In the original Star Wars, there is a scene outside the Cantina, in both the original and extended version, where we see a Dewback and the back end of another creature, which never really gets mentioned. In the Return of the Jedi we get to see it's head mounted on a wall in Jabba's Palace but it's only a fleeting shot and in a lot of shadow. Being me I wanted to know what it is, and have one in my collection, eventually I found out it was called a Jerba, this is what Wookiepedia has to say :
The jerba was a smooth-haired animal considered to be ugly by some.[2] The species were shaggy quadrupeds found in desert environments including on the planet Tatooine.[4] Jerbas produced milk.[2]
History
"There's a whole subculture of breeders—I once smuggled a mated pair off Tatooine for a private seller."
―Han Solo[2]
Jabbas trophies
A jerba's head (right) was featured among Jabba's trophies.
A subculture of jerba breeders existed in the galaxy, and the creatures were kept for their milk or for their meat. Some were also ridden. Han Solo once smuggled a pair of mated jerbas off Tatooine for a private seller, although he considered the beasts to be ugly.[2] Tethers for jerbas and banthas were kept outside Tosche Station in Anchorhead, and wary jerbas were known to frequent the exterior of the building. Jabba Desilijic Tiure kept the trophy head[4] of a jerba mounted on the wall of his palace on Tatooine, along with other hunting trophies including the head of a tauntaun.[5] During the era of the New Republic, Senator Grelka Sorka owned a prize show-jerba which was taken hostage to ensure the politician's vote against launching an attack against the Imperial remnant at Jakku.[2] The hide of a jerba could be used to make leather. Leia Organa sometimes wore boots made of jerba leather.[6]
This adds a lot of the scope for the future, but to begin with I wanted the one for the outside the Cantina, It was sculpted completely in greenstuff over a wire frame, as seen in the below pictures.
Apologies I forgot to take pictures in excitement to get it painted ! LOL
For painting I wanted to try and match the colours from the movie as close as I could, and I'm happy with the end result.
This is my next entry for Monster May(hem).That's all for this post so until next time stay safe and have fun !
Cheers Dave
Brilliant, Dave! :-) I really like that! How long did it take you to sculpt it (rough guess)?
ReplyDeleteThank you John, probably about 4 days, but a lot of that time will be waiting for bits to dry, before I can add the next layer ! LOL
DeleteFrom behind it matches very well the big hairy arse beast in the film! Now I have to go back and find the scenes in Jabba's palace to see how the mounted head looks! Great stuff on a random critter indeed!
ReplyDeleteThank you Dai, it took me a while to work out the fur and rat tail were probably part of a skin to stop the saddle from hurting the beast ! LOL You could always check out my Jabba's Palace post, as it's in there, but would probably be quicker to watch the whole film than scroll through all my Star Wars posts ! LOL
DeleteI could praise your sculpting or painting skills as I've done other times, but Iwant to point out your research! Is there anything like a PhD in SW? We need to create it!
ReplyDeleteThank you Suber, if there was Dave Filoni would be the head of the school board, as his knowledge on the backlore and races is immense ! LOL
DeleteTop greenstuff work, Dave. I was wondering what it's base size is as its presumably a bit of a brute..? Splendid painting too, and your research, as with all things Star Wars, is clearly top notch once again.
ReplyDeleteThank you Simon, it is on a 40 mm round base so not a massive creature, and needed to be smaller than a Dewback to be able to create the scene eventually ! LOL The internet has certainly made it a lot easier to find relevant information, as before that it was only what I could find in books, or pausing the films or series ! LOL
DeleteOK, so that's bloody adorable LOL! Great work on creating the sculpt from just its arse and face! Excellent painting too, you've really brought it to life.
ReplyDeleteThank you Matt, I did find an art rendition as well which helped tie it all together, from a book creatures of the Star Wars universe, when I was getting the test for this post I found a picture of a second one from outside the Cantina, from a bit further round the building, so I guess that will be the next one I make ! LOL
DeleteDon’t you have more regular SW to paint like more storm troopers or something versus tracking down random half seen creatures? 😀😝
ReplyDeleteStill it came out looking great. But now you’ll have to explain what it is to everyone and sound like a SW pendantic. Lol.
Thank you Stewart, there is always more Star Wars to paint, but currently out of Stormtroopers, need to wait for my birthday or Christmas to get some more of them ! LOL I do like to have the more obscure creatures as well as the more well known ones, and who knows at some point I may do enough of these to have a Jerba farm ! LOL
DeleteWow, that's a most unusual one and something I hadn't really registered when I watched the movies. I'll be keeping an eye out for the Jerbas next time! Great job on getting that one sculpted and added to your collection! :D
ReplyDeleteThank you Brian, I find there are so many creatures and incidental scenery, that you almost become numb to it, especially as a lot of the time they are only on screen for a few seconds as you pan past it ! LOL
DeleteThere are deep dives and then there are things like this. If this doesn't demonstrate your dedication to Star Wars, Dave, nothing will! :) I really like how the creature came out and I think you've shown the magic of Star Wars with this miniature. There is so much that sparks your imagination in the movies and makes the worlds (and twin suns) seem real!
ReplyDeleteThank you Jeff, as you know at some point I'd like to do the cantina, inside and out, so having all the bits you see outside is key to making it look like a functioning piece. I think in all the films and series there are so many little details we miss, as a speeder zooms past, or escape crashes in, that projects like this can really sink their teeth in to.
DeleteThis must be one of the most difficult models you've made for your Star Wars obsession, especially given the pisture above and the fleeting information you've gleaned about it. I applaud your dedication to your love of SW. The model you;ve come up with is great and does really match the phot0 still from the film.
ReplyDeleteThank you Joe, luckily the new series is giving me better shots of creatures and vehicles, making my life a lot easier to find good reference pictures for projects, but there are still a lot from the earlier films I need to do, so lots more research to be done ! LOL
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