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Most Expensive Dirt

How much would you pay for a tablespoon of dirt? Before you answer, you might want to ask about the quality of the dirt, what nutrients a hungry plant might extract from it. Those, as the world’s most expensive dirt will attest, are the wrong questions to ask. No, you need to know where it’s been.

Sold in a coin-shaped, commemorative format, the eminently salable sod comes from the now defunct Yankee Stadium. Originally purchased from Beam Clay, provider of turf for “The House that Ruth Built” since 1952, the exceptional bit of New York Yankees memorabilia was used in the very last game played there on September 21st, 2008—when the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 7-3.

The dirt was then pressed into coins under the watchful eyes of Steiner Sports Marketing authenticators and can be purchased in framed sets like the pictured “Yankee Stadium Final Season Game Used Photomint” sold by Highland Mint for $89.95.

By contrast, Beam Clay sells unused dirt by the ton for $75.

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World’s Most Expensive Stamps

Since the turn of the twentieth century, collectors have swooned over rare and unusual stamps. In fact, there’s even a field of research, called philately, devoted to the study of valuable stamps. You might ask why someone would spend so much time and/or money on a small piece of sticky paper that once graced the top corner of an envelope.The reason is that, like similarly expensive collectibles such as comic books and baseball cards, many stamps rise in value phenomenally compared to other stamps.

The late Alfred H. Caspary is one of the best examples of a person who successfully profited from stamp collecting. Almost a century ago, Caspary started collecting stamps–but not just any stamps! Caspary only purchased the most valuable ones he could find. He did this with the intention of investing for his family’s future, a goal many stamp collectors still hold. His stamp collection went on to fetch world record setting prices upon his death with his heirs reaping all of the benefits.

The Treskilling Yellow – $2.3 million or more

The world’s most expensive stamp was printed in Sweden in 1855 and was the result of a printing error. Instead of printing the three-skilling stamp on green stock, it was printed on yellow/orange stock paper. In 1970, the authenticity of this misprinted stamp was questioned by the Swedish Postal Museum, but it was found to be genuine. Similar printing errors have resulted in many other expensive collectibles such as misprinted coins and baseball cards.

Only one copy of the “Treskilling Yellow” postage stamp is known to exist. The most expensive stamp in the world was part of the first Swedish stamp series in the years 1855 and, in 1886, a young collector named George William Backman discovered this stamp in his grandmother’s attic.

The stamp has changed hands numerous times since then. One of the stamp’s first owners since Backman’s discovery was Philipp von Ferrary, who acquired it in 1894 as an addition to his then unequaled stamp collection.

Ferrary’s collection was auctioned in the 1920s and made its way into the hands of such notables as Baron Eric Leijonhufvud of Sweden and eventually King Carol II of Romania.

It first achieved a million US dollar price tag when it was sold in 1990. Six years later, it was sold for 2.5 million Swiss francs–around US $2.3 million.

In 2010, the stamp made headlines again with a record-breaking sale to an international consortium. While the exact figure is unknown, auctioneer David Feldman–who sold the stamp from his own collection in 1984 and oversaw this most recent sale–revealed that it at least maintained the $2.3 million price achieved in 1996.

Andi Herzog Lenticular Stamp – $8.42

Old stamps aren’t the only expensive stamps, though. While it isn’t likely that anyone will ever pay millions of dollars for a new stamp, Austrians were recently given the option of buying the most expensive stamp in print.

This revolutionary stamp isn’t any ordinary stamp, of course. It’s a lenticular stamp featuring approximately three minutes of footage of Austria’s legendary football player, Andi Herzog. The footage shows the goal that allowed Austria to compete in the World Championships in 1998. It’s even shown from three different angles.

The most expensive stamp in print is also the largest one. It measures in at 6.5 by 4.7 cm (or around 2.5 by 1.8 inches). It can be purchased for €5.45 (around $8.42).

