All articles tagged with #collecting
Record-breaking fossil sales (including T. rex specimens like ‘Gus’) are propelling a booming market, but buyers face little third-party verification, opaque restoration practices, and confusion over composites, prompting calls for universal grading and greater transparency to protect science and investors.
Scarcity drives GameCube prices: Nintendo sold far fewer GameCubes than its N64 and Wii, few re-releases exist, and the Wii’s backward compatibility kept discs circulating. While many staples hover around $30–$40, flagship titles like Super Smash Bros. Melee, Luigi’s Mansion, and Eternal Darkness often run $50–$70, with rare Pokémon titles reaching $150–$200, reflecting enduring demand and the classic Nintendo tax.
Kotaku explores how scalper culture has seeped into Pokémon cards, highlighting an 11-year-old at a card show who admitted he doesn’t know much about Pokémon and told PokéBeach, “I just flip cards,” after learning from influencers that cards are a good investment. The piece notes upcoming Pokémon Company rules banning partnered vendors from selling graded slabs at official events and restricting items over $1,000, to be enforced at the Indianapolis Regionals and the World Championship. The article laments that the hobby risks becoming about resale value rather than the game, anime, and camaraderie that once defined it.
Sotheby’s will auction a 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex nicknamed Gus for a pre-auction estimate of $20–$30 million, the highest ever for a dinosaur fossil. Discovered in 2021 on a South Dakota cattle ranch by Theropoda Expeditions, the nearly complete skeleton goes on sale July 14, highlighting Sotheby’s ongoing bet on fossil sales as a luxury market. Past high-profile dinosaur auctions include Griffin’s Stegosaurus Apex (sold for $44.6 million) and other T. rexes such as Sue and Stan; bidders are typically private collectors who often loan acquisitions to museums.
A cache of stolen rare books—including 37 John Keats love letters, a signed James Joyce Finnegans Wake, and Oscar Wilde’s De Profundis—worth about $3 million, was returned to John Hay Whitney and Betsey Whitney's heirs decades after the 1980s theft from a Long Island home; the items were recovered after a would-be seller contacted New York rare-book dealers and alerted authorities, and the heirs plan to auction the collection and donate the proceeds.
Lorwyn Eclipsed, a new Magic: The Gathering set releasing on January 23, 2026, offers various events including prereleases, Magic Academy, Standard Showdown, Commander Nights, and Pro Tour, providing opportunities for players of all levels to participate, collect exclusive promos, and compete for prizes. Preorders are available now from multiple retailers.
Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces a new mechanic where shiny Pokémon do not despawn when players walk away, a significant change for shiny hunters, although some conditions still allow for despawning, enhancing the gameplay experience for collectors.
Amazon has reintroduced a 50-pack Pokemon card lot at a record low price of $5, offering a cost-effective way for collectors and players to build their decks and collections, with a diverse mix of cards from across the Pokemon series and the potential for high trading value, but stocks are limited and the deal may not last long.
The article discusses the rising popularity of semi-cured gel nail strips, which feature intricate designs and are applied at home, creating a cult following among collectors and beauty enthusiasts. It highlights personal stories of individuals like Emily Uhlig and Naomi Seijo, who have amassed large collections and use online platforms to trade and sell these nail sets, fostering a community centered around this trend.
The resurgence of physical media like DVDs and VHS tapes is driven by dissatisfaction with streaming services, which often remove content or alter it, prompting collectors to value owning tangible copies for security and nostalgia. This trend is supported by cultural phenomena like Criterion Collection and TikTok, highlighting a shift back to physical media as a way to preserve media integrity and history.
Some dedicated puzzle enthusiasts are willing to pay nearly $9,000 for high-end, handcrafted puzzles, viewing them as a source of joy and fulfillment, with some considering them as couture collectibles.
The article discusses the growing market and interest in collecting dinosaur-related items, highlighting how these prehistoric creatures have become highly valuable and sought after in the collectibles world.
A selection of sealed NES games, including Castlevania and Kid Icarus, fetched staggering prices on eBay, with Castlevania selling for a record-breaking $90,100. The games were reportedly acquired at an estate sale in Dallas, Texas, and garnered massive interest from collectors, with BurgerTime also selling for a significant sum due to its rarity in sealed form.
Starfield, the upcoming game from Bethesda, continues the tradition of item hoarding in their games. Players are known for collecting and hoarding various items, creating messy piles in their spaceships or homes. Bethesda games are filled with thousands of different item models, adding to the ambiance of the game. Despite not being able to break down items for resources in Starfield, players still enjoy collecting and hoarding them. The attention to detail in rendering these items makes the experience even more immersive. Item hoarding has become a signature feature of Bethesda games.