Even if you've never played Magic, you've probably heard of the Black Lotus: a powerful card from the game's first set, which often sells for eye-watering prices on the collector's market today. However, no matter how perfect and rare it is, no Black Lotus can sell for $3 million. The price is so outrageous that some fans can't help but shake their heads in doubt.
"A CGCCards-graded Alpha Black Lotus has just sold for a staggering $3 million, making it the most expensive Magic card of all time!" said the Florida-based grading company CGC (Certified Guaranty Company), which was also the first to reveal the deal, posted on Instagram yesterday. "This sky-high price is a testament to the high value that collectors have placed on CGC Cards' perfect 10 rating. ”
While this is an incredible marketing opportunity for CGC, and the company is also making a name for itself in the retro video game collectible space, buyers say the deal is perfectly legitimate. Instagram user Benjamin.be revealed: "It's really hard to price these high-end cards, but I think $3 million is pretty much the right thing. The collector, who has the popular "Holy Grail" from other card games such as Dragon Ball Z and Pokémon, added: "Maybe I did pay a little more, but I wasn't here to resell." It should perform well in the long run. ”
He said he had been buying high-end Magic cards from seller Adam Cai for years. One of them was a level 9.5 Black Lotus that he bought for $880,000. Some of the rarest cards in the game are called Power 9 (P9). Black Lotus is one of them, and these cards from the first three sets are so powerful that they're often considered the most "supermodel" cards in Magic history. Benjamin.be said he had previously assembled a set of "Beckett Rating Services (BGS)-rated P9s" worth more than $5 million, but now he has decided to assemble another set of CGC-rated P9s.
Benjamin.be part of the collection is displayed
Many fans expressed their disbelief at it. Some people in posts about the sale questioned its authenticity, speculating that it might have been orchestrated to inflate the market price, or if it was just a CGC publicity stunt. In the past, if a Black Lotus could fetch more than $30,000 at auction, it was already considered amazing. However, in recent years, as the collectibles market has boomed and the reputation of certain professional rating agencies has grown, the price of these 1993 cards has skyrocketed to over $500,000. Rapper Post Malone once bought a Black Lotus signed by the artist for more than $800,000.
Prior to this $3 million sale, the highest price ever paid for a Magic card was $2 million. That's the amount Post Malone paid for the single-print variant card "One of the Rings," which was included in the popular crossover series released by The Lord of the Rings last summer. Unlike Black Lotus, this card actually only exists. While it may not have the aura that surrounds it with decades of collecting legends, the fact that, combined with the eccentricity of a wealthy star, makes sense of the ridiculous price.
It's even harder to understand for Benjamin.be's $3 million Black Lotus, although CGC's 10 out of 10 rating helps. "As far as Alpha Black Lotus goes, this is one of the two top cards in existence," he said. There are only two perfect cards, a BGS10 and this CGC perfect 10. As for CGC's involvement, Benjamin.be said they sought his consent before disclosing his record-breaking private purchase. "I'm sure CGC is ecstatic about this deal and it will be in their interest to announce this as well. They did ask for my permission and I have no problem with that. I do like CGC very much and hope they can do better. ”