Ewbank’s sells Pokémon sets stored for 15 years

Ewbank’s sold 42 complete Pokémon sets on October 21, 2026, after their owner stored them in an attic for 15 years. The leading lot was a Legendary Collection master set with a Charizard card.

The seller collected separately from his son, who had his own Pokémon cards. His son’s interest prompted the purchases, but the father kept this collection out of his son’s hands.

Dexerto put the auction total at $2.1 million; BroBible gave $2.09 million. The seller was a retired painter and decorator from Woking, Surrey, who asked to stay anonymous.

From school swaps to complete sets

The father began buying Pokémon cards after his son started collecting and trading them at school in the late 1990s. He liked how the cards looked and bought complete sets online.

Some purchases came through eBay, including a set from a seller in Malaysia. He continued adding complete sets after his son’s interest faded.

The father put the cards into custom binders before storing them in the attic. The collection remained untouched there for 15 years.

A local newspaper story prompted him to retrieve the binders. It described a Pokémon card sale for more than £6,000, which made him wonder about his own collection.

Before the auction, the owner thought his collection might fetch £250 to £270. He brought it to Ewbank’s, where the complete sets drew interest from collectors outside the UK as well as local bidders.

Legendary Collection leads the auction

The Legendary Collection master set fetched £100,000 on October 21, 2026, according to Wide Open Country. Its estimate had been £15,000 to £20,000.

The final price exceeded the upper estimate by £80,000, or 400%. The lot included a Charizard described as NM.

James Spooner, who heads trading cards at Ewbank’s, expressed surprise at the collection’s condition when it arrived. Andrew Ewbank conducted the auction and described participation from collectors around the world.

Ewbank also linked demand for Pokémon cards to childhood memories. He said fans who grew up with the cards now had more money available for collecting.

Ewbank’s called the event its most successful auction in more than 30 years. The auction house also claimed a UK trading card auction record and a possible European record.

Ewbank’s said the previous UK record belonged to a Stanley Gibbons auction held in London on October 9, 2026. The London event had generated £872,000 in trading card sales.

Individual Legendary Collection prices

The Legendary Collection card price pages listed Charizard 3/110 at an NM market price of $160.26 as of October 21, 2026.

Gengar 11/110 held the highest NM market price on those pages at $289.99. Dark Dragonite 5/110 followed at $239.66.

Venusaur 18/110 had an NM market price of $159.99, while Dark Vaporeon 9/110 was listed at $136.98. Those figures were also checked on October 21, 2026.

What to do

• Check whether an auction listing offers a complete master set or an individual card. The £100,000 result covered the Legendary Collection set.
• Ask for the checklist behind a seller’s master set description, including which versions of each card are included.
• Compare the condition notes for individual cards within a set. The Charizard in this auction carried an NM description.

Related: How to complete a Pokémon set.