1997 Pikachu No. 1, 2 and 3 Trainer ‘Grail Cards’ From First Pokémon Tournament Hit Auction Block at Heritage

Gem Mint 10 First Edition Charizard and Magic: The Gathering Alpha Edition Black Lotus and vintage booster boxes among other top lots in Dec. 12–13 Trading Card Games Auction DOWNLOAD DIGITAL PRESS KIT DALLAS, Texas (Dec. 5, 2025) — In 1997, there was only one way to obtain a Gold Trophy Pikachu No. 1 Trainer card. It could not be pulled from a Pokémon Trading Card Game booster pack. A player had to win it at the First Official Pocket Monsters Tournament on June 14 and 15 in Chiba, Japan. Today, the Gold No. 1 Trainer, along with the Silver No. 2 and Bronze No. 3Trainers with artwork created by famed Pokémon artist Mitsuhiro Arita, “are arguably the most historically impactful cards in the Pokémon TCG,” says Heritage Auctions Trading Card Games Consignment Director Jesus Garcia. They are “grails” of the collecting community, with fewer than 10 of each in any condition listed on the PSA census, and each will be up for bids at Heritage Auctions’ Dec. 12–13 Trading Card Games Signature® Auction. Opportunities to add one to a collection are scarce, and even rarer is the chance to catch all three in a single auction, should any deep-pocketed super-collector decide to bid on a Gold, Silver and Bronze sweep. The exceptional selection of Magic: The Gathering and Pokémon high-grade cards, booster boxes, uncut sheets, original artwork and more at Heritage’s December Trading Card Games Signature® Auction is a fitting capper to an outstanding year in the trading card games community, Garcia says. “It’s been an incredible year in the world of collectibles,” Garcia says. “It’s especially rewarding to witness so many fresh faces joining us — proof that the world of trading card games continues to grow and bring together seasoned collectors and newcomers.” The First Edition Base Set Charizard is another card from the early days of Pokémon that would make for an instant centerpiece to even the most elite collection. Charizard was featured on the cover of Pocket Monsters: Red, one of two versions of the first released games in Japan, and his popularity has only grown to the point he is widely considered the fan-favorite even over the franchise mascot, Pikachu. This copy of what Garcia calls “the most sought-after Pokémon card in the world” is in the best possible condition, one of only 125 certified as a Gem Mint 10 by PSA. Êtes-vous collectionneur de Pokémon qui parle français? The lone French-language copy of the Tropical Mega Battle deck, given to participants in the 2001 and 2002 Tropical Mega Battle events, is on offer. All 30 cards in this complete deck have been graded by PSA, receiving grades ranging from EX-MT to Gem Mint 10. This auction ups the ante on Magic: The Gathering lots, with plenty to interest collectors at all levels. First up: the ultimate centerpiece to a collection, a Limited Edition (Beta) booster box, with its original 36 sealed booster packs. This is a rare opportunity to own one of the most iconic sealed products in the history of the game. A sealed booster box from the very first expansion set for the game, the Arabian Nights set released in December 1993, doesn’t come along very often, and enthusiasts have the opportunity to bid on one in Very Good condition. It contains 60 booster packs of eight cards apiece, adding up to 480 untouched cards. The most sought-after card in the game will cross the block as well: a Black Lotus from the Alpha Edition, part of the Power Nine, the most powerful group of cards in the game. This one is a looker, too, one of two certified by CGC as a NM/Mint 8, with just 23 graded higher. Other highlights in the auction include, to name just a few:   • A Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator Unnumbered Promo CoroCoro Comics card certified as Mint 9 by CGC, one of just 39 copies distributed   • A Pokémon VS Tropical Mega Battle Complete English Deck, awarded to participants in the 2001 and 2002 Tropical Mega Battle events   • A Pokémon Gold Star Charizard 100 EX Dragon Frontiers graded Gem Mint 10 by PSA, one of 98 certified copies at that grade   • A Pokémon Charizard Japanese Topsun Set graded Gem Mint 10 by PSA, part of a promotional product distributed in 1997 in Japan and one of just seven to earn that grade   • A Pokémon Unlimited Base Set Uncut Sheet (Wizards of the Coast, 1999) Rare, Holo, with a total of 110 uncut cards Images and information about all lots in the Dec. 12–13 Trading Card Games Signature® Auction canbe found at HA.com/7431. Heritage Auctions is the largest fine art and collectibles auction house founded in the United States, and the world's largest collectibles auctioneer. Heritage maintains offices in New York, Dallas, Beverly Hills, Chicago, Palm Beach, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Heritage also enjoys the highest Online traffic and dollar volume of any auction house on earth (source: SimilarWeb and Hiscox Report). The Internet's most popular auction-house website, HA.com, has more than 2 million registered bidder-members and searchable free archives of 7,000,000 past auction records with prices realized, descriptions and enlargeable photos. Reproduction rights routinely granted to media for photo credit. For breaking stories, follow us: HA.com/Facebook and HA.com/Twitter . Link to this release or view prior press releases . Jesse Hughey, Public Relations Specialist 214-409-1376; JesseH@HA.com