An original Helping Hand used in the production of the 1986 fantasy picture Labyrinth starring David Bowie under the direction of Jim Henson.
The memorable sequence where Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) falls through the shaft of Helping Hands was achieved practically by a combination of crew members wearing gloves to perform choreographed hand movements and a quantity of static hands which were placed on rigs. This is an original static Helping Hand used in the production, made by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop it is constructed from foam rubber with a hand painted finish. Originally the hand would have been part of a longer prop which incorporated a forearm and was mounted on a wooden stick which could be placed on a rig or held by a performer during filming.
The nature of the foam used in making this version of Helping Hand means that it remains in extremely supple and soft condition with the only wear being to the paintwork which exhibits some cracking, by comparison any surviving glove versions are in very poor condition with the foam latex skin being used on them having rotted over time. The hand measures approximately 9.5″ long and spans 6.5″ from finger to thumb and remains in generally good condition.
An instantly recognizable artefact from this cult fantasy classic in a custom display that measures 12″w (30.5cm) x 11″h (27.9cm) x 9″d (22.8cm) and accompanied with a COA from Hero Prop.
