How should you get your Punk?
There are several options: buying directly through the Punks contract without using a front end (https://etherscan.io/address/0xb47e3cd837ddf8e4c57f05d70ab865de6e193bbb) is always possible, but that can be risky for people who are new to transacting this way!
You can also go onto a marketplace like OpenSea or Blur to pick up a wrapped Punk. A wrapped Punk is simply a Punk for which the holder has granted authorisation to a special smart contract called WrappedPunks. The wrapper enables the Punk to operate like an ERC-721 token, so it can be traded on standard marketplaces, not just the Larva Labs contract.
Once you have bought your Punk this way, you can keep it in the wrapper, or you can easily unwrap it.
The most popular way to trade Punks is through a dedicated marketplace front end—you’re interacting directly with the Larva Labs contract. When Yuga acquired the IP for CryptoPunks, they took over Larva Labs’ marketplace front-end for Punks, but they’re not the only game in town.
The independent CryptoPunks.eth.limo marketplace has a number of good features for buyers and sellers, including always-on protection against bid-sniping (https://x.com/cryptopunks_ce/status/1836388508748959795).
Other features include a really good trait search (https://cryptopunks.eth.limo/all) and downloadable data cards for each individual Punk.
If you're interested in using the Yuga frontend to the marketplace contract, you can find that at https://cryptopunks.app. OpenSea's listings for unwrapped Punks are at https://opensea.io/collection/cryptopunks and wrapped Punks are at https://opensea.io/collection/wrapped-cryptopunks. Magic Eden's listings are at https://magiceden.io/collections/ethereum/0xb47e3cd837ddf8e4c57f05d70ab865de6e193bbb for unwrapped and https://magiceden.io/collections/ethereum/0xb7f7f6c52f2e2fdb1963eab30438024864c313f6 for wrapped.
Traits are so, so important! A Punk is very likely going to be one of the biggest individual purchases you make, so it’s worth really exploring traits and seeing how individual Punks feel to you, particularly if you’re going to be using them as a personal or brand identity.
Smoking, makeup, eyewear, hairstyle, gender and more can affect how a Punk feels in the world. Even though they all have the same nominal expression, they can be SO different; check this incredibly high zombie (https://cryptopunks.eth.limo/details/2938) versus this sardonic lady (https://cryptopunks.eth.limo/details/8296).
You can also check out the trading history of a Punk—some have been owned by notable collectors in the space like Pranksy.eth or PunksOTC.eth.
Via the Punk Box search on the CryptoPunks.eth.limo homepage you can also view the Punks trading history of any Ethereum address, including current holdings, active bids, and buy/sell history. Here’s the account of notable Punk market maker PunksOTC, who’s spent over $116 million buying Punks: https://cryptopunks.eth.limo/details/8296
There are a lot of cultural advantages to using this independent marketplace: fixes and features can roll out more quickly there than on a website managed by a big company.
Whichever website you use to buy, list or sell Punks, double-check every time that you’re on the correct site (bookmarking the right address is a good idea).
CryptoPunks.eth.limo has another interesting feature: when you click on a particular Punk, it will let you know whether $CIG has been claimed for that Punk.
$CIG is an ERC-20 meme token by @0xTycoon that was allocated to all 10,000 Punks in December 2021.
To receive the $CIG allocation, the wallet holding the Punk had to claim it from the $CIG website (https://cigtoken.eth.limo/).
The claim remains live forever, and loads of Punks haven’t claimed their $100,000 $CIG! You can check on the CryptoPunks.eth.limo marketplace if the Punks you’ve got your eye on have $CIG to claim.
Why would you want $CIG? There’s a fun monetary policy game $CIG holders can play on the website, and the token is very much alive and actively traded. The founders are still engaged with the token, and recently gifted bonus $CIG to the rarest of Punks—the eight aliens.