Blade Runner 2049: Trash Mesa horse ashtray prop research

cirrusx1

Well-Known Member
Hi,
I’ve been working on some detective work on the horse head ashtray and I thought I would share what I’ve found out to date. I believe the ashtray is a Churchill Downs ashtray from the 1920’s. I’ve only found one that was 90 percent accurate to the one in the movie (see photo). The badge on the ashtray I’ve identified as a enameled Charm that says ‘ Kentucky / Bluegrass State’. I’ve found many on the ends of souvenier spoons on eBay. They are pretty plentiful. The ashtray seems very rare. I hope that gets the ball rolling on finding a source for these. And…go!

1E426F5C-76D2-48C1-ACB3-2ACE44681121.jpg415285C0-7CB9-414A-AEC3-BBFFDA7ACA88.jpgE8C9560D-CE2C-4C18-8FD9-47FD8070448D.jpg
 
I noticed this ashtray, during my first viewing of the film, opening week. I came home & logged on to e-Bay, & typed "vintage horse ashtray" in the search. Among the results, I found ONE that is basically a match to the first photo in the OP's post. I went ahead & bought it, because it looked screen-accurate (going from memory alone).

I didn't bother to post about it, because I didn't think anyone would care to hear about my "near miss" find.

If anyone is interested, when I get home from work, I can check to see if there's any maker's markings or anything.
 
Argh! And I thought I was the only one with a “horse head ashtray” saved search, lol!

I also saw the brass horse head auction Nexus 6 bid on and decided to skip it, hoping I’d come across one in copper or bronze with the shield. I regret not bidding now that I realize how rare these are. Congrats, Nexus 6! :)

Thanks for the tip on the Kentucky enamel pin - I’ll get right on that. Hopefully by some miracle there’s a box of NOS of these ashtrays and we can all enjoy them without bitter, marriage-ending bidding wars. ;)
 
...I also saw the brass horse head auction Nexus 6 bid on and decided to skip it, hoping I’d come across one in copper or bronze with the shield. I regret not bidding now that I realize how rare these are. Congrats, Nexus 6! :)
Thanks! :)
BUT, for the record, the one I found was not an auction, it was a 'Buy It Now', so I just picked it up. ;)
 
BTW, they do make commemorative ashtrays for derbies, so given that the shield pin is Kentucky, another search string could be “Kentucky Derby ashtray.”


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I’m interested in this prop as well, when I watched in theaters I thought it was a horse skeleton... oops.



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OK, so no real maker's marks. The only thing, under one of the edges, is a "U.S. PAT PEND" designation, & it appears that a 5-digit number was supposed to be on the end, but wound up being imprinted on top of the E, N, D, & then 2 numbers after. *shrugs*

hat003.jpghat002.jpghat001.jpg
 
So you are the lucky guy. I’d be interested in making a mold of it and altering the cast to make an accurate, or close to accurate replica. Would you be interested in working with me on this?
 
I hate to be the one to say it, but now that I've compared the two ashtrays, they're very different in some critical ways, and definitely come from different molds. Most likely the design was outsourced to two manufacturers and one or both of them did their own interpretation of the design. Either that, or one company copied the other but made a few changes to avoid patent and/or copyright infringement. Here's my comparison:

ashtray comparison.jpg
 
I hate to be the one to say it, but now that I've compared the two ashtrays, they're very different in some critical ways, and definitely come from different molds. Most likely the design was outsourced to two manufacturers and one or both of them did their own interpretation of the design. Either that, or one company copied the other but made a few changes to avoid patent and/or copyright infringement. Here's my comparison:

View attachment 797221
I concur with almost all the comparisons. EXCEPT that the snout does over-hang, you would have to rotate the ashtray & photograph it from the same angle for it to be apparent.

But like I originally said, it's DEFINITELY a miss.
 
Ha ha! All the "horse ashtray" Ebay lurkers come out of the woodwork. I've gone so far as to look through every listing for "vintage ashtray".... currently 32,000???? Yes, I'm nuts.
Holy crap! Did you just pass on the one I bought because it wasn't accurate enough, or did I snag it between one of your searches? :lol
 
Again, I’m offering up my mood making and sculpture abilities in casting a duplicate and sculpting it to be as screen accurate as possible, and a master for resin copies. Any interest?
 
Holy crap! Did you just pass on the one I bought because it wasn't accurate enough, or did I snag it between one of your searches? :lol

I did come across the one you have but passed due to the differences. Wish I hadn't, because I haven't seen one as close since.:(
 
Again, I’m offering up my mood making and sculpture abilities in casting a duplicate and sculpting it to be as screen accurate as possible, and a master for resin copies. Any interest?

I'd be interested, but even more so if you had a foundry cast it in copper or reddish-bronze and then give it a nice black wash... :)
 
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