A single owner collection of more than 1100 baseball cards dating from the 1800s to the early 21st century surpassed expectations, selling for more than $4.7 million.
More than 1,000 customers lined up for the chance to own a piece of the “Partnerone Collection” with extended bidding on the Heritage Auctions website lasting into the wee hours of Friday morning.
When the sun rose, a 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson No. 79, graded PSA NM-MT 8, had sold for a record-setting $178,000 including the buyer’s premium.
Other Robinson cards also generated strong interest.
The highest graded example of the 1947 Bond Bread Jackie Robinson Portrait card had been valued at $6,000 pre-auction. But by the time extended bidding came to an end, the SGC 8.5 card from Robinson’s rookie season had sold for more than five times that much: $34,800.
Not surprisingly, a familiar face on one of the most iconic cards ever produced was a big score: Mickey Mantle’s 1952 Topps card, graded PSA NM 7, sold for $126,000.
But some other legends set records in the sale, among them: Rickey Henderson, whose 1980 Topps rookie card graded a PSA Gem Mint 10 sold for $60,000, cementing its place among the greatest and now most expensive cards from that decade. And Ty Cobb, whose 1909-11 T206 Sweet Caporal 350/25 (Portrait-Green), graded PSA EX-MT + 6.5, sold for $55,200.
Two Babe Ruths likewise broke records in the auction – each made by companies not exactly known for their sports cards. The 1922 V89 William Paterson, produced by a Canadian candy company, features a unique portrait of Ruth and the collection included the highest graded example of that issue. The PSA 6 sold for $69,000. Ruth’s 1921 Koester Bread card, graded SGC 80 EX/NM 6, is almost as scarce, and sold for $45,600.
A 1917 E135 Collins-McCarthy Joe Jackson graded 6.5, soared to a new record price of $69,000. Its previous high was $27,000.
The Josh Gibson card that sold Friday morning was another of the myriad rarities in the sale – a 1950-51 Toleteros. Not only was it printed in Puerto Rico, but it was done so three years after the legend’s death. The partnerone offering was PSA NM 7, one of the finest-known examples. The record price of $51,600 reflected that.
An offering from the same Leaf set that produced the Robinson rookie card, the Satchel Paige graded PSA NM 7 sold for $108,000. Until the partnerone sale, Heritage had seen only one other Paige Leaf in this condition – in 2017, when it sold for $84,000.
Go here to see complete results from auction.
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