Your Indiana Jones Displays - Lets see 'em
- Thread starter Dave Ward
- Start date
el toro
Sr Member
Nice display. You got the cap correct also. It’s a 1920s NY giants cap, but sometimes people believe it’s a NY yankees cap from the 1930s. The Giants logo is distinct from the Yankees thicker font, and except for native NYers, most people don’t see the difference. In addition, the replica NY yankees cap is incorrectly shaped, as it has a structured crown, while accurate caps from that era look like they’re already broken in, like the accurate replica you have.
ShiftySamurai
New Member
This isn’t really my display, it’s a package I just put together for a $30 spend limit Secret Santa at work focused on a $20 Grail off of Amazon, an old Hobby Lobby box I had sitting around, and a couple of hand recreated Grail Diary pages.
My build story goes that the Brotherhood of the Cruciform Sword went back to retrieve the grail that they were sworn to protect and found these diary pages torn from the book. Does it make a lot of sense? No. But hopefully the gift receiver’s love of Indiana Jones will make them look past that.
The box started with a terrible light grey wash and now has 5 weathering passes, as well as hand painted BotCS symbols on the left and right side of the box.
I’m still trying to think of some other paper props I could throw in here so if anyone has ideas, please let me know.
My build story goes that the Brotherhood of the Cruciform Sword went back to retrieve the grail that they were sworn to protect and found these diary pages torn from the book. Does it make a lot of sense? No. But hopefully the gift receiver’s love of Indiana Jones will make them look past that.
The box started with a terrible light grey wash and now has 5 weathering passes, as well as hand painted BotCS symbols on the left and right side of the box.
I’m still trying to think of some other paper props I could throw in here so if anyone has ideas, please let me know.
Wow - that is some great work ShiftySamurai - the recipient of that will be very excited!! I love what you did the box and the straw is a great touch.
Have a couple of updates for mine thanks to an amazing couple of gifts I received last week. I'll get it all setup and take some shots.
VonMagnum
Sr Member
I've got a couple of new items coming soon (i.e. I just bought a Temple of Doom collection set off eBay; sorry if I beat some people to it).
Thanks to MCINTOSH275 for pointing the auction out to me or I wouldn't have noticed since I haven't been looking for some time thinking I was done with my collection for now
).
INCLUDED:
-MIMIC's Remote controlled light up Sankara stones. (Will replace my stones that have switches on the bottom and are kind of dim; the remote makes them actually usable as it won't disturb the display (or risk knocking something over just trying to light them for a short while since they run on batteries).
-Mark Poon's Urn of Nurachi (Will replace my current urn which is nice, but not very "ivory" looking. This one looks much more screen accurate.
I wanted the remote controlled stones for some time (They seemed very pricey by themselves when they (rarely) come up so I didn't think I'd ever see a set I'd be willing to buy) and a better more accurate looking urn for that matter and frankly as much as the set was, I've seen the MIMIC stones for sale for almost as much as this entire set, alone with the Mark Poon Urn and other items.
The set also includes:
-Landron made solid Sankara stone (single). This looks "similar" perhaps a bit better than the current ones I'm using that seem solid, but actually do light up (rather dimly). I might find a spot for it somewhere else in the room or something.
-Mark Poon's Lao Che diamond (Better reproduction than the one I'm currently using for sure)
-Sanskrit fragment (Don't current have one of these; I'm sure I can find some place for it)
-Indiana Jones satchel (Not sure where to use this offhand, but I'm sure it can fit in somewhere)
-Champagne glass & antidote (don't really need these as the glass is the wrong one anyway with a round stem; I'm not sure about the antidote; I'll have to compare them and decide which to keep in the display)
I might end up selling the ones I currently have (urn and stones) that are being replaced as I don't really have room/need for both.
CURRENT Bookshelf Display in my home theater room where they replacements will soon go and replace said items:
Thanks to MCINTOSH275 for pointing the auction out to me or I wouldn't have noticed since I haven't been looking for some time thinking I was done with my collection for now
). INCLUDED:
-MIMIC's Remote controlled light up Sankara stones. (Will replace my stones that have switches on the bottom and are kind of dim; the remote makes them actually usable as it won't disturb the display (or risk knocking something over just trying to light them for a short while since they run on batteries).
-Mark Poon's Urn of Nurachi (Will replace my current urn which is nice, but not very "ivory" looking. This one looks much more screen accurate.
I wanted the remote controlled stones for some time (They seemed very pricey by themselves when they (rarely) come up so I didn't think I'd ever see a set I'd be willing to buy) and a better more accurate looking urn for that matter and frankly as much as the set was, I've seen the MIMIC stones for sale for almost as much as this entire set, alone with the Mark Poon Urn and other items.
