A 2005-06 Upper Deck Exquisite 1 of 1 Auto Patch trading card of LeBron James sold for $576,000 on Tuesday during Sotheby’s “Holy Grails” auction.
According to the auction site, the card is one of the “irreplaceable gems” in the trading card hobby and “one of the most significant James cards ever created.”
The context of this card’s value is that James was previously an “Upper Deck exclusive athlete for signed trading cards, and as a result autographed trading cards of LeBron in his iconic Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat or Los Angeles Lakers gear have not been released in packs since Upper Deck’s license with the NBA expired following the 2009-10 product year. This makes any 1-of-1 patch autograph of LeBron with NBA marks highly coveted, and the Exquisite Collection name adds even greater allure.”
The card was graded as a “8.5 Near Mint-Mint+/Autograph 10.”
Other items available for purchase in the “Holy Grails” auction included an autographed 2018 Topps rookie card of Shohei Ohtani, a 2000 autographed Upper Deck rookie card of Tom Brady, rookie cards from MLB legends Lou Gehrig, Hank Aaron and Roberto Clemente and a 1952 Topps card of New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle, among others.
