The 1985 Air Jordan 1 “Chicago” worn and autographed by Michael Jordan has officially broken the world auction record for sneakers, selling at a whopping $560,000 USD (R10 406 138,40 converted to Rands) at New York auction house Sotheby’s.
The shoes were auctioned via Sotheby’s, better known for selling multimillion-dollar art. Last year the auction house held its first auction dedicated entirely to sneakers and saw a new world record of $437,500 for a pair of 1972 Nike Waffle Racing Flat “Moon Shoe”.
The Air Jordan 1s, designed for Michael Jordan in 1985 and the first-ever signature sneakers, were expected to fetch between $100,000 to $150,000 in the online auction which closed on Sunday, 17 May 2020.
The auction coincides with the 35th anniversary of the Air Jordan brand and the screening of the 10-part ESPN docu-series “The Last Dance” about the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan.
The shoes are dressed in iconic Chicago colours (White/Red/Black) with red laces, and MJ’s signature. They both show moderate wear condition and they are a mismatched pair in a size 13 (left) and size 13.5 (right).
The coding on the inside of the shoes states “850204 TYPS.” 850204 refers to the date of production. These shoes were made in 1985 between the months of February (02) and April (04). TYPS stands for “Tong Yang Player Sample” and means that the shoes are ‘Player Samples,’ produced from the ‘Tong Yang’ factory.
These shoes are accompanied by an LOA from PSA/DNA, and a Letter of Opinion from MEARS Authentication, LLC, with an “Authentic” Final Grade.
Continue browsing more looks of the shoes below:
all images coutesy of sothebys
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