Newly discovered T206 Honus Wagner card auctioned off at $5M - ESPN
ESPN
by Dan HajduckyFebruary 22, 2026
AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary
A rare 1909 Sweet Caporal T206 Honus Wagner baseball card, unseen for over a century, recently sold at auction for $5.124 million through Goldin Auctions. This historic sale marks the third-highest price achieved for a T206 Wagner card, following two more expensive examples graded by Sportscard Guaranty Corporation (SGC). The newly discovered card received a grade of 1 from Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA), making it a significant but less costly acquisition compared to its peers. Ken Goldin, CEO of Goldin Auctions, expressed pride in representing this “Mona Lisa of sports cards,” which had been preserved by the Shields family for over 116 years.
The T206 Honus Wagner card is renowned for its scarcity, with only a few known examples remaining today. This rarity stems from the fact that Wagner himself requested the American Tobacco Company to halt production in 1909 due to concerns about his image being used without compensation. The exact reasons behind the card’s limited availability are still debated, ranging from printing errors to Wagner’s potential objections to tobacco marketing. This latest sale highlights the enduring allure of this iconic card, which has become a symbol of sports collectibles.
The Shields family inherited the card through their grandfather, Morton Bernstein, who collected trading cards in the early 1900s. After Bernstein passed away, the card remained untouched in a warehouse until it was eventually bequeathed to his grandsons, Douglas and Dennis Shields. This story adds to the card’s mystique, as it was recently featured in
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Originally published on ESPN on 2/22/2026