Advertisement

Rare Honus Wagner baseball card sells for record $6.6 million

Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter

Aug. 16 (UPI) -- A 1909 Honus Wagner baseball card sold for $6.6 million, breaking the record for the most expensive sports card of all time.

Robert Edward Auctions, which closed bidding on the card Monday morning, announced the T206 Honus Wagner card sold for $6.6 million, beating the record of $5.2 million set by a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card in January and matched in April by a 2003-04 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection LeBron James-autographed rookie jersey card.

Advertisement

The card featuring Wagner, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates for all but the first three years of his 1897-1917 career, has long been considered one of the most valuable to collectors, as only about 60 are known to exist, due to Wagner asking for his card to be removed prematurely from the 1909-1911 print run by the American Tobacco Co.

Advertisement

"This Wagner stands out because of its condition," Brian Dwyer, president of Robert Edward Auctions, told ESPN.

"There's only about 60 of these that we can confirm through various population reports and available grading data. Of those 60, most are rated poor, authentic or good, at best. This card is one of the best examples out there, and it's certainly one of the best examples available."

The card received a grade of 3 from Sportscard Guaranty Corp. Only four Wagner cards have been given higher ratings from the three largest card-grading companies.

Latest Headlines