Magic: The Gathering: Popular Trading Card Sales Hit New Record

A particularly coveted trading card Magic: The Gatheringthe Black lotushas now set a new record for a Magic card sold at auction.

A copy of one of the most prestigious prints of all time changed hands for an almost unbelievable sum of 540,000 US dollars. About two years ago, a nearly identical example of the Black Lotus was sold for a similarly high sum of 510,000 US dollars.

Magic: The Gathering – Market stability despite record sales

Like the Black Lotus, which previously held the record for most expensive Magic: The Gathering trading card, the current example has been awarded a maximum rating of 10 by Professional Sports Authenticators, or PSA. In professional circles, that means a perfect condition. In addition, the sleeve that houses the costly card was signed by its illustrator, Christopher Rush. It is one of six Black Lotus cards rated PSA 10 worldwide.

Despite the comparatively small increase in value that it achieved, there are signs that the trading card market is slowly stabilizing. Because after years of explosive growth, which was reflected in a freshly sparked, broad interest in the hobby, especially during the pandemic, that interest is now slowly ebbing away. In addition, manufacturer Hasbro, owner of the Magic publisher Wizards of the Coast, may have caused a slight devaluation with reprints of rare cards such as the Black Lotus for the game’s 30th birthday.

Incidentally, this is exactly why the Black Lotus became famous: with a circulation of around 1,100 pieces, it was not only to be found in the first alpha edition of Magic: The Gathering in 1993, but it was also one of the so-called “Power 9” , a set of cards excluded from most competitive formats due to their overwhelming power.

“Record sales reinforce claim as a true work of art” – Pokemon and baseball card even more valuable

“Record sale reinforces Alpha Black Lotus as a store of value, reinforces its claim as a true work of art, and demonstrates the importance of Magic: The Gathering to gaming culture and trading card games.” explained Jesse Craig, Vice President of Sales at PWCC Marketplace under which the auction was conducted. He considers it unlikely that he will be able to offer such a signed copy for sale again in the near future. “They will remain under lock and key and will be treated as museum pieces,” he continues.

Nevertheless: The record value of 540,000 US dollars that the Black Lotus recently brought to the table is still a real bargain compared to similarly rare trading cards from other TCGs. Just last year, a 1998 Pikachu Illustrator card sold for almost twice the price of $900,000. This is a particularly rare promotional material that is not even playable in the Pokémon TCG.

But even here the flagpole does not end for a long time. To put the prices for Magics Black Lotus and the Pokémons Pikachu Illustrator into perspective a little better: Just last year, a passionate enthusiast paid an unbelievable sum of 12.6 million US dollars for a trading card of the famous baseball player Mickey Mantle from 1952. Dollar. And who knows: maybe they will Cards from Disney’s Lorcana, the animation studio’s in-house TCGyes in a few years also high sales values.

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