Bullwhip

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Indiana Jones was famous for his usage of a bullwhip, a long strip of leather.

When Indy was seven years old he first developed a fascination for the bullwhip, when he saw a whip-act in a traveling circus.^[1] The first time Indy used a whip was in 1912 in the Dunn & Duffy Circus train; as he fell in a wagon and saw a lion approaching him, he noticed the lion-tamer's whip and he grabbed it trying to drive off the lion. Since it takes a great deal of skill to use a whip, as it has a tendency to snap the wrong way, resulting in an inexperienced wielder beating himself half to death, that first time, the whip hit Indy below the lower lip which bled on his chin.

The second time Indy used a whip was in 1916, Mexico in Demetrios' house. As the thief found Indy breaking into his cupboard of archaeological artifacts, the two struggled; Indy once more found a bull-whip there and tried to use it against his assaulter, before Demetrios grasped it with his iron claw and pulled it from Indy.

Sometime in 1922 Indy acquired his own first bull-whip and by 1925 Marion Ravenwood noticed how he practiced daily with it.

By 1936 he used to take it along with his adventures. Not only he used it as a weapon against animals or adversaries, but Indy had acquired enough skill to use it in several makeshift or unorthodox uses. It saved his life from several dangers, such as it helped him pulling levers from the distance, or as a swing rope above chasms.

Behind the scenes

Creation

David Morgan is credited with creating the whips used in the trilogy. Over thirty whips were supplied for the films, ranging from 6 feet to 16 feet. The most commonly used whips in the films were 8 and 10 feet, with the others being used for stunts. Harrison Ford mostly carried a 10 foot whip, but used 8 foot ones for some stunts.

The whip used in the film, Raiders of the Lost Ark, was made out of kip hide, with kangaroo hide being used for the other films. At the time of Raiders, there was a problem importing kangaroo leather in to make bullwhips, so David Morgan used the leather made from young calves to make the famous whips.

Indiana Jones

Christies whip — Whip auctioned off at Christies in Sept. 2001

The whips were from David Morgan's 450 series, and hand braided with a kangaroo overlay. For Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Terry Jacka was commissioned to create the famous bullwhips. While Jacka's were the ones cracked in the film, David Morgan and Joe Strain whips were used. Morgan's for the whip swing and Strain's for Indy's belt. Morgan's were used for the "Crate" teaser poster.

Since the creation of the films, the demand for "Indiana Jones" style bullwhips have risen. Therefore, other whipmakers have done thier "interpretation" of the Morgan whip, giving those who would want a "Indy" bullwhip, a way to own one.

manufacture

Indy's whip was made with a core of twisted leather, then a plaited belly, then a bolster, then another plaited belly, then another bolster, then the final 12 plait overlay, also called "double bolster".

Appearances

↑ Raiders of the Lost Ark novel

[1] Raiders of the Lost Ark novel

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