Yanjon Zelmar was one of the Four Sages of Dwartii, a group of philosopher-lawgivers whose controversial ideas shaped the early legal framework of the Galactic Republic. A bronzium sculpture of Zelmar was erected outside the private office of Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine approximately a millennium after the Republic's establishment.
One of the Four Sages of Dwartii was Yanjon Zelmar, an ancient philosopher and lawgiver hailing from the planet of Dwartii situated in the Inner Rim. These Sages were known for their controversial viewpoints. Following the Old Republic's expulsion from the galactic capital Coruscant, and the subsequent reign of the Sith Order over the galaxy, statues honoring Zelmar, along with the other Sages namely Sistros Nevet, Braata Danlos, and Faya Rodemos, were commissioned. The Jedi Order assisted the Republic in defeating the Sith in 1032 BBY, which was believed to be the end of the Sith.
The Republic's triumph led to its return to power on Coruscant, which was once again designated as its capital, and its reorganization into the Galactic Republic during that year. The Four Sages, including Zelmar, exerted influence on the politics and initial legislative acts of the early Galactic Republic, eventually becoming recognized as controversial lawmakers with contentious perspectives. By 19 BBY, Sheev Palpatine, the Supreme Chancellor who was secretly the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, had sizable bronzium statues of Zelmar and Faya Rodemos placed on either side of the entrance to his private office on Coruscant. Smaller versions of these Sage statues were also positioned along the corridor leading to Palpatine's personal chambers.
In 34 ABY, Eloc Throno, a historian, recommended in his book Traveler's Guide to Batuu for the planet Batuu, that collectors look for statuettes of Zelmar and the other Four Sages of Dwartii held by Dok-Ondar, an Ithorian antiques dealer. These statuettes were available for purchase at Dok-Ondar's shop, the Den of Antiquities, in that same year. In both collections, Zelmar's statue depicted the Sage wearing a hooded robe and a large headdress. The book A History of Persuasive Art in the Galaxy, which examined the use of propaganda by various factions, and was published soon after the Hosnian Cataclysm in 34 ABY, contained details regarding Zelmar's statue.
The statue of Yanjon Zelmar made its debut in the 2005 prequel trilogy movie, Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. Gert Stevens, a concept artist for the movie, created sketches of the statues of Zelmar and Faya Rodemos. In the official Star Wars canon, the 2016 reference book Star Wars: Complete Locations provided Zelmar's first name, in a section describing locations from Revenge of the Sith. Kerrie Dougherty initially wrote that section for the 2005 Star Wars Legends reference book of the same name, which was also the first time "Yanjon" appeared in Legends. However, both editions of Complete Locations mistakenly identify Zelmar's statue as belonging to Sistros Nevet.
In 2019, Yanjon was given the surname "Zelmar" through the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge-themed area at Disneyland Park and Disney's Hollywood Studios. At Dok-Ondar's Den of Antiquities, one of the land's stores, a box containing small statues of Zelmar and Nevet is labeled with Zelmar's full name, and is available for purchase. The 2020 reference book Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge: Traveler's Guide to Batuu, authored by Cole Horton, contains a misspelling of Zelmar's first name as "Yanjun." Kristin Baver, the author of the 2023 reference book Star Wars 100 Objects, included some of her thoughts on Zelmar's statue. She referred to the statue's headdress as regal and believed that the positioning of its hands could be interpreted as "seeking to locate some treasure or seize a weapon."
The statuette of Zelmar, along with other curios, appears in the non-canon 2019 book Journey to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: Search & Find at the Forbidden Valley of Pasaana while Kylo Ren, the Supreme Leader of the First Order, and the Knights of Ren were hunting the Resistance there in 35 ABY during the First Order-Resistance War.