Illustrator and Pristine 10 Charizard Certified by CGC Cards Offered in Sotheby's Holy Grails Auction

Several Pokémon TCG holy grails certified by CGC Cards™ are being offered in an ongoing Sotheby’s auction, including a signed Pokémon Illustrator certified by CGC Signature Series and a 1st Edition Base Set Charizard graded CGC Pristine 10. Bidding is already underway for the Holy Grails auction, which is set to end on September 24, 2024.

Leading the TCG selections is a Pokémon Illustrator, Pokémon (1998) Japanese CoroCoro Comics Illustration Contest Promo graded CGC 9 and certified by CGC Signature Series as signed by Takumi Akabane (lot 27). Pokémon Illustrator is one of the rarest and most expensive Pokémon cards, and examples always command prices of at least six figures in auctions. Signed by Takumi Akabane — one of the founding fathers of Pokémon — this particular example has an estimated value of $550,000 to $650,000.

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Meanwhile, a Charizard, Pokémon (1999) Base Set 1st Edition graded CGC Pristine 10 (lot 29) has an estimate of $450,000 to $550,000. This Charizard was graded by CGC Cards’ expert graders on-site at The National in Cleveland, Ohio in July 2024. It is one of only four Pristine 10 examples in the CGC Cards Population Report. To date, Pokémon has sold more than 64 billion cards, but few are more coveted than Base Set Charizard. With its incredible design and firepower in TCG matches, Charizard is renowned both in competitive gameplay and among Pokémon fans in general, with many collectors dreaming of having this original card in their collections.

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Other CGC-certified cards being offered in the sale include a Pikachu, Pokémon (1995) Japanese Alpha Prototype graded CGC Pristine 10 (lot 30), which has an estimate of $300,000 to $500,000, and a set of 15 Pokémon (1999) Disco Holo Test Prints, each graded CGC Gem Mint 10 or CGC Pristine 10 (lot 33), which has the same estimate. The 15 cards include:

• an Alakazam graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Blastoise graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Chansey graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Charizard graded CGC Pristine 10
• a Clefairy graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Gyarados graded CGC Gem Mint 10 and certified by CGC Signature Series as signed by Mitsuhiro Arita
• a Hitmonchan graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Magneton graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Mewtwo graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Nidoking graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Ninetales graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Poliwrath graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Raichu graded CGC Gem Mint 10
• a Venusaur graded CGC Gem Mint 10 and certified by CGC Signature Series as signed by Mitsuhiro Arita
• a Zapdos graded CGC Gem Mint 10

All estimates are provided by the auction house.