Skip to main content

Rare Pokemon Charizard card sells for US$336,000

Share

Going once. Going twice. Sold!

A rare first-edition 1999 Pokémon Charizard No. 4 card sold on Thursday for US$336,000 at auction.

The Charizard card, sold by Heritage Auctions, drew widespread attention because it's from the game's first English print run and had been given a perfect PSA GEM-MT 10 grading. It's one of only 121 to be given that rating, according to the auction house.

The sale was part of a larger trading card games auction, which included Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh! cards. In total, the auction netted more than $3.7 million.

"This auction, especially the trophy-level cards, did exceptionally well," Jesus Garcia, Heritage Auctions Trading Card Games consignment director, said in a statement.

"This sale reinforced the fact that demand for Pokémon cards continues its climb. We fully expected Pokémon and Magic: The Gathering to fare well, and they did."

Since their introduction in the 1990's, Pokémon cards have made a comeback and have even sparked a sales frenzy.

Last week, a Georgia man was sentenced to prison for using COVID-19 relief funds to buy a Pokémon Charizard card, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a release. He purchased the card for $57,789.

In February, Goldin Auctions sold a rare 1998 Pocket Monsters Japanese Promo Illustrator Holographic Pikachu card for $900,000. Goldin says it was an "all-time record public sale for any Pokémon card."

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Local Spotlight