With that level of passion and devotion to collecting , it begs the question – why is he selling ? Jacob has been considering selling his collection for years and since he is getting ready to build a new house , he decided that now is the time to sell . Initially , he wanted to put his collection in a museum where other Star Wars fans and collectors could enjoy it , and that way it would technically still be his . But then he started considering the complicated task and emotional burden it would put on his family if something were to happen to him and they needed to sell his collection . Selling it now gives him the opportunity to see where items will go and know who bought them .
“ I would love to see my collection get passed through the whole world to different people , and know who got this piece and this piece and that piece ,” Jacob said . “ I ’ d be at peace with knowing that it ’ s dispersed to the entire world , you know one piece at a time , and it ’ d be a fun journey . That ’ s part of this journey of collecting .”
Deciding which auction house to sell through proved easier than hunting for elusive prizes for the collection . Hake ’ s Auctions offered a Star Wars item for the first time in 1985 , and while most auction houses weren ’ t selling toys from Star Wars or similar lines , Hake ’ s Auctions was ahead of the curve . In 2017 , they started selling the Star Wars Collection of Russell Branton , including many of the most notable and desirable toys from the series . Jacob took note of how Hake ’ s handled the promotion of that collection .
“ Mostly , I believe that Hake ’ s does a great job advertising . I believe that when they have somebody ’ s collection , they take the time to document it and push it to the public . So the public ’ s got time to save , or sell some stuff off , or do things like that to be able to put some of these things in their collection . That ’ s a huge deal ,” Jacob said .
“ In 2017 , I met Jeff at the Chicago Toy Show , and he told me that when the time comes to sell his collection , it would be through Hake ’ s ,” Hake ’ s Consignment Director Kelly McClain said . “ Since then , our friendship grew , and his collection became one of the largest and most impressive AFA graded action figure collections in the world . It is truly extraordinary to behold . With Hake ’ s setting record after record the choice was even more obvious for Jeff , and we are beyond excited to begin this journey starting January 2025 .”
“ When Hake ’ s announced that Jeff ’ s collection would be coming up for auction in 2025 , the collecting community ’ s response was a mixture of shock and anticipation . No one , including myself , expected to see Jeff ever part with this collection . Once the initial shock of the announcement soaked in , overwhelming excitement from collectors immediately took over ,” Rula said . “ Many collectors that watch my channel have commented how they will be looking to fill in gaps in a particular character run of card-back variations or add a ‘ holy grail ’ that has been on their search list for years . There is no question in my mind that the Jeff Jacob collection is easily the most anticipated auction event since I have started tracking the Kenner toy line . This is a once in a lifetime event , and everyone looks forward to 2025 .”
The Jeff Jacob Collection will debut at Hake ’ s and goes online Jan . 6th and closes on Jan . 22 and then will continue to be sold throughout the year . Collectors interested in viewing it in person at the Hake ’ s office in York , Pennsylvania can make an appointment by emailing hakes @ hakes . com .