New Yoshitoku crafted armor inspired by the Sith Lord... The craftsmen at Yoshitoku are gearing up to manufacture Darth Vader inspired armor. Yoshitoku, a major manufacturer of traditional Japanese dolls and armor will be teaming up with sculptor Takayuki Takeya in order to manufacture an initial run of 100 sets of armor. The armor will be equipped with a red sheathed sword and red bow which are supposed to represent Darth Vader’s light saber.
Designed by Takeya, the Darth Vader armor will be hand crafted, one by one, by the craftsmen at Yoshitoku and made available to the public for 330,000yen ($2,826US). The helmet and face piece will be available for 180,000yen ($1541US). Orders will be taken through the internet starting March 16th at 10:00AM (Japanese Standard Time). Orders will also be accepted at the Tokyo Toy Festival on March 18th and at the Star Wars 30th Anniversary Celebration taking place in the United States this May.
Although Yoshitoku has been in business for the past 300 years, the question was raised as to whether manufacturing traditional armor was enough. In light of the fact that Darth Vader was originally designed based on Japanese armor and that the fathers of newborn children today are from the Star Wars generation, the decision was an easy one to make.
This armor will be manufactured by craftsmen who are experienced at making display armor for the Children’s Day Festival in May. However, since Darth Vader represents the Dark Side of the Force, this armor is not intended for that event.By Robert Baldwin
