Between August 22 and August 30, three copies of the 2005 EX Deoxys Rayquaza Gold Star sold at public auction, each in a different grade. Together they draw the cleanest price ladder of the year for a single card.
| Date | Grade | Price | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 22 | PSA 6 | $43,200 | Fanatics Weekly |
| August 24-30 | CGC 10 | $192,000 | Fanatics Weekly |
| August 30 | CGC 10 Pristine | $1,020,000 | Fanatics Premier |
Reading the rungs
From a PSA 6 to a CGC 10 the price multiplies by 4.4. That is the condition premium: four grade points on a 2005 holo with notoriously fragile edges and a gold foil that scratches if you look at it. It is a steep ladder but a normal one; a 6-to-10 spread of four to six times is where most vintage chase cards sit.
From a CGC 10 to a CGC 10 Pristine the price multiplies by 5.3. That step is not a condition premium in the ordinary sense: both cards are Gem Mint. The Pristine label certifies all four subgrades (centering, corners, edges, surface) at 10, and on a card from 2005 that is close to unique. The buyer at $1,020,000 was paying for the right to say they own the finest copy that exists, and that right only exists once.
What it means for every other copy
If you own a Rayquaza Gold Star in a 10, your comp is $192,000, not $1,020,000; the million is the price of a one-of-one, and no second Pristine will be made from a card that has already been graded Gem Mint. If you own one in an 8 or a 9, interpolate between $43,200 and $192,000 and expect the market to fill in those rungs over the next month, because the Gold Star repricing has been moving one grade at a time. If you own any other Gold Star in a plain 10, watch the Treecko ($132,000 and $114,000 on August 22) and the Rayquaza 10 ($192,000) as the two anchors the rest of the 27-card set will be priced against.
The pattern across the top of the market
This is the same shape the Illustrator ladder showed on August 20: a continuous climb through the mid grades, then a step above the top grade where a single copy with a unique designation (the one PSA 10 Illustrator; the one Pristine Rayquaza) trades as its own object. The rule generalizes: the scarcer the top rung, the less it tells you about the rung below it.
Sources: SI Collectibles, August 31, 2026; ComicBook.com, August 22, 2026.
Chart of the Day ran in The Pack Report, August 31, 2026: The First Million-Dollar English Pokemon Card Is a Rayquaza. Published by Rip Station.