The set also includes:
-Landron made solid Sankara stone (single). This looks "similar" perhaps a bit better than the current ones I'm using that seem solid, but actually do light up (rather dimly). I might find a spot for it somewhere else in the room or something.
-Mark Poon's Lao Che diamond (Better reproduction than the one I'm currently using for sure)
-Sanskrit fragment (Don't current have one of these; I'm sure I can find some place for it)
-Indiana Jones satchel (Not sure where to use this offhand, but I'm sure it can fit in somewhere)
-Champagne glass & antidote (don't really need these as the glass is the wrong one anyway with a round stem; I'm not sure about the antidote; I'll have to compare them and decide which to keep in the display)
I might end up selling the ones I currently have (urn and stones) that are being replaced as I don't really have room/need for both.
CURRENT Bookshelf Display in my home theater room where they replacements will soon go and replace said items:
Lightning
Master Member
Finished my Grail today, originaly sculpted and fired it over a decade ago, then left it behind when I moved away from home, finally retrieved it over Christmas. Have a few temporary stand-ins here, most notably the Staff of Ra which is actually a Mardi Gras throw from the Krewe of Chewbaccus.
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MCINTOSH275
Well-Known Member
Good Grail replica...
VonMagnum
Sr Member
Lightning
Master Member
I like how you mounted the Belloq pocket watch.
It usually has a little glass dome over it, removed for the pictures. I am proud of the fact that I'm the person who first identified the model of that watch.
Thanks, the secret to the Grail is liquid gold leaf.
VonMagnum
Sr Member
The right urn above doesn't look that harsh in normal lighting (see image below for more natural lighting). I used a bright flash and enhanced in Photoshop as the Mark Poon urn is rather dark. That one looks pretty good with a light puck or led candle behind it, though. Texture wise, the Mark Poon urn feels like rubber more or less and the urn from Spain feels more like pottery. The Poon urn is empty. You'd have to add something for a light to not shine right through it. The Spanish urn has faked ashes inside already (painted a half inch down or so to look like the top of ashes). Frankly, the Spanish urn looks better on the shelf in the dark theater lighting as it's visible above the very bottom. The Mark Poon urn needs a light shining on it or behind or something it's so dark in that setting.
I'm looking at ordering a votive candle (remote controlled like the ones inside the stones) to set behind it to light it up with the stones at the same time. The problem with those remote controlled candles is that they only last 300-500 hours or so in terms of battery use on the 4 hour timer mode and use power even if you don't turn them on (to wait for an IR signal or using the timer). I'm having a hard time finding a remote controlled AC powered option. If I put one of the Sankara stones with the candle removed over an AC powered light puck like I use for my Conan "Heart of Arhriman" diamond (that's connected to an AC powered switch RF remote to turn it on/off), it lights up whatever color the puck is using (that one cycles through the primary colors and white). So the stones look whatever color the light is, more or less (slight amber filtering, but the whole stone will turn blue or red or green even). So it might be possible to set the bookshelves up with some light pucks connected to USB/AC to power the lights for the urn and stones, but the pucks tend to be wider than the diameter of the stone, so it'd be hard to put them right against each other and the bookshelf is crowded as it is.
The only other option is to manually turn them off when not in use to conserve the batteries, but that largely defeats the point of having a remote, IMO.
I've now got 3 other flickering Sankara stones (they're not as bright, but look like solid stone when dark; these looks kind of amber-like, but on a dark bookshelf not too far off) and a Landron solid stone. I have no place to use these any longer so I might end up selling them and possibly the Spanish version of the Urn of Nurhachi.
I'm looking at ordering a votive candle (remote controlled like the ones inside the stones) to set behind it to light it up with the stones at the same time. The problem with those remote controlled candles is that they only last 300-500 hours or so in terms of battery use on the 4 hour timer mode and use power even if you don't turn them on (to wait for an IR signal or using the timer). I'm having a hard time finding a remote controlled AC powered option. If I put one of the Sankara stones with the candle removed over an AC powered light puck like I use for my Conan "Heart of Arhriman" diamond (that's connected to an AC powered switch RF remote to turn it on/off), it lights up whatever color the puck is using (that one cycles through the primary colors and white). So the stones look whatever color the light is, more or less (slight amber filtering, but the whole stone will turn blue or red or green even). So it might be possible to set the bookshelves up with some light pucks connected to USB/AC to power the lights for the urn and stones, but the pucks tend to be wider than the diameter of the stone, so it'd be hard to put them right against each other and the bookshelf is crowded as it is.
The only other option is to manually turn them off when not in use to conserve the batteries, but that largely defeats the point of having a remote, IMO.
I've now got 3 other flickering Sankara stones (they're not as bright, but look like solid stone when dark; these looks kind of amber-like, but on a dark bookshelf not too far off) and a Landron solid stone. I have no place to use these any longer so I might end up selling them and possibly the Spanish version of the Urn of Nurhachi.
