Pope Francis has landed back in Rome after his visit to the U.S. The streets are reopening, tourists are leaving, and the street vendors have packed up their merchandise. However, that doesn’t mean that papal-visit memorabilia is gone. Commemorative items are selling for a pretty penny on the Internet. We found some of the most expensive promotional items from Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S. on eBay.
This collection of commemorative challenge coins includes a Philadelphia Police challenge coin and pin set, a SEPTA Transit Police challenge coin, a Philadelphia Highway Patrol challenge coin, and a Philadelphia Fire and Peace Officers Association League of the Sacred Heart of Jesus challenge coin. The set is currently listed on eBay for $999.95.
Not everyone in New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., got a good look at the pope as he rode by or spoke to the masses, so having a figurine of Pope Francis may be as close as some get. This 7.25” figurine of the Pope, commemorating his visit to The World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, is currently listed at $202.88 on eBay.
For those who don’t want a T-shirt to show that they attended the massive festival on Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway, these wristbands are a more subtle option. However, this bulk pack of 100, made ideally for church groups that made the trip, is selling for $200 online.
Some people might have all but one of the commemorative challenge coins, and in case someone is looking for the Amtrak Railroad Police challenge coin, good news—it’s on eBay. The bad news is that it’s up for $95 dollars. The coin reads “2015 Papal Visit, Pope Francis, Philadelphia, Pa.” with an “Officer Amtrak Railroad Police 834” shield on the reverse side.
From what we understand, Pope Francis is more of a soccer guy, but that didn’t stop the Philadelphia Phillies from giving away his “rookie card” to fans on Sept. 14. The team gave away 5,000, and the seller is offering the ticket stub from the game as well. The seller does, however, want $44.99 for a free stadium promotion. (Maybe if we offer our Chipper Jones rookie card, the seller would be willing to make a trade for it.)
Now that the Pope is back in Vatican City, those with Pope Francis merchandise may flock to eBay and other online retailers for a chance to make a buck off of the myriad papal visit merchandise.
