One collector traded their childhood for a small fortune recently when they took their Pokémon cards to auction, netting more than $107,000. The lot collects all 103 cards included in the trading card game’s 1999 original release, all first edition and in pristine condition, rated at GEM MT 10 by the PSA – and, yes, that beautiful, beautiful Charizard is front and center.
The holographic fire lizard represents the crown jewel of Pokémon trading card collectors. On the lot description, Gold Auctions writes that in November of 2016, a Charizard card in similar condition sold for just under $9,000 and that price tag has tripled since then. Other holographic variants in this lot include Alakazam, Blastoise, Chansey, Mewtwo, Machamp and several others.
Interestingly, it’s speculated that sets like this one will only increase in value over time. According to Goldin Auctions, “While the cards have rounded corners, they are still very difficult to attain in GEM MINT condition. In fact, many cards have population counts below fifty in the aforementioned condition. Demand for this set in high-grade continues to grow.” Of course there are probably many more Pokémon cards that have limited edition folded versions with chocolate milk stains – but for some reason those don’t auction as well.
