Key Takeaways
- JOOPITER, the auction house co-founded by Pharrell Williams, opened bidding today on "Pokemon ! Manga ! Anime !", its first sale dedicated to the category, running through October 29.
- The sale pairs rare Pokemon cards and sealed games with original animation cels, storyboards, scripts and artwork from Dragon Ball, One Piece, Akira and Sailor Moon, including a PSA 10 Gem Mint "Dark Dragonite" no-holo error card and an original drawing by John Alvin.
- The auction arrives after a year of record Pokemon card sales, including Logan Paul's PSA 10 Pikachu Illustrator selling for $16.5 million at Goldin Auctions in February and a PSA 9 copy reaching $5 million at Heritage Auctions on September 18.
Pharrell Williams’ auction house JOOPITER is betting on Japanese pop culture with a new collection.
The auction house that he co-founded has opened bidding on "Pokémon ! Manga ! Anime !", its first sale built entirely around Pokémon, anime, and manga collectibles. The auction will stay live through Oct. 29.
The house frames the sale as an attempt to gather the physical objects behind some of the most recognizable worlds in Japanese popular culture, covering both the culture of collecting and the creative process that produced those worlds.
In practice, that means rare Pokémon cards and sealed games sitting next to original animation cels, storyboards, scripts, and artwork tied to Dragon Ball, One Piece, Akira, and Sailor Moon.
Among the highlighted lots are a PSA 10 Gem Mint "Dark Dragonite" no-holo error card and an original drawing by illustrator John Alvin.
The sale is a fit for a platform that has leaned on themed, culture-driven consignments. JOOPITER ran "The Collection of Odell Beckham Jr.," which closed June 30, and the Sébastien Jondeau sale, drawn from his years working alongside Karl Lagerfeld. Its current slate also carries "Rolex Daytonas" and "Hank & Koda: Two Maiasaura," both running to Oct. 6.