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World’s Most Expensive Zippo Lighters

An original 1933 Zippo lighter

For more than half a century, Zippo lighters have been the lighters of choice for serious smokers, outdoorsmen and anyone else who might need to set something on fire in harsh conditions on a regular basis. While butane lighters are now preferred by some, Zippo still managed to celebrate their 75th anniversary in 2007 by selling the world’s most expensive Zippo lighter.

The Zippo Manufacturing Company was founded in 1932 and their first lighters were sold in early 1933. Zippo lighters are notable for combining the flint-wheel ignition typical of modern disposable lighters with a naphtha-soaked wick. This construction makes the lighters particularly wind resistant and more reliable in cold weather than butane lighters.

18k gold Zippo lighter

Around 25,000 lighters were produced throughout 1933. While the earliest Zippos were plain, the company began experimenting with embellishments as early as that first year. That tradition continues to this day, and thousands of different designs have graced the metal Zippo exterior over the past 75+ years.

During their 75th anniversary, Zippo sold one of the original 1933 Zippos for an extraordinary $37,000. Other high-priced Zippos include another 1933 Zippo lighter with diagonal lines on the lid, auctioned for $18,000 on eBay and an 18k gold Zippo lighter complete with a custom cherry gift box, available from Zippo for $8,675.95.

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World’s Most Expensive Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures

One major draw of the miniature wargaming tradition, from which the modern role-playing game evolved, was the collection of masses of miniature units, siege engines and single figures. Those minis came in handy for early Dungeons and Dragons players, as the original game system was a variation of the Chainmail wargame. While miniatures became an optional component of D&D for a time, with the release of the third and fourth editions of the game by Wizards of the Coast, as well as a line of pre-painted plastic miniatures, miniatures are once again an integral part of the D&D experience.

Huge Gold Dragon – $40

Introduced in the Giants of Legends set—the first to include huge figures—along with the Huge Red Dragon below, the Huge Gold Dragon is an excellent example of the skill of Wizards of the Coast’s sculptors and painters. As a “good” dragon, however, its utility in the game is limited—players just don’t fight good creatures as often as their sinister counterparts.

Huge Red Dragon – $55

A true D&D staple, the red dragon has probably graced the covers of more books than any other monstrous creature in the game. It certainly helps that this figure is almost as stunning as the Huge Gold Dragon.

Colossal Red Dragon – $350

This amazing miniature, if that word still applies, was released as part of the Icons line of sculpts of the game’s most terrifying, iconic and, above all, enormous baddies. Colossal Red isn’t just large, though; he’s also menacingly posed and exceptionally well painted.

Snowball – $350+

Snowball is a bit of an oddity. This miniature was distributed to Wizards of the Coast employees over the holidays in 2007. As such, it’s a very limited item and the exact number produced is unknown. Snowball is a beholder, one of the game’s most bizarre and unique monsters, rendered in a translucent white plastic to represent a very D&D-ish sort of holiday cheer.

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World’s Most Expensive Halloween Costumes

Some people see Halloween as a day to do something really spectacular. These are the people whose parties have everything from spooky ambient sounds to animatronic monsters. Of course, the right costume is an important part of the mix, and one could hardly go wrong with one of the most expensive costumes in the world.

Star Wars Supreme Edition Boba Fett – $899.99

A true Star Wars geek can wear this on Halloween or to conventions, opening night at the upcoming 3D Star Wars rereleases, job interviews—the possibilities are endless! The costume features a jumpsuit with gloves and cape, molded armor pieces, wookiee braids, shin weapons, a jetpack and a collector’s edition helmet!

DC Comics Collector’s Edition Superman and Batman – $999.99 each

Like Boba Fett, these costumes will look right at home at a convention or on Halloween. The real draw of these two costumes, it seems, is the incredible level of detail on the muscles sculpted into the thighs, torso and upper arms. As if that weren’t enough, check out Superman’s awesome plastic hair.

