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Unopened 1952 Topps baseball ‘brick’ slams in winning bid of $873,300

Catherine Saunders-Watson

Catherine Saunders-Watson

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Unopened 1952 Topps baseball brick of eight factory-sealed 5-cent wax packs, each pack containing five cards, likely from Topps’ first series. Authenticated by Steve Hart, owner of Baseball Card Exchange. Sold above high estimate for $873,300. Morphy Auctions image

DENVER, Pa. – The most buzzworthy item in the opening session of Morphy’s Feb. 1-3 Toys, Sports Cards & General Collectibles Auction finished exactly as predicted – in the #1 position. The unopened 1952 Topps baseball brick containing eight factory-sealed 5-cent wax packs rocketed through six-figure territory to settle at $873,300 (inclusive of 23% buyer’s premium).

“For weeks leading up to the auction, there was massive interest in all of the sports cards, but none more so than the Topps baseball brick. Many hundreds of potential bidders followed the progress of absentee bids online each day. We knew it would fly,” said Dan Morphy, founder and president of Morphy Auctions.

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Dan Morphy, founder and president of Morphy Auctions, noted that the Topps baseball brick, which he is holding in this picture, would have cost 40 cents when released in 1952. It sold at Morphy Auctions on Feb. 1, 2023 for $873,300. Morphy Auctions image

The brick, which could be traced back to a private purchase in Seattle in 1991, had been inspected and deemed authentic by Steve Hart, owner of Baseball Card Exchange (BBCE) and the preeminent authority on unopened product authentication. Each of the eight packs in the brick sold by Morphy’s are known to hold five baseball cards. There was widespread speculation from experts that those cards were likely from Topps’ first series.

The new owner of the 1952 Topps baseball brick is a private collector who wishes to remain anonymous.

Morphy’s February 1 session totaled $2.4 million. The three-day event continues on Thursday and Friday, February 2 and 3. Click to view the online catalogs and sign up to bid.

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