An unopened Masters of the Universe Skeletor toy from 1982 sold for a record $18,352 Sunday at LCG Auctions.
The AFA 80-graded toy comes from the first release/test market production and is the single-highest graded example of its variant, with six total graded by AFA.
LCG previously sold another test market Skeletor action figure, without the test market card, for $13,789.20 in September. Sunday's sale was the first time the auction house sold a "true first release" featuring both a test market figure and card."
Test market releases of the 8-back series — a term used for the original production of the eight Masters of the Universe toys including He-Man and Man-At-Arms — are considered “‘Holy Grails’ in the MOTU collecting community,” according to LCG.
Interestingly, the test market release only included six of the eight characters from the original release.
The toy, which depicts one of the most iconic villains of the era, is accompanied by a “He-man and the Power Sword” mini comic.
Mattel forecasted sales of around $13 million for the first year of the MOTU release, ultimately recording $32 million for the toy line, according to Retro Toy Quest.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.