While two multi-million-dollar Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth items grabbed most of the attention, there were some other noteworthy sales before Heritage Auctions’ recent catalog event wrapped up early Monday. The company says the Aug. 19-20 Summer Platinum night brought in nearly $34 million.
A 1958 Mantle game jersey and SGC 9 ’52 Topps card that sold during the first night realized $9.18 million combined.
In addition to the two seven-figure items, there was a complete run of autographed playing-days Mantle cards, with the ’52 Topps bringing $264,000.
While the card graded only a PSA 1, bidders apparently focused on the PSA/DNA 10 rating for the signature.
The only known signed copy of Mantle’s 1952 Berk Ross issue soared to $198,000. That card sparked another late-night bidding war, with the dust settling on that record price early Monday morning.
Our Platinum Auction had remarkable results for signed vintage cards, especially this autographed Mantle collection… ⚾ More auction results: https://t.co/pHDXn6oSwe pic.twitter.com/Ca1thHoEKi
— Heritage Auctions Sports (@Heritage_Sport) August 23, 2023
Here’s a phrase you don’t hear very often: Michael Jordan topped Marilyn Monroe. The highest-graded copy of the Dec. 10, 1984, newsstand edition of Jordan’s first NBA cover appearance in Sports Illustrated realized $126,000 after heated bidding in the wee hours of the morning. The CGC 9.8 edition, featuring Jordan alongside the headline “A Star is Born,” is now the most valuable graded magazine in the world, a title held for just five months by this issue of Playboy No. 1 featuring Monroe that sold at Heritage for $120,000 earlier this year.
One determined collector’s complete run of Sports Illustrated from 1954 – 2023 with 2,154 original autographs and 4,039 total issues including 651 special or regional editions netted $204,000.
A 1989-90 Magic Johnson game-worn Los Angeles Lakers Jersey realized $312,000. It entered the auction with a $35,000+ estimate. Yet in recent weeks, the jersey was photo-matched to two images, which led to a bidding war as the auction unfolded.
Not every record-setter was a six-figure item, though. A Jordan game-worn red sweatband sold for $28,800, the highest amount ever paid for such a small piece of fabric.
Its backstory, though, is giant: it’s the one worn by Jordan in the legendary “Flu Game” during the 1997 Finals, saved by a Utah Jazz ball boy in addition to a pair of MJ-signed shoes. Those sneakers sold for $1.38 million in June.
Heritage says more than 2,500 bidders participated in the auction.
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