Heritage Auctions

• Identifying Sportscards
  
• Valuable Sportscards
  
• Valuable Sports Memorabilia
  
• Evaluating Your Sports Collectibles
  
• Grading your Sportscards
  
• Should You Have Cards Professionally Graded?
  
• Permanent Auction Archives
  
• Free Auction Evaluation
  
• Sell Now or Consign to a Heritage Auction
  
• Consigning Your Sports Collectibles to America's Fastest Growing Major Auctioneer
  
• Frequently Asked Questions
  
• Glossary of Terms

How do I Identify my Sportscards?
While the companies producing cards today prominently display their name and logos, this has not always been the case. When looking at vintage cards, the back of a card is often more useful than the front in identifying the set of origin. Card backs usually include an issuer or sponsor's name either spelled out completely or in abbreviated form, i.e. T.C.G., for Topps Chewing Gum. The biographical or statistical information found on card backs also provide other important clues in determining a card's general age, if not specific year of issue. For example, if a Willie Mays card documents his statistical history through the 1964 season, the date of issue for that card would most likely be 1965.

Sportscard makers, dating back to the 19th century, have commonly assigned numbers to card backs in order to facilitate the collecting of a complete set. Cards that were numbered in this manner by their manufacturer are normally listed in that order. In the case of unnumbered card issues, the most common practice is to list the cards in the set by alphabetical order using the players' last names.

What Constitutes Valuable?
Sportscards: High value sportscards are generally vintage cards that were made from the years 1969 and earlier. Of course there are exceptions to this rule with cards such as the 1979 O-Pee-Chee Wayne Gretzky or a 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan. There are other card products from non-vintage years that can hold higher value as well, including wax boxes, complete sets, and sealed cases. On the whole, modern era cards from 1980 and later do not hold significant value as compared to vintage material simply due to the fact that there were so many of them produced and most of them still exist in top condition.

How Do I Find Out What My Sports Collectibles Are Worth?
If you have sportscards, we recommend one of the following reference books as a start: The Beckett Almanac of Baseball Cards and Collectibles or The Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards by Bob Lemke. If you are looking for prices for items other than baseball material, both publishers (Beckett and Krause) offer similar types of price guides for Football, Basketball, Hockey, and Memorabilia. These books are available at most public libraries and bookstores.

The prices listed in these references are a good starting point, and can provide you with insight about rarity and premiums for a particular card. However, the references are printed annually, while the market for a particular sportscard can often change in a few weeks, often making printed prices inaccurate. Keep in mind also that printed references generally provide high retail values for cards in a fairly high grade, while cards in lower grades or with damage may be worth much less.

Of course, the best way to find out what sportscards and sports memorabilia are worth is to look at what people are paying for it. Heritage's Auction Archives shows actual prices paid in our auctions for many fine sports collectibles, and more prices are being added all the time. With every individual item lot imaged, the Permanent Auction Archives are also an outstanding resource for identifying your material. The Auction Archives are a free resource, available to all Heritage members. Sign up now!

Valuable Sports Memorabilia
Sports Memorabilia: As a rule, vintage memorabilia associated with Hall of Fame players is always highly sought after by collectors; the older, rarer and more historically significant the items are, the higher the value. Sports memorabilia items are a bit different than sportscards because they don't always have to be vintage in order to be rare or command significant collector interest. For example, more recent items such as: game worn jerseys, autographed equipment, or historically significant game-used balls are often sought after by collectors with the same passion as vintage memorabilia. However, there are many items that are deemed as collectibles in today's marketplace that simply do not have much collector value such as promotional figurines, bobble-heads, plates, glasses, and gold plated cards. There are simply too many produced and they are often referred to as 'manufactured collectibles'. Free Auction Evaluation

Should I get my Sports Cards Graded? Grading Tutorial
A number of factors are involved in deciding whether or not a card should be submitted to a grading service such as PSA or SGC. First are condition and value, if the card is not of sufficient value, it is not in your best interest to have the card certified. Second is the authenticity and originality of the card. None of the respected grading services will encapsulate a card that is not authentic or has been tampered with in any way.

Heritage Sports Collectibles grades thousands of cards every year and we have experts on staff to evaluate the conditions and the cost-to-value ratio of sending any card in for authentication. Our reputation has earned us the right to become Authorized Dealers for PSA, SGC, GAI, and Beckett Grading Services. If you have any questions or would like some advice or help with a confidential evaluation of your collection, please e-mail CIvy@HA.com or call 1 (800) 872-6467 x1319.

