Interest Indiana Jones - "FERTILITY IDOL" (Made from Casting from Original Mold)

Can't they make the Bronze version with hollowed out eye sockets for real eyes to be plopped in there?

Obviously the real one was not supposed to be heavy, the easy tossing, one handed carry, amount of sand, etc. so I don't get the desire for people to have a solid metal one, but if they want it and want it to have real eyes could that not be done?
 
After speaking with the factory about a metal version, there would be 1 to 2 centimeter shrinkage, due to it being Lost Wax Casting.

So, after the resin casting run, I'll look into getting my master model scanned into a 3D model and have it 3D printed 2 centimeters bigger. So, when it shrinks, it will be the right size.
I'm down with a resin version.

For a bronze gold plated version any chance you could look into rotocasting in metal. The few steps in between as minor as they are will introduce some inaccuracies in the final. Scans can be pretty good, but their poly meshes almost always need to be cleaned up. Hence no longer being 1:1 to the studio prop. 3D printing introduces steps, layers of material that will need to be filled, sanded adding yet another separation from being 1:1 from the studio prop. It seems like increasing the size for lost wax would be the way to go, but in my experience I've needed to make several iterations before dialing in the exact sizing at the micron level. Plus the shrinkage isn't always proportionally even everywhere on some features.

Let me see if I can find some vendors that can rotocast for you if you want. You can get a hollow part. Not as heavy and seamless all the way around without losing features. Plus you get the opportunity to drop eyes in if you want.
 
Maybe there's another way minus lost wax or roto.

How about just Vaccum metalized in nickel and plated gold? Seems the least inexpensive and easiest to control.
 
Peruvian Incan hollow idols are authentic and mystify experts as to how some of their jewelry was made back then.
 

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UPDATE:

So, what do you guys think about this being a metal "Bronze" casting that is "Gold-Plated"?...

Personally I prefer props to be the closest possible to whatever they're supposed to be made of in the fiction they originate from, so I'd love this idol to be metal. That said, I agree with everyone else that the eyes are an important factor.
 
Hey relicmaker, just throwing an idea out there for the aluminium bronze version with glass eyes, what if that one was cast in two pieces.
Like in the special feature video the top of the head (hair piece only) came off to allow access to the moving eyes mechanism.
Could be a possibility or too much hassle, just a thought.
 
UPDATE:

So, I found a foundry that can cast the Idol in Bronze, hollow, real Gold-Plating, and a wall thickness of 2 - 3mm, which will allow the glass eyes!

They'll be able to cast it with the eyes cut out, and a hole in the bottom to allow me to insert the glass eyes for installation!

Since it's being cast with a thin wall, height shrinkage will be a maximum of 3mm!

I'm preparing to send an Idol to them by the end of this week, and they will send me a sample to inspect their work.

So, this is awesome news! It will be REAL GOLD-PLATED METAL, with glass eyes!!!

I don't want to get too excited yet, until I am actually holding it in my hands to see if the quality is up to our community standards, but lets keep our fingers crossed!
 
I'm curious about the gold finish. Will it be aged like in the temple close ups from the film?

I think a lot of replicas for this particular prop are overly smooth and shiny, which makes them look as if the idol had been made yesterday (I suppose some folks prefer this, but I love when replicas feel real). The one from the film close ups is not particularly reflective and seems to have a slightly grainy texture (dust, dirt?) all over. Idol experts can probably comment on this better.
 
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I'm curious about the gold finish. Will it be aged like in the temple close ups from the film?

I think a lot of replicas for this particular prop are overly smooth and shiny, which makes them look as if the idol had been made yesterday (I suppose some folks prefer this, but I love when replicas feel real). The one from the film close ups is not particularly reflective and seems to have a slightly grainy texture (dust, dirt?) all over. Idol experts can probably comment on this better.

Age and weather it yourself?
 
Ah, that's great to hear.

Yeah, I've only ever aged paper myself, and I feel anxious about messing with expensive props. And, this may be just me, but also like to think of these things as artist pieces that should be taken as is, respecting whichever the original intent from the prop maker was, unless the prop maker himself/herself agrees to change anything.
 
YES!!! Perfect! You are on the right track with the gold finish. It's not chrome gold or high gloss at all.
 
I like the look of that second picture with a slight more sheen to the gold.

Also hoping you will do a solid eye version like the Belloq Idol somewhere down the line too.
 
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