Apple-1 ‘Prototype Board #0’ system is expected to fetch $500,000+ at a 50th Anniversary auction — and the firm’s first ever check is valued at the same amount
An auction featuring 191 lots of historic Apple Computer artifacts, some with estimates of $500,000+, has begun.
Boston’s Rare and Remarkable Auctions has begun a blockbuster sale of 191 lots of historic Apple Computer artifacts. The Steve Jobs & the Computer Revolution: The Apple 50th Anniversary Auction sale has kicked off, and will end on January 30. Among the star attractions under the hammer are an Apple-1 ‘Prototype Board #0,’ Apple’s first check, an Apple Computer registered 1989 Jaguar XJS V12 convertible, and several of Steve Jobs personally-owned treasures.
Apple-1 Computer Prototype Board #0
As per our headline, probably the most tempting purchase for retro vintage hardware enthusiasts would be lot 6003, the Apple-1 Computer Prototype Board #0. RR Auctions refers to this as “The ‘Celebration’ Board, Representing the Earliest Known Fiberglass Apple-1 Prototype.”
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This prototype is claimed to have been used by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak “to validate the Apple-1 design before entering into commercial production.” It is the first corrected PCB layout readied ahead of the famous first Byte Shop production run. The first 50 following machines produced for Paul Terrell’s Byte Shop order were based on this design.
As a validation prototype, the Apple-1 Prototype Board #0 includes several distinguishing features that set it apart. For example, it uses “wave-soldered Robinson-Nugent sockets instead of the cheaper Texas Instruments sockets used on production boards,” notes RR Auctions. It also has a different heatsink and a unique modification to diagnose RAM timings.
For the estimated $500,000+ hammer price, you won’t just get the aforementioned system PCB. That would be poor value. You also get a vintage, period-correct Key Tronic keyboard (c. 1977), a vintage, period-correct power supply, a vintage Sony TV, a replica Apple-1 Operation Manual, signed in blue felt tip by Steve Wozniak, and a replica Apple-1 schematic, signed in blue felt tip by Steve Wozniak.
Apple’s check #1.Apple’s earliest ledger.An Apple-1 prototype that predates production.The artifacts that mark Apple’s transition from idea to company—now together in one sale.Steve Jobs & the Computer Revolution: The Apple 50th Anniversary Auction. Now open at @RRAuction .… pic.twitter.com/x2jh8FpBjB
