Mickey Mantle's 'finest known example in the world' rookie card from 1952 sells for a record-breaking $12.6 million

Baseball Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle has once again broken another record, this time in the world of card collections. The New York Yankee legend's "finest known example" card fetched a staggering $12.6 million at an auction.

Mickey Mantle's 9.5 graded card that fetched $12.6 million (Photo from Matt Dirksen/Getty)

The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card was listed by Heritage Auctions and was given a 9.5 grade by authenticators SGC. The price tag was the highest ever paid for sports memorabilia. It surpassed late soccer superstar Diego Maradona's 1986 World Cup winning jersey that sold for $9.3 million.

In the baseball world, it exceeded Honus Wagner's "T206" card, which was renowned as the "Mona Lisa" of sports cards. It just sold for $7.25 million earlier this month.

The Mickey Mantle card was documented to have been owned by avid and prominent baseball card collector Alan "Mr. Mint" Rosen. The Boston native first attained the card during the 1980s when he bought a 5,500-piece card collection from a local source. He paid $125,000 for the heap, which included the revered Mantle card.

According to multiple sources, Rosen sold the card in 1991 to Anthony Giordano for $50,000. Giordano, a waste management entrepreneur from New Jersey, has now profited close to $12.55 million with the sale.

What made the price absurdly high was the pristine condition of the card. Heritage Auction's director of sports auctions Chris Ivy discussed:

"This card is arguably the finest-condition example of the most iconic post-war card in the world," Ivy stated. "That grade, plus the fact it has documented provenance from the most storied find in hobby history, puts this card in a category of its own," he added.

A similar Mantle card sold for $5.2 million in 2021, which was a record during that time. That one, however, was graded 9.5 by PSA.

Mickey Mantle's major league career

"The Commerce Comet" spent his entire career with the New York Yankees organization. He was chosen to 20 All-Star teams, won three American League MVP Awards, and appeared in 12 World Series.

Mantle was a seven-time world champion and holds the World Series records for the most home runs with 18, RBIs with 40, extra base hits with 26, runs scored with 42, walks with 43, and total bases with 123.