JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A gemstone, billed as one of the largest
gem-quality opals ever found, was sold for $143,750 at auction in
Alaska on Sunday.

The opal, dubbed the “Americus Australis,” weighs more than
11,800 carats, according to the auction house Alaska Premier
Auctions & Appraisals. It also has a long history.

Most recently, it was kept in a linen closet in a home in Big Lake,
north of Anchorage, by Fred von Brandt, who mines for gold in
Alaska and whose family has deep roots in the gem and rock
business.

The opal is larger than a brick and is broken into two pieces,
which von Brandt said was a practice used decades ago to
prove gem quality.

Von Brandt said the stone has been in his family since the late
1950s, when his grandfather bought it from an Australian opal
dealer named John Altmann.

A Star Wars script book autographed by over two hundred original cast and crew will be part of an auction. (SWNS)

(FOXNEWS) – This collection was started a long time ago, but not
in a galaxy far,far away. 

A Star Wars fan is selling their collection of memorabilia, which
includes over 1,500 autographs from cast and crew members and hundreds of unopened toys. The collection could potentially sell
for over $90K when it is put up for auction next month.

A rare Empire Strikes Back ‘Boba Fett’ action figure is just
one of hundreds of toys in the collection. (SWNS)

Cover art for the ‘Superman’ comic book, 1930s.

NEW YORK (AP) — A rare copy of a Superman #1 comic book
that sold on newsstands for a dime in 1939 was purchased for
$2.6 million in an auction.

The comic showing Superman leaping over tall buildings on
the cover was sold Thursday night to a buyer who wishes to
maintain a secret identity, according to ComicConnect.com,
an online auction and consignment company.

The seller, Mark Michaelson, bought the comic in 1979 from its original
owner and kept it in a temperature-controlled safe.

Michaelson, now semi-retired and living in Houston, paid his way
through college by buying and selling comics.

(FoxNews) – A rare "Star Wars" toy from 1980 sold at auction this
week for more than $12,000.

The toy, a figure of Princess Leia Organa, was in its original
packaging, which featured a rare picture card – also known as
a transitional card,.  

Expert Nick Dykes, of Vectis Auctions in Stockton-on-Tees,
U.K.told the news agency that the Princess Leia figure in its
rare packaging, could be one of just a few in existence.

The  figure was part of a collection made by British toy company
Palitoy and released in 1980 to coincide with the release of "The
Empire Strikes Back" film in the "Star Wars" franchise. 

The volleyball from Tom Hanks ’ film “Cast Away” sold recently
for a record price of $300.000 at auction in London. The volleyball,
which Hanks’  character named Wilson, was his closest companion
during his four years stranded alone on a island in the 2000 film.