DALLAS, TX.- A 1995 prison I.D. badge issued to rapper Tupac Shakur sold on Sunday, July 21, for $30,000, setting a world record for the most expensive piece of Tupac memorabilia ever sold at public auction. The sale comes exactly one month after what would have been Tupac's 48th birthday.

Heritage Auctions opened bidding on the badge, issued Feb. 28, 1995 by the State of New York Department of Correctional Services, at $2,000. More than 10,200 visitors viewed the lot before 30 bids were cast for the rare piece of Shakur memorabilia.

"Some say Tupac and his music are just as relevant today as they were more than 20 years ago," said Garry Shrum, Director of Music Memorabilia at Heritage Auctions. "Fans haven't forgotten his impact on hip-hop. They will go to any lengths to own a piece of Shakur's life and times."

The I.D. has been held privately since the day Shakur gave it to the seller. Both the buyer and seller do not wish to be identified at this time. The badge was sold at part of Heritage Auctions' Entertainment & Music Memorabilia Auction in Dallas and on HA.com.