How do I get my Collection Appraised?
The first step in getting an accurate appraisal is to have the items assessed by a professional. Heritage has been serving the collectibles community for over three decades. During that time we have grown to become the world's largest collectibles dealer by staying on the cutting edge of technology, emphasizing great communications and, above all, listening to what our customers want and then giving them a fair deal on their material. With the agreement of your Heritage representative, Heritage can provide insurance on overnight delivery for your package. Contact us today to discuss a free auction evaluation.

For a formal written appraisal for estate planning, insurance, or tax purposes, please contact our Appraisal Services Department. Charges for formal written appraisals are based on our experts’ time. Appraisal fee schedule can be viewed here.

Sell Now or Consign to a Heritage Auction
We are always looking for quality vintage memorabilia and sportscards to purchase or auction. We'd love to talk to you about your collection, your buying and selling needs, and how Heritage Sports Collectibles can work for you. Call or email us today if you would like our experts to help you in determining the best options for your collection. Learn more…

Consigning Your Sports Collectibles to America's Fastest Growing Major Auctioneer
Consigning your collection to Heritage Sports Collectibles has never been easier or more profitable - thanks to our cutting-edge application of today's technology. If you have high-end, rare, or premium quality sports collectibles, you simply give up too much by relying on an Internet-only venue. In the categories we serve, Heritage has more world-class expert graders and traders on call than does any other firm. Upon physical inspection, we can advise you as to which of your pieces should be conserved, certified, re-certified, sold as is, or otherwise value-enhanced. We can inform you which of your items merit being auctioned in a Heritage Sports Collectibles "Signature Auction," and which ones will do well through our "Sunday Internet Sports Auctions".

As the world's largest collectibles auctioneer, Heritage brings our diverse collecting expertise, huge client base, technical savvy, marketing prowess and financial power to the table in order to make sure you get the most for your treasures. Heritage Rare Coin Galleries and Heritage Numismatic Auctions, divisions of Heritage Auction Galleries, are the world's largest numismatic dealers and auctioneers. Heritage has achieved this status through determination, hard work, and by consistently producing results for our clients that met or exceeded their expectations. Throughout the hundreds and hundreds of auctions we have held, our ability to get the job done on time and as promised has never faltered. Heritage Auction Galleries is the world's largest auctioneer of art & collectibles, including coins, currency, comics, comic art, illustration art, pop culture memorabilia (Hollywood and entertainment memorabilia, and celebrity autographs and memorabilia), sportscards and memorabilia, decorative arts and antiquities, antique silver, fine art, jewelry & timepieces and more.

Heritage Auction Galleries has broken countless price records in all collectibles categories, and holds several Guinness World Records including the highest-grossing Comic Book and Popular Culture auction (over $5.2 million in October 2002 for the Nicolas Cage comic book collection and other properties) and the highest price for an action figure ($200,000 for Don Levine's original G.I. Joe prototype in July 2003). We count numerous household-name celebrities and pop culture icons among our regular clients, bidders and consignors.

In both 1999 and 2001, HeritageCoin.com was chosen by Forbes Magazine as one of the 250 best sites on the entire Internet! All of our award-winning Web sites are among the most popular and well-trafficked sites in any collectibles field. No other major collectibles live-auction firm sells even a fraction of the percentage of auction lots that Heritage sells over the Internet, because none make it so easy and inviting for Internet buyers to participate. Every Heritage single-piece lot is imaged in full color, and can be enlarged with a single click for detailed viewing. Only Heritage provides third-party pricing and rarity data as well as previous auction records in its Web listings - two features that increase bidder confidence, and, thus, prices realized.

Whether you have an extensive collection, or just a few rare specimens from a diversified asset portfolio, we welcome your inquiry and look forward to helping you receive the most for your collectibles.

From the minute your collection arrives in our world headquarters in Dallas, Texas, Heritage's staff of professionals start evaluating your collectibles, and developing strategies that will maximize the prices realized at auction. Furthermore, our trained support staff safeguards your items from one secured location to another as they move through the consignment process. Learn more about consigning your collection at Heritage "From Consignment to Settlement", or view our video.