King Elessar | Sculptor: Gary Hunt | Edition size: 3000 | product page

::Sculptural Quality::

The likeness to Viggo Mortensen- that ever controversial subject in Lord of the Rings collectibles- is captured well here by Gary Hunt. At certain angles, particularly from the side- the resemblance is striking. The eyes are the main issue on the face, being quite inexplicably small. Still, I cannot count that as a devastating distraction of any sort, as this is one of the finest if not the finest Viggo likenesses to date. Lots of eye-catching detail elsewhere include the splendid ceremonial armor, Anduril at his side and even the ring of Barahir in all its 1/6th glory. The vast remainder of the piece is covered in chainmail. As far as the pose is concerned, it’s everything you’d expect in a statue of Elessar- regal and majestic. The hands look odd, almost a bit rough and unfinished looking, which I suspect could be some weird by-product of the casting/molding process.

::Paint Application::

This is one of the first Weta pieces to feature a heavy amount of metal armory. In fact here the entire torso as well as the majority of the arms are covered in plate. And perhaps this is one of the major reasons for delay on this piece- perfecting the painting of metal. So it is without surprise that the two other pieces featuring the same intense amount of metal, the busts of Elendil and Isildur, began shipping approximately when Elessar did. And it is perfect, Elendil is more so, but the effect is marvelous here on Elessar also. The raised areas done in gold are beautiful and cleanly painted. The silver itself is highly reflective and tarnished just right with black. Top notch work.

::Parting Notes::

Really quite unlike any statue Weta has done in many respects. Elessar will be long sought after for both its poignant subject and excellent sculpt.

Related:

• Elessar product page at Sideshow Collectibles
• Arwen statue review
• Back to the Review Index