Rare 'Jawa' Star Wars toy could be yours for a mere £12,000 in auction Vintage figurine believed to be one of only two in existence Palitoy, Leicester-based manufacturer, later lost licence to make them Similar model, in original packaging, sold for £11,300 on eBay this year Rare find: The Jawa toy, still in its original packaging from the 1970s, is expected to fetch thousands of pounds at auction A vintage Star Wars figurine believed to be one of the rarest in the world could fetch up to £12,000 when sold at auction. The British-manufactured 'Jawa' figure was most likely bought for just 99p from a newsagent back in 1978. But Palitoy, a company based in Coalville, Leicester, later lost the licence to sell Star Wars memorabilia and such items rarely surface. In fact, only one other Jawa, complete with vinyl cape and packaged on unpunched card, is known to exist in the world. It sold on eBay earlier this year for £11,300. But now an equally special model is due to go on sale at Thornaby auction house Vectis. The owner wishes to remain anonymous and will not give any information as to how he or she came to own the figure. Valuer Kathy Taylor said: 'This is one of the rarest Star Wars figures that has ever been sold. It is the Holy Grail for Star Wars memorabilia collectors. 'Until the other figure, which was authenticated by the US-based Action Figure Authority, came on the market, people didn't think the Palitoy-made Jawas with the vinyl capes even existed, so there was a lot of excitement when that was sold. Fan favourite: In the Star Wars films, Jawas are hooded creatures who buy and sell droids They used to be sold in the newsagents for 99p and it started off with just 12 characters, including the Jawa. Later the toys were made in America as Palitoy lost the licence. 'The Star Wars memorabilia market is massive and it's growing all the time. It's something a lot of people remember from their childhood and the first toys were very good quality.' She said the figure was expected to fetch between £6,000 and £8,000 - but could attract bids of up to £12,000 or more based on the eBay auction. The Vectis television and film-related auction takes place on October 24 and features four carded Star Wars figures, including the rare Jawa. Jawas are the hooded creatures with glowing eyes who buy and sell droids in the Star Wars films. A band of Jawas are responsible for locating C-3PO and R2-D2 and selling them to Luke Skywalker's uncle, Owen Lars.