Lightning
Master Member
If I were you I'd light the urn up from the inside. The little remote controlled votive candles might fit or maybe a short run of string lights. Depends on how big the mouth is.
Finishing up the Grail has completely reawakened my Indy Prop hobby. Working on a Raven Bar themed shelf at the moment.
VonMagnum
Sr Member
The votive candles won't fit, at least not the style from the Sankara stones which are about 1.8"x1.5". The "lit" urn above is using the round base puck that changes colors from the Conan display I have (it can has several modes including one only color). I set it so the light is just behind the urn (seeing that the bottom has black velcro on it) and that lit up well. I also tried lighting the urn from behind with a votive candle on the bookshelf and that worked well too (one color only, of course). I've ordered a six pack of votive candles from another brand. I kind of hope they use a different frequency so I can light the urn separately from the stones (I used the learning function on my AVR remote to let me control them and 80% of my home theater system from just two remotes (extra remotes for Shield and Roku; the rest are controlled from my Marantz remote and room lighting and the other prop lighting is controlled with a 6-channel RF remote).
I could also try some more votive candles hid behind other items to light the entire shelf up from behind and see how it looks. They're pretty cheap (6 for $15 or 12 for $20) and batteries are available for around 30 cents each in quantity. I'd kind of prefer to not use batteries, though, but I couldn't find votive candles like that, but there are light pucks like I'm already using that could work for at least some items (I'd just run an extended hidden USB cable through the bookshelves the same way I have hidden speaker wires for the front heights) and there's a USB hub sitting on the subwoofer just in front of the shelf that's already remote controlled I could plug it into at the bottom of cabinet. I like being able to turn lights on/off by remote since everything is in my home theater and I want it dark when a movie is playing without heaving to get up (being lazy
)My brother just brought over two movie posters he had since college (T2 and IJ and the Last Crusade). I put the Last Crusade poster below the shelf that has the ark on it with the Raiders poster above (I've already got the crucifix hanging there so at least it makes more sense now...
Having a T2 poster... tempted to get that T800 skull with the red glowing eyes (seems to be battery powered also, unfortunately. I'd rather have it wired and remote controlled or maybe even a proximity sensor to turn the eyes on when you walk up to it (spooky).
KramStaar
Sr Member
As a point of interest, the Poon urn is not that far off. Here is a picture of one of the urn's at Lucasfilm
VonMagnum
Sr Member
That's interesting. Maybe it's just the lighting, but that looks a bit different than the previous photos I've seen of the Lucasfilm urn (i.e. it looks more green than the previous ones I've seen)
Previous urn photo I was referencing that said it was the one at Lucasfilm:
That matches pretty well the snapshot from Temple of Doom, IMO (left movie; right movie lightened up a bit to show color detail) beyond the blue/violet exposure differences and the movie lighting, I think. I wonder if Lucasfilm had more than one urn made?
My Mark Poon Urn with exposure changed closer to movie shot on the left:
KramStaar
Sr Member
As you suspect, as with all props there are a few versions so you’re right, there are those that exist that are lighter.
My point was merely that Mark’s urn is not far off from the one that I have seen a number of times currently in the archives
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VonMagnum
Sr Member
I'm mostly interested what was used on screen when trying to find a similar looking fake prop. The problem is I'm never 100% sure with Lucasfilm's archives (e.g. That staff of Ra headpiece with the red opaque jewel may have been used on set, but I cannot find it in any screen used shot.). The two urns I've seen supposedly in Lucasfilm's archives both look great, but only one looks believable to me as the on screen movie shot. Mark's urn looks somewhere in-between, but lighting may contribute significantly to this impression, especially given it's translucent. As the light puck shows, its appearance can vary wildly with a light puck behind it.
I even saw a high end auction sell a headpiece for tens of thousands that I'm 98% certain was an Indy Magnoli piece (looks 95+% just like my Indy Magnoli piece, not like my RM piece that looks 98%+ like the movie version) despite the auction certifying it from the movie. I would be hesitant to fully trust anyone for claims about screen used items after seeing that. Indy Magnoli's headpiece is very nice, but there's no mistaking it for the hero prop (given the soldered braid on the hero prop as well as the level of detail shown).
I even saw a high end auction sell a headpiece for tens of thousands that I'm 98% certain was an Indy Magnoli piece (looks 95+% just like my Indy Magnoli piece, not like my RM piece that looks 98%+ like the movie version) despite the auction certifying it from the movie. I would be hesitant to fully trust anyone for claims about screen used items after seeing that. Indy Magnoli's headpiece is very nice, but there's no mistaking it for the hero prop (given the soldered braid on the hero prop as well as the level of detail shown).
