Honus Wagner
T206 White Border
Honus Wagner (Piedmont back, SGC Authentic): last verified sale $5,856,000 on Aug 21, 2026 (Heritage Auctions). Not enough verified sales in the last 90 days for a market price. Source: CardVolume, cardvolume.com/sports/baseball/1909-t206-white-border-honus-wagner/, as of Sep 27, 2026.
Honus Wagner (Sweet Caporal back, CGC Authentic-Restored): last verified sale $1,337,263 on Aug 8, 2026 (Love of the Game Auctions). Not enough verified sales in the last 90 days for a market price. Source: CardVolume, cardvolume.com/sports/baseball/1909-t206-white-border-honus-wagner/, as of Sep 27, 2026.
Honus Wagner (Sweet Caporal back, SGC 2): last verified sale $7,250,000 on Aug 3, 2022 (Goldin). Not enough verified sales in the last 90 days for a market price. Source: CardVolume, cardvolume.com/sports/baseball/1909-t206-white-border-honus-wagner/, as of Sep 27, 2026.
Values as of Sep 27, 2026 in USD. Market price = median of at least 5 qualifying sales of this exact version and grade in the last 90 days. Methodology
Key facts
- CardVolume lists 3 verified sales of the 1909 T206 White Border Honus Wagner as of September 27, 2026.
- No grade has the 5 verified sales in 90 days needed for a market price; the most recent verified sale was $5,856,000 for a Piedmont back SGC Authentic on August 21, 2026 at Heritage Auctions.
- The highest verified sale on record is $7,250,000 for a Sweet Caporal back SGC 2 on August 3, 2022 at Goldin.
Updated · Only verified or cross-checked sales count · How we verify · Data: Markdown, JSON
Sales history
| Date | Version | Grade | Price | Venue | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 21, 2026 | Piedmont back | SGC Authentic | $5,856,000 incl. buyer's premium | Heritage Auctions auction Heritage lot page shows sold date, price, Piedmont back, SGC Authentic, and bu… | Cross-checked | Open |
| Aug 8, 2026 | Sweet Caporal back | CGC Authentic-Restored | $1,337,263 incl. buyer's premium | Love of the Game Auctions auction Lot 1. Reported as a record for this grade | Cross-checked | Open |
| Aug 3, 2022 | Sweet Caporal back | SGC 2 | $7,250,000 hammer, excl. premium | Goldin private Private sale; Guinness gives date and price, while Radicards identifies the Sw… | Verified | Open |
Verified: an editor or automated check confirmed the figure on the source page. Cross-checked: an independent second research pass reopened the source and confirmed it. Reported: cited by research but not re-checked; never used in metrics. Asking prices are never listed here.
Price chart
Piedmont back · SGC Authentic
Fewer than two qualifying sales for SGC Authentic; no chart.
Sweet Caporal back · CGC Authentic-Restored
Fewer than two qualifying sales for CGC Authentic-Restored; no chart.
Sweet Caporal back · SGC 2
Fewer than two qualifying sales for SGC 2; no chart.
Graded population
No sourced population figure yet.
Population counts copies graded by one company in one grade. It is not a print run and it grows with every submission. Why population is not print run
Grading math for this card
Prefilled with the latest qualifying sale for each grade where one exists. Replace any value with your own. We never suggest what grade your copy will get.
Formula from Grading: condition, uncertainty, and economics: grading pays only if your honest chance of the high grade exceeds (raw net + cost − other-outcome net) ÷ (high-grade net − other-outcome net). The 13% fee is an editable assumption, not a quoted tariff.
About Honus Wagner
The T206 Honus Wagner is the short-printed tobacco-era baseball card most collectors use as shorthand for the top end of prewar cards. Collectors search for it because each authenticated copy has its own back brand, provenance, condition, and sale history.
Why this card matters
Verified factThe T206 Wagner sits at the intersection of a major tobacco-card set, an inaugural Hall of Fame player, and unusually low surviving supply. Heritage’s 2026 Piedmont-backed lot describes the Wagner as the face of the hobby and identifies that example as one of three known Piedmont-backed Wagners. Goldin’s 2022 private sale of an SGC 2 Sweet Caporal example and Heritage’s 2026 Piedmont sale show that back brand, grade, and provenance are part of the exact object, not decorative details. [1][2][3]
Identifying the exact version
AnalysisStart with the T206 Wagner front, then verify the back. Sweet Caporal and Piedmont copies should not be merged, because collectors treat the advertising back as part of the issue identity. The grading label should be recorded exactly: SGC 2, SGC Authentic, PSA Authentic, restored, or altered descriptions produce different comparable sets. For a card at this level, provenance documents and historical auction appearances should be retained with the object rather than summarized from memory. [1][3][4]
What moves the price between versions and grades
AnalysisPrice differences are driven by the same features that define the card: back brand, eye appeal, restoration or trimming notes, numerical grade, and documented chain of custody. A private sale and an auction result are also different evidence types. The 2022 Goldin-brokered SGC 2 Sweet Caporal sale and the 2026 Heritage SGC Authentic Piedmont sale are both Wagner transactions, but they are not the same variant or grade. CardVolume should compare them as headline context, not as identical comps. [1][2][3]
Authenticity checks
Verified factCompare against official references and major auction images; use multiple checks; do not rely on a single cert lookup; and do not perform destructive tests. For a slabbed copy, verify that the cert details, label type, back brand, visible card, and any restoration or size notes match the sale page and seller photos. PSA warns that valid certification numbers can be copied onto counterfeit inserts, so a database match reduces uncertainty but does not authenticate the physical slab by itself. [4][5]
Telling the versions apart
| Version | How to identify it |
|---|---|
| Sweet Caporal back | Front shows Wagner batting in a Pittsburgh uniform; reverse carries Sweet Caporal cigarette advertising. Keep this separate from Piedmont-backed copies. |
| Piedmont back | Front is the T206 Wagner image; reverse carries Piedmont advertising. Heritage described the 2026 SGC Authentic example as one of three known Piedmont-backed Wagners. |
| Authenticated or numerically graded example | Use the slab label, cert, back brand, alteration notes, and grade together. Authentic-only, restored, and numeric grades are not interchangeable comps. |
What people get wrong about this card
Based on the claims our guides decline to adopt: Risk and strategy · Case studies and corrections
Frequently asked questions
How much did the SGC 2 Sweet Caporal T206 Honus Wagner sell for?
How much did the Piedmont-backed T206 Honus Wagner sell for at Heritage?
Is the T206 Honus Wagner a 1909 card or a 1909-11 card?
How do I tell Sweet Caporal from Piedmont?
How many T206 Honus Wagner cards exist?
Sources
- 1909-11 T206 Piedmont Honus Wagner SGC Authentic - One of Three Piedmonts Known — Heritage Auctions (accessed Sep 26, 2026)
- Most expensive sports trading card sold at a private sale — Guinness World Records (accessed Sep 26, 2026)
- Honus Wagner 1909-11 T206 Brings Over $7M in Private Sale — Radicards (accessed Sep 26, 2026)
- PSA Grading Standards — PSA (accessed Sep 26, 2026)
- PSA Cert Verification — PSA (accessed Sep 26, 2026)
Not yet established
- No official manufacturer supply statement or print-run document was found for this vintage tobacco issue.
- No formal population entry is saved because known-copy estimates are not grader population reports with a stable as-of date.
Research: Codex research pass (live web) · automated source checks · independent cross-check · generated Sep 26, 2026 · reviewed by CardVolume editorial (owner-approved) on Sep 27, 2026 · updated Sep 27, 2026. Found an error? Report it.