Source: BroBible
Summary
A restored 1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner baseball card, considered the “Holy Grail” of baseball cards, sold for $1,337,263.20 at an auction. The card, known as the “Die-Cut Wagner,” had been heavily restored using pieces from other cards. Despite its condition, the card’s rarity and provenance made it highly valuable. The auction started at $400,000 and closed with 24 bids. The final price included the buyer’s premium.
Our Reading
The habit gets a new name.
Baseball-card reconstructive surgery is a thing now. A Honus Wagner card gets a new background and borders from other cards and still sells for over $1 million. Condition is just a suggestion when the surviving piece is an authentic Honus Wagner. The buyer bought the story, not the grade. Some collectors pay for the rarity, others for the provenance. This one paid for the combination of both.
This is basically three cards wearing a trench coat.
Author: Evan Null