Ex Mortis Stalkarounds – $1,999

Wayne Toth, owner and operator of Ex Mortis, has had his work featured in a number of creepy movies and TV shows, including X-Files, Alien 3 and both the Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th film series. His Stalkaround Halloween Costumes are nothing short of amazing. Each one is a combination costume/puppet up to 8 feet tall and with an equally expansive arm span. Sixteen different Stalkarounds are available, including old staples like the Vampire, Werewolf and Living Dead as well as gruesome creations like the two-faced Freak shown here.

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World’s Most Expensive Books

Like any historical work, first edition books can fetch enormous sums when sold at auction. This is especially true of those books written by influential authors, scientists and other extraordinary thinkers. The most expensive books in the world are the works of seminal masters whose legacies are all but impossible to ignore.

Ptolemy’s Cosmography – $4 million

This atlast is based on the work of the second-century Greek mathematician, geographer and astronemer, Ptolemy. Printed in 1477, only two copies are held by private collectors today. Atlases presented a unique challenge for early printers, as each map had to be etched into a printing plate by hand, precisely copying the original sources which were often over a thousand years old.

William Shakespeare’s First Folio – $5.1 million

Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories & Tragedies, a first edition collection of the bard’s plays, was the most expensive book sold at auction in 2006. The book was published in 1623, seven years after Shakespeare’s death, and contains a dozen plays that have never been reprinted, as well as many that are considered classics today. The original printing issued 750 copies of the book and perhaps a third of these still exist today, many of them incomplete. With its original price of twenty shillings per copy, the book has undergone a remarkable price increase. It was a literary custom and common practice for readers to make revisions, additions and annotations to original books and manuscripts and this piece is no exception, with many notes giving insight into the book’s readership.

The book was auctioned by Dr. Williams’ Library, a London library that contains a remarkable collection of first editions and manuscripts. It was said that the auction, carried out by Sotheby’s Auction House, would secure the finances of the library for the near future.

James Audubon’s Birds of America – $11 million

The most expensive printed book on record is James Audobon’s “Birds of America,” which sold in 2000 for $8.8 million. A second copy was sold in 2010 for a staggering $11 million. Audobon is a noted illustrator who pioneered much of early wildlife research, and the book’s dimensions reflect his attention to detail. Each original copy of this book measures 3 feet by 2 feet, because Audubon wanted to paint the birds in life size. His work vastly increased popular awareness of the breadth of species in our world, and is still very highly regarded today for its accuracy and poignant detail.

Leonardo Da Vinci’s Codex Leicester – $30.8 million

This notebook filled with original drawings, notes and sketches was sold to Microsoft founder Bill Gates in 1994. The manuscript takes its name from Thomas Coke who purchased it in 1717, decades before he was created Earl of Leicester. In the Codex, Da Vinci devotes his attention to such topics as the movement of water and the luminosity of the moon.

Gates didn’t keep the manuscript to himself, either. He had the contents scanned and distributed as a screensaver with Microsoft Plus! for Windows 95.

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World’s Most Expensive Hello Kitty Item

Sanrio’s Hello Kitty, that adorable cartoon cat that comes to us from Japanese popular culture, has appeared on a host of commercial products from credit cards to the Hello Kitty Jet (an Airbus A330-220). The character, designed by Yuko Shimizu, debuted in 1974 as a decoration on a vinyl coin purse.

To celebrate the 35th anniversary of Hello Kitty in 2009, Sanrio partnered with crystal maker Swarovski and Japanese jeweler I.K. to create the Super Hello Kitty Jewel Doll. This 4-inch “doll” is made of solid platinum studded with thousands of precious gems, including 1,939 pieces of white topaz, 403 pink sapphires, a pair of black spinels for her eyes, a citrine for her nose and a 1.027-carat diamond on her signature bow.

The ultimate Hello Kitty doll was unveiled at Switzerland’s Baselworld watch and jewelry show and is valued at 15 million yen—about US $167,000!

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