Diehard trivia fans, cosplayers, and collectors will recognize the name wupiupi as a type of currency in the Star Wars universe. But few fans can boast of ever having owned a trove of wupiupi coins of their own. That’s why Hyperspace Props, in conjunction with our amazing friend and design master, Rick Scott, is pleased to present our design for the wupiupi coin, along with the two other Huttese currencies, trugut and peggat.
What Is Wupiupi?
This Huttese currency was first mentioned in The Phantom Menace when Jar Jar Binks helps himself to a free snack in the Mos Espa Market. The owner of the stall angrily tells him that the snack costs seven wupiupi.
We all know what happens next: Jar Jar lets go of the snack and it goes flying into a drink on a nearby table. The drink just happens to belong to Sebulba, who tries to take revenge on the Gungan before being interrupted by his podracing rival, young Anakin Skywalker.
Aside from their honorable mention in the market, wupiupi aren’t visible in The Phantom Menace. You can see them in detail in the Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary, and you can also catch a glimpse of them in part II of the Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney Plus.
The Real Life History Of Wupiupi Coins
In real life, wupiupi coins are inspired by coins from world history. More specifically, their design as shown in the Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary look exactly like coins issued by Sultans Selim III and Mahmud II of the Ottoman Empire. We also did all of our design before even knowing if any kind of Huttese coins were going to be used in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series.
At Hyperspace Props, we wanted to go even further by designing a full set of wupiupi coins along with truguts and peggats, which are the other two coins in the canon Huttese currency system. These prop replicas can be used by fans as betting currency in their sabacc and pazaak games, display pieces for their Star Wars props collections, or as accessories for their amazing cosplays.
Our Design For The Wupiupi, Trugut, And Peggat
Our design for the wupiupi, trugut, and peggat replicas strives to remain true to the visual style of the Ottoman coins that were originally referenced in Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary. The goal was to incorporate languages and concepts from the Star Wars universe to make the coins feel as authentic to that world as possible.
Wupiupi Design
The first iteration of the wupiupi coins we designed were based on some unknown coins that featured what we believe are a stalk of wheat and a bowl of fruit on the faces. We replaced these images with Meiloroon fruit, gaffi sticks, and banthas. But we found that this visual style didn’t mesh well with the Ottoman coins.
We found some other coins from the Ottoman Empire to use as references, and we eventually arrived at the design you see below.
We chose to make our wupiupi small and bronze in appearance. This is how they appear in some of the visual guides, although sometimes they appear as silver coins, as well. For us, bronze made more sense because it is the least precious metal, and the wupiupi is the least valuable coin in Huttese currency.
The swirled decorative text you see on one side of the wupiupi is similar in appearance to the reference coin. The text is the Huttese word “plesodoro” written in Outer Rim Script which translates to “Splendour.”
On the flip side of the coin, the Arabic signature script on the reference coin was reinterpreted as a stylized map of Hutt Space, also known as the Bootana Hutta in Huttese or “Garden of the Hutts” in Basic. The map includes concept signatures or sigils of the ruling Deslijic clan.
The text surrounding the map reads, “Ohta su marvalic plesodoro,” which means “Let them marvel at our Splendour.” According to Wookieepedia, this is one of Jabba the Hutt’s favorite sayings.
You’ll also find a smaller section of text on the coin which reads “Four Wupiupi” in Aurebesh, AKA Galactic Basic. This indicates that this coin is worth a total of 4 wuipupi.
Trugut Design
For the trugut, which is worth 16 wupiupi or four bronze coins, we chose to retool the silver Ottoman coin that is most often identified by fans as the true wupiupi. We thought the silver was more appropriate for the trugut, since the trugut is worth more and silver is more valuable than bronze. But, as with the wupiupi, we still kept our design for the trugut true to the visual style of the original Ottoman coin.
One side of the trugut features a Hutt phrase written in Outer Rim Script, “Fa yuna wanta jeejee,” which means, “If someone [is going to have it] why [should it] not [be] us?” (Shoutout to Ender Smith for translating this for us!) It is said to be the motto and the guiding moral philosophy for the Hutt clans.
The other side of the coin shows our concept of a Huttese/Mid Rim mathematical formula for the wupiupi standard: “4 bronze wupiupi = 1 silver trugut, 4 trugut = 1 golden peggat.”
Underneath this formula, another Huttese phrase written in Outer Rim Script, “Tuta do lorda,” translates to “By your lord [Diamyo].” This signifies that the coins come from the hands of the Hutt crime lords who mint the currency.
Peggat Design
The peggat was based on yet another Ottoman coin that is commonly referenced as a wupiupi in Star Wars visual guides. Lore states that the wupiupi is a “golden currency,” despite the fact that none of the Ottoman coins in reference are ever gold. We decided to incorporate that metal into the peggat, as it fits in the bronze/silver/gold hierarchy as the most valuable coin in the Huttese currency.
On one side of the peggat, in the center of the coin, is a stylized star chart of Hutt space. This encompasses the parts of the galaxy beyond the “Garden of the Hutts” and the space lanes they control. The map is marked with the sigil of the Qunaalac Hutt clan, whose military power and authority over the space lanes gives them a special status in the Hutt power hierarchy.
Encircling the star chart is a ring of Huttese characters, which are based off a Legends script designed by Eric Larson for a 1997 Pizza “Hutt” promotion.
On the other side of the coin, in the center, is another Huttese/Mid Rim mathematical formula. This one explains how to convert wupiupi to peggat: “4 silver trugut (64 wupiupi) = 1 golden peggat.” Underneath this formula are representations of Huttese characters taken from concept art and scenes from The Clone Wars television series, specifically from the episodes that show the Hutt homeworld.
Conclusion
We’re extremely proud of our wupiupi and Huttese coins, and we loved every minute of trying to develop this concept. Now you can purchase and enjoy your own wupiupi, truguts, and peggats directly from our shop.
