Beastie Boys Unfolded Album Cover Flat

This original, trimmed but unfolded album cover flat is an extremely rare production proof for the Beastie Boys’ debut 12" LP cover, dating to late 1986. It was retrieved directly from the CBS Records offices by Eric Haze before the album’s official release in early 1987.

As an album flat, this proof captures the cover art in its pre-assembly state—unfolded, unglued, and presented exactly as it would have been reviewed during the production process. Objects like this were never intended for public circulation, making surviving examples exceptionally scarce.

The Beastie Boys’ first album marked a turning point in both the group’s career and in the evolution of rap and youth culture, blending hip-hop, punk attitude, downtown New York energy, and a breakthrough visual identity that helped define an era.