Here’s a treat just in time for Women’s History Month—and #ThrowbackThursday, come to think of it. Do you call yourself a true Beyoncé stan? Do you think you know the entire trajectory of the megastar from her being a child of destiny to being Queen of the Beyhive, including the details of her pre-Lemonade cornrow era, the exact shade of her shimmering stage tights and the length of her longest lace front?
If you are that fan, then perhaps you’ll understand the value of this rare opportunity: Currently up for auction is a collection of circa-1992 videotapes documenting the star’s rise—with appearances from then-bandmates Kelly Rowland, LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett, of course.
Touting two-and-a-half hours of raw, unedited, previously unreleased footage, the collection of 19 Betacam(!) tapes is being auctioned off by English appraisal and auction house Ted Owen & Co at the bargain base price of 750,000 pounds—that’s $1,030,517 U.S.—though the house has estimated the value of these rare gems between 1.5 million and 3 million pounds. And just so you know how much Beyoncé a million and change will get you, the auction’s description is as follows:
The collection is now comprised of 19 videotapes (previously 11) that contain the footage from Beyoncé’s first two professionally produced music video productions. These videos were never officially released and the footage in the collection used to create them is nearly three hours in length. Included are Beyoncé’s rehearsals, performances and outtakes that were shot before, during and after an onstage performance with her group Girl’s Tyme at the BMI New Music showcase at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco on Aug. 26, 1992. Also included are scenes shot at the Plant Recording Studios in Sausalito, Calif., during the time Beyoncé was there to record her first professionally produced and engineered recordings. There is also footage from a third location—a shopping mall—where Beyoncé is acting for the camera beside her longtime friend and Destiny’s Child member / Grammy Award Winner LaTavia Roberson. In addition, the collection includes the edited master tapes and work-in-progress tapes from Beyoncé’s first two music video productions. The collection has been locked in storage for more than 20 years and has only been seen by a select few people since being recorded.
If you’re the Sultan of Brunei-level of Beyoncé fan who feels they absolutely must have these pre-Auto-Tune performances in their life, our guess is that you can also afford to track down a Betacam player before the auction ends on March 13. (We suggest eBay.) Surprisingly, there are no bids so far. But if, like us, you’re just curious to check out a 10-year-old Queen Bey before she got her glow up—and a glimpse of what young Blue Ivy might look like in a few years—the YouTube video above is a fun little teaser.