Vintage Apple retail sign goes up for auction with $12,000 starting bid
An original Apple retail sign that was used to advertise the company's computers in the late 1970s is set to hit the auction block later in February at a starting bid of $12,000.
Credit: Nate D. Sanders
The sign, which measures four feet by five feet, was displayed by an authorized reseller who first learned about Apple at a computer conference in 1976. The sign itself is dated to 1978. It goes up for auction on Thursday.
According to Nate D. Sanders Auctions, the acrylic sign has a few surface marks and some yellowing. The colors of the classic rainbow Apple logo remain bright and the sign is in "overall very good condition."
The auction listing is virtually identical to one that appeared in March 2020, aside from the price, which started at $20,000 at the time. It isn't clear if it is the same sign.
Apple products or memorabilia from the company's early days are popular and pricy auction items. A rare functional Apple-1 computer sold at auction for nearly $460,000 in 2020. In 2019, an original manual for the Apple-1 fetched a $12,000 price at a Boston-based auction house.
Credit: Nate D. Sanders
The sign, which measures four feet by five feet, was displayed by an authorized reseller who first learned about Apple at a computer conference in 1976. The sign itself is dated to 1978. It goes up for auction on Thursday.
According to Nate D. Sanders Auctions, the acrylic sign has a few surface marks and some yellowing. The colors of the classic rainbow Apple logo remain bright and the sign is in "overall very good condition."
The auction listing is virtually identical to one that appeared in March 2020, aside from the price, which started at $20,000 at the time. It isn't clear if it is the same sign.
Apple products or memorabilia from the company's early days are popular and pricy auction items. A rare functional Apple-1 computer sold at auction for nearly $460,000 in 2020. In 2019, an original manual for the Apple-1 fetched a $12,000 price at a Boston-based auction house.
Comments
The most usable and enjoyable and practical vintage Macs are actually among the lowest cost, such as a Plus or SE. The king of compacts is the SE/30.
Maybe the word you wanted to use instead of "worthless", was "useless".
I have the 3' x 2' paper poster version of that sign, only instead of "Apple Computer" on the bottom, it just say "Apple". Bought it framed behind glass for $8 at a Goodwill. When it was still the official logo for Apple Computer, in the mid-90's. At the time, I thought it was a common poster sold at any poster shop and figured the aluminum frame /w glass, was worth at least $8. It wasn't till about 10 years later, after I found them selling for over $200 on eBay (unframed) (and after Apple changed their logo), that I realized the poster was not that common. Evidently, these posters were only handed out to Apple employees and Apple authorized dealers. Of all the Apple stuff I have bought and still have, this Apple poster comes in second as to the one that has increased the most in value since I purchased it. The first being my AAPL stocks.
Here's what it looks like. That not me selling or buying.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Apple-Poster-Rainbow-Logo-vintage-rare-collectible/273934325549?hash=item3fc7c2172d:g:1EYAAOSweSddMJpq
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Apple-Computer-Rainbow-Logo-Poster-1980-039-s-Employee-Owned-34-034-x-22-034-/333196350337?hash=item4d940cd381:g:-VAAAOSwqu1c2gxs&nma=true&si=DFDZhDJ0llQ4%2BCAEjul6FKFM7gw%3D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557