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'Holy Grail' Of Pokémon Cards Expected To Go For £88,000 At Auction

'Holy Grail' Of Pokémon Cards Expected To Go For £88,000 At Auction

And that isn't even the most expensive ever

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

An extremely rare Pokémon card is set to make a staggering £88,000 ($110,000) when it goes to auction.

But if you're heading for the attic to see if you've got one stashed away in a box somewhere, let's just say it's unlikely. Heritage Auctions have referred to the Pokémon Super Secret Battle No. 1 Trainer card as the 'holy grail' for collectors, and with only seven ever made, you can see why.

In fact, the cards were originally given to the winners of tournaments in Japan, with the nifty bonus of granting them entry to the 1999 finals in Tokyo. Still searching your collection? Thought not.

It was first given at a 1999 tournament.
Heritage Auctions

Currently, the highest bid stands at just over $15,000 (almost £12,000), with the auction ending on 8 July, which is probably a little more than my personal pile of Squirtles, Charmanders and Jigglypuffs is likely to fetch. Still, might give the auctioneers a call to see if they're interested.

The auction house's description reads: "Holy Grail Alert! This lot features perhaps the most sought-after card, and arguably one of the rarest cards in the entire Pokémon Trading Card Game, a 1999 Super Secret Battle No. 1 Trainer Card graded a perfect GEM MINT 10.

"It literally does not get any better than this! The card reads: 'The Pokémon Card Game Official Tournament's champion is recognised here, and this honour is praised. By presenting this card, you may gain preferential entry into the Secret Super Battle.'

And the back...
Heritage Auctions

"The finals of this tournament were a secret, hence the name of the tournament - you only found out the location after winning one of these cards in one of seven regional tournaments.

"This particular card was given to one of the seven first place winners! The finals took place in Tokyo on August 22, 1999. Due to the fact that there were only seven regional tournaments it's estimated that there's also only seven of these cards in the world."

Sadly, most of your Pokemon cards only have sentimental value.
Doctor Proctor

And while £88,000 might seem like a ridiculous amount, it's not actually anywhere near the most expensive card sold at auction.

Last year, another rarer than rare card - one of the rarest in existence in fact - went up for auction in New York and sold for an incredible $195,000 (£155,725) making it the most expensive Pokémon card in the world.

The card in question was a 'Pikachu Illustrator' card - a promotional item with unique art from Pikachu creator Atsuko Nishida.

It was originally given to winners of a comic contest held in Japan back in 1997.

Thirty-nine of these cards were given out at the time, although it's believed that there are only ten left today.

Pikachu Illustrator Card.
Invaluable

The last time a Pikachu Illustrator went up for auction was back in 2013, though it only managed to fetch $54,970. Clearly the card has only increased in value over the years, with this most recent sale nabbing four times the price paid for the last card.

BRB, just off to dig out my old cards.

Featured Image Credit: Heritage Auctions

Topics: Interesting