The Mystery of Asajj Ventress’s Yellow Lightsaber

After her red lightsabers were stolen by Barriss Offee, Asajj Ventress began using a yellow-bladed lightsaber. The origin of this weapon remains shrouded in mystery — some say she purchased it on the black market, while others believe she forged it herself. Unlike her earlier curved-hilt lightsabers, this one featured a straight cylindrical design. For Ventress, acquiring it symbolized saying farewell to her former self and beginning a new life.

This yellow lightsaber first appeared on the cover of the novel Dark Disciple, serving as Ventress’s primary weapon during her years as a bounty hunter. After her death, the lightsaber was buried with her on Dathomir. However, when she was later resurrected, she was once again seen wielding a yellow lightsaber, though this time, the hilt had returned to her familiar curved design.

Interestingly, the straight-hilt yellow lightsaber resurfaced once more in the final arc of The Clone Wars, this time in the hands of Darth Maul, forming one half of his double-bladed lightsaber.
How, then, did Maul acquire Ventress’s lightsaber?
From a real-world perspective, this was likely a case of the animation team reusing an existing concept design — originally created for Ventress but later repurposed for Maul when he needed a new hilt. Yet within the Star Wars universe, such an explanation doesn’t hold.

There are, therefore, two more plausible in-universe theories:
Maul might have purchased the lightsaber on the black market. The straight-hilt yellow saber could have been a common template circulating among bounty hunters or Force users.
Maul may have traveled to Dathomir himself and retrieved the lightsaber from Ventress’s grave. Given his deep connection with the Nightsisters and the planet’s dark history, this is a believable possibility.

Whichever theory one prefers, this lightsaber carries profound symbolism. It connects two former Sith disciples and mirrors their shared fate, both cast aside by their masters, both seeking redemption in the shadows, walking their own lonely and perilous paths.