Learn all about CryptoPunks
The rise of CryptoPunks to NFT stardom is related to the Ethereum blockchain development. And the rise of multi-million dollar projects like the Bored Ape Yacht Club opened the doors for such initiatives as CryptoPunks. So, it is vital to keep reading this guide for those considering buying a CryptoPunk and why they are so popular.
What exactly are CryptoPunks?
CryptoPunks is one of the first NFT collections on the Ethereum blockchain. It has been in existence since June 2017. The project manager is Larva Labs (which was acquired by Yuga Labs in 2022). It consists of 10,000 unique images of 2424-pixel art, most of which depict humans (male and female).
However, other distinct types are considered more valuable due to their scarcity. These include zombies (88), apes (24), and aliens (9).
Each CryptoPunk can also have a unique combination of 87 attributes. Hats, pipes, necklaces, earrings, eye patches, and other accessories are examples of these "differential traits." You can customize your NFT to your liking.
Why are they so famous?
Bitcoin popularized cryptocurrency, but Bitcoin is only designed to transact and store the owner of the Bitcoin itself. We use Ethereum, an offshoot of Bitcoin that allows you to run arbitrary computer code on the Blockchain and store the results indefinitely.
This is fantastic. Typically, the code runs on a server somewhere, and you have to trust the person running the server. Ethereum allows everyone to run the code, have the results displayed, and agree that the code was run correctly and fairly.
It allows a user to confirm that there are indeed only 10,000 punks, that it can't be stolen, and it also gets transparency to the markets.
What types of CryptoPunks are there?
There are several types of CryptoPunks, each with its characteristics. For example, there are 44 with a hat and 286 with 3D glasses. You can find all attributes here. In addition, they are classified into five types according to their rarity.
There are both male and female CryptoPunks
There are a total of 6039 males and 3840 female CryptoPunks. They all look different and have different characteristics (lipstick, hats, glasses). These two types are the most common, but their rarity varies depending on the attributes.
Where can I get CryptoPunks?
CryptoPunks can be obtained through the Larvalabs marketplace or Opensea. Those from Opensea, on the other hand, are slightly different because they must be adapted (wrapped) to an ERC-721 token. To acquire one, you need to have Metamask installed and the corresponding amount of ETH. The color of the background indicates the status of the cryptocurrency. Blue ones are not for sale and have no offers, while purple ones have an active request. Finally, red ones are available for purchase.
How to buy a CryptoPunk NFT
Those new to the NFT space will undoubtedly come across CryptoPunks sooner or later. And when they do, they will realize one thing: Punks are a valuable asset.
Let's look at the price in context:
Alien Punk #3100 sold for 8 ETH on July 6, 2017. That was around $2,000 at the time. At the time, this would have seemed like a ridiculous price to pay for a JPEG. However, almost four years later, in March 2021, that same Punk sold for a whopping 4,200 ETH. This equates to $7.58 million. An important fact is the exponential growth of this NFT. Since its launch, it has risen by 190%. Currently, the price of each Punk is 12.5 ETH (35,700 USD).
Where can I find a Punk?
MetaMask is a plugin for the Chrome browser that you can install for this. This gives websites (that you have authorized) access to your Ethereum account. You buy some Ether if you have created a new account. The MetaMask plugin includes a button to buy Ethereum on Coinbase.
Once you have installed the plugin, this website will recognize it and add buttons to the interface. This will allow you to bid, buy and sell punks. Punk #9846, for example, is available for 54.5 ETH (109,982.09 USD).
Why is CryptoPunks so expensive and valuable?
Over time, CryptoPunks has become both an investment and a status symbol. People in the NFT community consider CryptoPunk owners, business people, and market visionaries.
They are seen (rightly or wrongly) as people who predicted where NFTs would go and were ahead of the curve. Consequently, they are assumed to have confidence and status. Many collectors have built entire characters, projects, communities, and brands around a single NFT.
CryptoPunks also flock to OpenSea, one of Ethereum's most prominent NFT marketplaces. These NFTs, on the other hand, are a bit different. Namely, they have been wrapped as ERC-721 tokens, which makes them tradable on NFT marketplaces. All these details give them a high value in the NFT exchange markets.
Where are the punk images stored?
The original images of punks were too large to store on the Blockchain. Therefore, their creators hashed the composite image of all the punks in the contract. By hashing SHA256 on the idea of the CryptoPunks and comparing it with the hash stored in the agreement, one can be sure that the punks managed by the Ethereum contract are the real official CryptoPunksTM.
Are punks an ERC-721 token?
No. CryptoPunks is a custom contract that predates the ERC-721 standard and does not comply with any standard. They are similar to an ERC20 token. None of the other methods are the same because you are not simply transferring a balance. You must specify which specific Punk you want to work with.
Where does the market data for this site come from?
The prices, bids, and offers displayed on this site are extracted from the CryptoPunks contract on the Ethereum blockchain. Since CryptoPunks predate the ERC-721 standard (and all third-party NFT markets), there are marketplaces so that punks can be traded. Anyone could create a web interface for it.
Ride the CryptoPunks wave.
Although no longer unique as NFTs, CryptoPunks were once the forerunners of purely artistic value on a blockchain. Unlike CryptoKitties (which have elements of "gamification"), each individual punk is nothing more than a simple image. Nevertheless, the sheer number of projects that CryptoPunks have directly inspired gives an idea of their enormous popularity.
Yuga Labs receives a cut every time a Bored Ape is resold. On the other hand, Larva Labs did not do so with CryptoPunks and Meebits. Yuga Labs says it has no plans to change that but has made no statement about what it intends to do with the collections.
Finally, CryptoPunks is a legacy project in the NFT space despite being only a few years old. For a long time, all the necessary project information has been widely available.
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