Rare iPhone, He Man, and GI Joe Toys Headline LCG 2025 Winter Premier Auction

The LCG Auctions Winter Premier is underway, and He-Man toys are prominently featured. One of the rarest toys from the Masters of the Universe franchise - a sealed "Battle for Eternia" - is on sale to the public for the first time in at least 15 years.

Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

The 2025 Winter Premier Auction is underway at LCG Auctions, and more than 130 items are on sale. This year's Winter Auction is heavy on "Masters of the Universe" (MOTU) toys, famous for producing the He-Man, Skeletor, and Panthor characters. The auction ends on February 2nd.

Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

"The toy market has had a gradual increase," LCG Auctions founder Mark Montero told SI Collectibles. "This stuff is going to real collectors, and usually the stuff you see sold is because the collector is transitioning out of the item and transitioning to another item, and that helps stabilize the market."

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Among the highlights is a 1984 MOTU "Battle for Eternia" with an AFA 80 grade - the highest-graded example. The toy features Panthor, Skeletor, and Man-E-Faces in its original sealed box. Bidding is up to $7,300 and is estimated to reach between $35,000-$65,000.

Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

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The last factory-sealed "Battle for Eternia" sold privately in 2021 for $36,000 as an AFA 80Y. The "Y" designates a yellowing window, or blister, making it less clear. Clear windows are more desirable.

"The [Battle for Eternia] we're auctioning, there's no Y designation," Montero said. "But the window has yellowed a bit since then, and we have a picture to show that. Only two AFA 80 grades have been given in the last 25 years. The one we have is the first one sold publicly since at least 2010, and I can't even confirm that there has been [a public sale]."

Also up for sale is a 1982 MOTU: He-Man Test Market, First Release in an AFA 75y. A sale from the 2023 Winter Premier netted $13,789 for a similar He-Man in an AFA 80 in a clear bubble, but not part of the first release. It'll be interesting to see the final price for a lower-graded first release.

This toy was among the first He-Man toys ever released. The toy has an 8-back, referring to the 8 characters featured on the back of the box. It's a good way of telling if it was a first release. After strong sales, Mattel released the toy in two more releases. | Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

"It's the first time we've offered a first-release He-Man," Montero said. "The first-release test markets are really hard to find. The only He-Man we've sold so far is the third version back, and those have gotten some pretty impressive prices."

The He-Man First Release 8 Back | Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

Also included in the auction are the highest-graded examples of MOTU characters Evil-Lyn, Trap Jaw (Canadian), Jitsu, and Hordak from their respective 1983 and 1984 releases.

G.I. Joe

G.I. Joe is prominently represented in the auction. The headliner is the 1987 G.I. Joe space vehicle "Defiant," in its original sealed box and a CAS 80 grade. Defiant currently has a high bid of $8,000 with more than a week to go. A higher-graded version set records this past summer.

In LCG's 2024 Summer Premier Auction, a Defiant in AFA 85 grade sold for $57,500. It is the highest G.I. Joe item ever sold from Hasbro's "A Real American Hero" toy line. It is also the record for any play set or vehicle from the 80s of any toy line.

Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

"Defiant is the G.I. Joe holy grail based on the price from this past summer," Montero said.

There's also a sealed high-grade, first-release of the GI Joe villain "Destro," whose high bid is currently $3,328.

Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

Sealed iPhones

LCG Auctions has carved a niche in the auction industry for selling sealed iPhones. In 2023, the auction house sold a factory-sealed first-release 4GB 2007 iPhone for a record $190,000. The 4GB version is considered more rare than its 8GB counterpart.

Prices have declined since then, but sealed first-generation iPhones still command a hefty price; a 4GB version sold for $73,397 in the 2024 Fall Premier Auction, while the 8GB version sold for $20,713.

One of the very first iPhones released in the summer of 2007 comes with a case and original bag. | Image Courtesy of LCG Auctions

This year's Winter Auction features two more versions of the first-generation iPhones. Bidding is currently at $12,100 for the 4GB phone. The 8GB version currently has a high bid of $5,500.

"The first-release iPhone continues to generate interest," Montero said. "In the high-end pop culture space, there's been tremendous growth in the past four years since LCG has been involved. There are collectors from different areas that are coming into the space."