DALLAS, TX.- A spectacular copy of arguably the hottest Pokémon card in the hobby could bring $200,000 or more in Heritage Auctions' Trading Card Games SignatureŽ Auction March 4-5.

The Pokémon Charizard No. 4 First Edition Base Set Trading Card (Wizards of the Coast, 1999) PSA GEM MT 10 is in exceedingly high demand, in part because it is from the game's first English print run and carries the highest possible grade.

"This is an incredible card," Heritage Auctions Trading Cards Games Consignment Director Jesus Garcia said. "Serious collectors actively pursue cards from the first English print run, but to find one in this grade is exceptionally rare. This card instantly will become a centerpiece in whatever collection it joins."

This magnificent card is one of just 121 to have earned the lofty grade GEM MT 10 grade.

Also grabbing a share of the spotlight is a Pokémon First Edition Base Set Sealed Booster Box (Wizards of the Coast, 1999) (estimate: $300,000+). Sets like the one offered here have enjoyed enormous popularity in recent auctions — seven have brought six-figure results in past Heritage sales, including one that sold for a record $408,000 in January 2021. The item likely to become the centerpiece of a new collection includes 102 cards, including the always-in-demand Charizard. The Pokémon Trading Card Game enjoyed immediate popularity when it was released in 1999 and now with the next generation of collectors. To find a booster box like this one still sealed in its original shrink-wrap is no easy task due to the low print run; few still remain sealed and even fewer come to market.

This extraordinary sale also includes First Edition Base Set Sealed Booster Boxes in other languages, including French (estimate: $40,000+), Chinese (estimate: $25,000+) and Korean (estimate: $25,000+).

Another important Pokémon offering is a Portuguese Unlimited Base Set Uncut Sheet (Wizards of the Coast, 1999). Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), which already was distributing a highly popular card game known as Magic: The Gathering, was able to get the licensing to start distributing Pokémon internationally in 1999. The uncut sheet offered here (estimate: $20,000+) is from the Portuguese Unlimited Base Set — the first produced by WOTC. This extraordinary sheet features only holographic cards, including Charizard. It includes seven copies of each of the following cards: No.s 1-3, 4 (Charizard), 5-7 and 9-16; the only card missing is No. 8 Machamp. A total of 110 cards are on the sheet laid out in 11 rows, each containing 10 cards.

Magic: The Gathering




Still sealed after nearly three decades, a Magic: The Gathering Alpha Edition Sealed Starter Deck (Wizards of the Coast, 1993) has no bar code at the bottom of the pack, verifying that it is, in fact, from the Alpha Edition. Carrying a pre-auction estimate of $100,000+, the 60-card deck might include a Black Lotus, Timetwister, Mox or any of the other Power Nine cards.

Carrying the same pre-auction estimate is a Magic: The Gathering Unlimited Edition Starter Deck Sealed Box (Wizards of the Coast, 1993). Starter decks were made to be opened by people who wanted to play the game immediately. This box deck contains 10 sealed decks, each of which includes a rule book and 60 cards: 45 common cards, 13 uncommon cards and two rares. In other words, the winning bidder will have 20 chances at the highly sought-after Black Lotus, or any of the other Power Nine cards.

Other top Magic: The Gathering lots include, but are not limited to:

• A Beta Edition Starter Deck (Wizards of the Coast, 1993) (estimate: $50,000+)

• An Antiquities Edition Sealed Booster Box (Wizards of the Coast, 1994) (estimate: $50,000+)

• A Beta Edition Black Lotus (Wizards of the Coast, 1993) BGS MINT 9 (estimate: $30,000+)

• An Ancestral Recall Alpha Edition Trading Card (Wizards of the Coast, 1993) BGS GEM MINT 9.5 (estimate: $25,000+)

Yu-Gi-Oh!

The Yu-Gi-Oh! First Edition "Wavy" Legend of Blue Eyes Set Sealed Booster Box (Konami, 2002) was the first set released for the mega-popular trading card game. Offered here is a sealed first edition "wavy" booster box (estimate: $25,000+). These boxes are known to be the first run of boxes from the first edition, which is identifiable because the First Edition logo is smaller and more to the right edge than on traditional boxes. The cards inside include Yugi Motou's Dark Magician, Joey Wheeler's Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Seto Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon. This box contains 24 booster packs, each with nine cards, for a total of 216 cards!

Among the top individual Yu-Gi-Oh! cards in the auction is the Minerva, The Exalted Lightsworn #EN008 Championship Series "Ultra Rare" Trading Card (Konami, 2015) PSA MINT 9 (estimate: $20,000+). The goal of every Yu-Gi-Oh! duelist is to win a national event and then compete at the Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championships, where top players are rewarded with exclusive cards as prizes. These rare cards are understandably elusive, and few will own one in this exceptional condition. Minerva, The Exalted Lightsworn is the 2015 Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series (YCS) First Place Ultra Rare prize card. Those who finished second and third received Super Rare versions of this card, but only the winner received the Ultra Rare version (designated by the gold-foil lettering) like the one offered in this sale; this example is the only "ultra-rare" copy of the card that PSA has certified to date.