Market Insight · 11 November 2026
The $4.88M Art Academy Mudkip: fan art at the top of the hobby
A Mudkip drawn by a fan for a 2015 Pokémon art contest sold for $4.88 million at Goldin in October 2026, the top lot of its Pokémon 30th Anniversary auction. It is the highest price Assetra has recorded for any Art Academy card, and it did not come alone: across the contest cards, records fell in the same few weeks. Collectors now rank these prize cards among the great Pokémon rarities.
Read the analysis →
Guides
All guides →
PSA’s scan
Auction photoHow to spot a fake PSA slab: the collector’s checklist
Spot a fake PSA slab: compare the card with PSA’s own scan, read the QR code, check the label’s security print and the case. Real examples and tools.
1st Edition vs Shadowless vs Unlimited: the three Base Set printings
Tell 1st Edition, Shadowless and Unlimited Base Set cards apart on three real Charizards, and compare what each printing sells for at every PSA grade.
PSA 9
PSA 10PSA 9 vs PSA 10: why one grade costs so much more
What separates a PSA 9 from a PSA 10, and the real price gap on popular cards from recorded sales, with gem rate and population. Check any card yourself.
No Rarity
Later print1996 Japanese No Rarity cards: how to spot the first print
How to tell the 1996 Japanese No Rarity first print from later copies on two real Charizards, what the label says, and what each printing sells for.