Dragon Ball Proudly Leads Heritage's Largest Anime Showcase Sale to Date
Offering more than 700 lots, Heritage's March 23 – 24 “The Art of Anime, Dragon Ball, and More” Showcase Sale will feature an incredible array of production art, promotional material, and even model kits and action figures from a broad range of anime titles and genres, prominently featuring the worldwide favorite Dragon Ball.
Almost 40 years ago, the magazine Weekly Shonen Jump presented for the very first time an original story by Akira Toriyama, a young manga artist who saw previous success with his comedy series Dr. Slump. Venturing out of the zany tone of his last work, Toriyama decided to start an adventure manga that incorporated his love for martial arts film, unknowingly creating one of the most celebrated series in manga history.
Dragon Ball "Quicker Than Lightning" Goku Production Cel with Key | LotID #47008 | Heritage Auctions
On the first couple of pages of that first chapter in 1984, we are introduced to Goku, Bulma, and the legendary Dragon Balls. Fast forward four decades of extraordinary fights and countless hours of training, the series is still as strong as its protagonist, with a new installment on the horizon, Dragon Ball Daima.
Celebrating alongside Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Piccolo, and the massive cast of characters that gave life to Dragon Ball, Heritage is excited to present more than 150 lots from various entries in the series, going from Goku and Bulma's first meeting, all the way through Dragon Ball Super. This sale even includes the 1987 magazine Dragon Ball: Adventure Special, which features in its pages Toriyama's Dragon Ball prototype stories from 1983, The Adventures of Tongpoo and Dragon Boy.
Dragon Ball: Adventure Special Magazine (Shueisha, 1987). Dragon | LotID #14006 | Heritage Auctions
For numerous anime fans, Dragon Ball was their introduction to the fascinating world of Japanese animation. Whether your first exposure to Dragon Ball was during the early adventures of a young Goku or one of the many mind-blowing fights to save the planet, flipping through the pages of the manga or catching an episode on TV, just one minute, one page, was enough to get many all around the world hooked, excited for find more series that carried the appealing style and energy of what they just witnessed. To follow this trend, Dragon Ball heads the parade of more than 700 lots featuring a stunning range of anime titles, from Astro Boy to Akira, Sailor Moon to Neon Genesis Evangelion.
With production cels, animation drawings, and more, Heritage's largest (and first two-day) showcase sale surely has everything to impress all kinds of anime enthusiasts, featuring, for the first time, long-sold-out model kits and figures from influential series such as Mobile Suit Gundam and Super Dimension Fortress Macross and rare Akira shirt prototypes with artwork attributed to Hollywood prop maker, Al Zequeira.
Dragon Ball Z Goku, Gohan, Master Roshi, Piccolo, and Cel Ice | LotID #29009 | Heritage Auctions
At Heritage, we hope the lots in this showcase auction will bring back memories of the most exciting, moving, and hilarious scenes in Dragon Ball and all your favorite anime series.
After all these years, maybe it's time for a rewatch!
Heritage's Showcase Auction #40248, “The Art of Anime, Dragon Ball, and More,” will be held online on March 23-24, featuring lots from Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, Pokémon, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Mobile Suit Gundam, Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Akira, and more. This auction will also present art from MTV's Aeon Flux and the animated cult-classic Heavy Metal.
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, Geneva, Amsterdam, Brussels and Hong Kong.
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