing historian.
“History is very interesting to me, and I do appreciate the veracity of true history. But I don’t know that history is always true.
“It’s written by the winners all the time.”
