Gotta catch 'em all at Richard Winterton
26 February 2021 An auction house in Lichfield is hosting a sale of rare Pokémon goodies.
Seventy sealed Pokémon unlimited Team Rocket Booster long packs, estimated at £15,000 to £18,000.
The timed sale at Richard Winterton coincides with the 25th anniversary of the release of the first Pokémon video games and offers collectors the opportunity to get their hands on some special Pokémon cards.
Condition of collectable cards is vital to buyers who seek to have the very best of the best. Rare cards are given a grade based on standard set by PSA Authentication and Grading Services that specifies their condition.
The top grade is PSA Gem Mint 10 which is defined as "a virtually perfect card. Attributes include four perfectly sharp corners, sharp focus and full original gloss. A PSA Gem Mint 10 card must be free of staining of any kind".
The 42-lot Pokémon sale features a number of cards graded PSA Gem Mint 10. It is already available for bidding and ends on Monday March 8.
The items on offer include:
Dark Charizard
One of the cards graded PSA Gem Mint 10 (equivalent to 'virtually perfect') in the timed sale at Richard Winterton is this Dark Charizard.
A 1st edition Pokémon Team Rocket Dark Charizard Holo, PSA Gem Mint 10, estimated to fetch between £3000 and £5000.
Dark Dragonite Holo
This Dark Dragonite Holo cars is sealed in a PSA plastic case with a cellophane outer sleeve.
A 1st edition Team Rocket Dark Dragonite Holo, PSA Gem Mint 10, estimated to make £2000-£3000.
Jon Price, toy specialist at the auction house, says: "The fact that these cards are PSA Gem Mint 10 graded massively increases their value and is particularly important in America.
"Grade 3 is considered very good; 10 is just incredible."
A boost to the excitement
The auction also brings an extra layer of excitement with the final lot, an unopened Base Set Booster Box from Wizards Of The Coast, still enclosed in its branded cellophane.
What could be inside this booster box? We may never know.
Price adds: "Because it’s unopened no-one knows for sure what’s inside.
"Some people might want to buy it to open it; some people might buy it to just sit on as an investment.
"Certainly, very few of these remain sealed and that gives this particular lot a real element of mystery!"
Timed to perfection
Auctioneer Richard Winterton adds: "We have organised a timed sale rather than our more usual live auctions to enable bidders from all over the world to get in on the action."
"Pokémon is quite simply a global sensation and the ultimate 'new' collectable. It may be a lot of fun but it’s also a very serious business for collectors who are prepared to hunt all over the world for that special card and will invest thousands and thousands of pounds to secure it.
“As the sale ties in with the 25th anniversary we expect huge interest across the globe, especially from collectors in Japan, China and the US."
Browse all the lots from the Pokémon timed auction now.
To learn more about how to bid check out our guide to timed auctions.
