Auction preview: Grateful Dead concert poster, Batman 'rookie' card

Considered one of the grails of concert posters, 1966 Grateful Dead print has topped $137k previously

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Two gems from 1966 — a Grateful Dead concert poster and Batman "rookie" card — highlight this week's auctions.

This week's auctions are lead by the iconic 1966 Batman #1 and one of the grails for concert poster collectors.

Grateful Dead 1966 "Skeleton & Roses" first-printing Avalon concert poster

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $41,250

One of the most recognizable concert posters ever created, the 1966 Grateful Dead Skeleton & Roses has emerged as one of the most coveted concert posts in the hobby in recent years, with a record sale of $137,500 for a CGC 9.6 copy in 2022.

The market has seen a recent influx of these posters in the past year, with prices declining accordingly. The most recent CGC 9.8 to sell publicly fetched $81,250 in April 2024, down from $93,750 in November of 2023. This copy is one of 10 CGC 9.8 examples with four graded higher (CGC 9.9).

Time Magazine first issue CGC 5.5

This example is the first graded by CGC to sell publicly. (Credit: Goldin)
This example is the first graded by CGC to sell publicly. (Credit: Goldin)

Auction house: Goldin

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $2,196

This is the single-highest graded issue of the first issue of Time Magazine from 1923. Featuring former Speaker of the House Joseph G. Cannon on the cover, only three copies have ever been graded by CGC, with this example marking the first time one will sell publicly.

2002 Yu-Gi-Oh! Legend of Blue Eyes White Dragon 1st Edition PSA 10 complete set

Auction house: Goldin

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $45,140

This complete set of all 126 cards from the North American English first-edition printing of the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game release is one of around 10 sets featuring all cards in PSA 10 condition.

In January 2024, a complete set sold for $95,000 via PWCC. Prior to that sale, another set fetched $69,000 in March 2023.

1966 Topps Batman #1 PSA 9

The 1966 Batman #1 is a non-sports grail and considered Batman's rookie card. (Credit: Heritage)
The 1966 Batman #1 is a non-sports grail and considered Batman's rookie card. (Credit: Heritage)

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Thursday

Current bid: $26,250

Considered Batman’s rookie card, this Topps issue featuring the “Caped Crusader” is one of just 13 PSA 9 examples, with none higher. Comparable sales are few and far between for this non-sports card grail, with just eight appearing at public auction since 2018. Another PSA 9 sold for $28,200 last December, marking a record high for the card.

Sex Pistols 1978 Unused Winterland concert ticket

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $781.25

By the time the Sex Pistols 1978 tour came along, bassist Sid Vicious’ drug addiction had reached a boiling point. Having already been arrested earlier in the tour for attempting to buy heroin, he would play his final show with the band at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.

The band’s turmoil had reached such heights that frontman Johnny Rotten ended the show by telling the crowd, “Ever get the feeling you've been cheated? Good night.”

Squaw Valley 1960 Winter Olympics torch

Auction house: RR

Ends: Thursday

Current bid: $267,952

One of the rarest and most coveted torches in all of Olympic memorabilia, from the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, is estimated to sell for more than $500,000. Just 25 torches were produced for that year’s games.

One of the torches, once belonging to Walt Disney (who was the chairman of the Games Pageantry Committee), sold for a record $720,000 in 2022.

1993 Magic The Gathering MTG Alpha Black Lotus R A BGS 9.5

The Black Lotus is one of the most important cards in the TCG category. (Credit: Fanatics Collect)
The Black Lotus is one of the most important cards in the TCG category. (Credit: Fanatics Collect)

Auction house: Fanatics Collect

Ends: Thursday

Current bid: $150,000

Released in Magic: The Gathering’s original Alpha printing in 1993, the Black Lotus card became a favorite due to its status as the game’s most powerful card. The last time a BGS 9.5 example sold was in February 2019, when it closed at $166,100. It’s one of 45 at the grade with just one higher.

Michael Jackson's California driver’s license

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Friday

Current bid: $15,000

A driver’s license from the height of Jackson’s career, dated to the mid-1980s, this card features a printed signature from the era.

Buzz Aldrin's NASA/ JSC U.S. ID badge

This badge came from Aldrin's personal collection. (Credit: Heritage)
This badge came from Aldrin's personal collection. (Credit: Heritage)

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $5,250

This is Buzz Aldrin's NASA pass from the '70s, originally from his personal collection. It cannot be slabbed by PSA because it wasn't signed by Aldrin. It includes his badge number as “A-001.”

Bruce Springsteen 1975 Large "Quad" U.K. Born to Run Tour concert poster

Auction house: Heritage

Ends: Saturday

Current bid: $781.25

This poster came just after Springsteen was on the cover of Time and Newsweek in the same week, and with the singer in London for his first international concert. As he was scared he was getting too big too fast, Springsteen tore down posters in London, which makes copies like this one extremely rare.

Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.

Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectibles market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.