Last week, a Richardson resident named Brian listed four pairs of solar eclipse glasses on Facebook marketplace. More specifically, he listed four pairs of 2024 North Eclipse Solar Glasses, a distinction he seems to believe is important.
“This is your chance to own a piece of actual history,” the listing reads. “Do not miss this opportunity.”
For the modest price of $3,000, you can purchase a brand-new, unused pair of glasses. $4,000 will get you “the pair that witnessed the historical event,” which is quite an audacious spin on the fact that they’re used.
“[They] bore witness to the once in a lifetime entire eclipse thru [sic] its totality outside Dallas,” Brian writes in an attempt to justify the cost. “It also saw the engaging events leading up to and following the totality.”
But the real bargain is the full set of four, which he’s practically giving away for $6,000. None of these prices include shipping and handling.
Brian emphasizes that the next time an eclipse happens, these glasses will help the buyer avoid “hoarders" and “sellouts,” who apparently limit the availability of eclipse glasses.
“They can also be used for future solar events,” he writes. “But they will not have the same historical significance.”
In other words, these glasses will not appreciate in value just because they “saw” another eclipse. Don’t even bother trying to resell them for a profit.
Eclipse-Tinted Glasses
Some may see these figures and think they’re a little fishy. Is a piece of cardboard that happened to be present for a solar eclipse really worth thousands of dollars? We hit up eBay to compare prices and to see if this Facebook Marketplace listing lines up with the standard market value.A 10-pack of the exact glasses he’s advertising is currently going for $17.99. That’s a far cry from Brian’s valuation, but it’s important to remember that this pack is unopened and therefore wasn’t present for the eclipse.
As Brian emphasizes in his listing, it’s not just about the glasses. It’s about the history. Recently, an unopened pack of cigarettes belonging to Kurt Cobain sold at auction for $5,200. A tube of lipstick that belonged to Marilyn Monroe went for $18,750. If those seemingly mundane items can fetch such high prices, who says a pair of eclipse glasses worn by a random man from Richardson can’t do the same?
With that in mind, this Facebook Marketplace listing is on par with similarly used items currently available on eBay. One identical pair of glasses used once and in “perfect condition” is going for $2,024. Another used pair is listed for $2,500. These are highly competitive prices compared to the Facebook Marketplace listing.
Upon further inspection, however, it seems like all of these listings may be way off. While Brian is selling a single unused pair for $3,000, you can buy a pack of 100 new glasses for only $399.25.
Particularly astute shoppers can buy a pack of four for only $100. We crunched some numbers and determined that that’s roughly $25 per pair.
It seems like Brian is jumping the gun a bit. He has the right idea in terms of the significance of owning a piece of history, but it’s up to time and public opinion to determine whether his glasses are on the same level as Kurt Cobain’s cigarettes and Marilyn Monroe’s lipstick.
Brian did not respond to our request for comment.
