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What does a Tusken Raider look like under the mask?

Science Fiction & Fantasy Asked on June 7, 2021

In August 1978, American comic book artist Russ Manning in his Star Wars Lucasfilm Presentation Strip #6 details – I believe for the first time in Star Wars Universe – with the idea of what an unmasked Tusken Raider looked like.

Later in 1997, Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II FPS game depicts Grave Tuskens with their bare faces providing, according to Legends, a little information about their species’ traits: The Tusken Raiders had grayish skin tones, dark eyes, and a short, feline muzzle.

Then, in 2004 in the Star Wars: Republic series of comics #62: No Man’s Land a Tusken is depicted without a mask but, according to Legends, this may just be Anakin Skywalker’s mental image of the Sand People rather than an accurate portrayal.

Given the above, I ask if there is more accurate information about what a Tusken Raider looks like?

Russ Manning Star Wars Lucasfilm Presentation Strip #6

Star Wars Republic #62

2 Answers

TL;DR: The image from Anakin may not be 100% trustworthy, yet is probably the best we'll get... and it does fit what we know about Sand People from other sources.


Although its monstrous quality may be exaggerated somewhat, the face seen in Anakin Skywalker's nightmare (from Star Wars: Republic #62) may be the only existing canon image of a Tusken Raider without its mask on:

enter image description here

The appearance shown here does fit with what little existing information we have on Sand People:

  • They are biologically incompatible with humans, and cannot interbreed with us
  • They are speculated to share a biological ancestor with Jawas, who supposedly have hairy, spiny faces covered in insects under those hoods (hence the blackness)
  • The suns of Tatooine are said to be far more glaring for them than most other species, which is why they wear the lenses and mostly hunt at night. This would certainly make sense if they have no eyelids.
  • Tuskens keep their faces covered even amongst each other, so Anakin Skywalker is one of the few living beings to have seen them uncovered.
  • Lastly, we know they look nothing like humans. When A'Sharad Hett unmasked himself in front of Anakin, the latter immediately knew that Hett was not a Tusken Raider.

Apparently, there is some debate online about whether or not Tuskens remain covered up in private. In Legends canon, we have at least two references to this:

  • In the "Outlander" comics arc, Sharad Hett told fellow Jedi K'Adi Mundi that he had only seen his wife's face once, on their wedding night. Hett had married a fellow human who was living amongst the tribe.
  • In the novel Kenobi, we have the following inner monologue from A'Yark, a Tusken mother thinking about her son:

Sand People lived with sores every day. At birth, every Tusken infant was swaddled tightly in bandages. The nurses worked so fast A’Yark had never seen her children’s faces. Channeled through little mouthpieces, her sons’ cries had been tinny and agonized. Babies had no way of appreciating the curse that existence represented, nor did they appreciate the shame of exposed flesh. But they quickly became acquainted with the price the coverings exacted on the body.

Correct answer by Omegacron on June 7, 2021

Wookieepedia kind of feels like cheating, but according to them, there's a type of Tusken Raider that doesn't wear masks.

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Grave_Tuskens

Answered by Dave Munger on June 7, 2021

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