On March 26, 2021, something historic happened on the Solana blockchain. There was no Phantom wallet. No Magic Eden. No Metaplex. Not even proper metadata standards. Yet someone minted the very first NFT on what would become one of the most vibrant NFT ecosystems in crypto.
That NFT was a Kreechure—a strange, alien-like creature that marked the beginning of Solana’s NFT era. What followed over the next eight months was a Cambrian explosion of creativity, experimentation, and community-building that laid the foundation for everything we see today.
This is the definitive history of Solana NFTs, verified and ranked by the Solana Historical Society, co-founded by Ryan Bethencourt. We’ve catalogued the first 20 collections ever minted, documenting not just when they launched, but why they matter to the ecosystem’s DNA.
Why Solana NFT History Matters
In the Ethereum ecosystem, historical significance commands a premium. CryptoPunks, released in 2017, are valued not because they’re the most technically sophisticated NFTs, but because they were first. Curio Cards, launched even earlier, have seen similar appreciation as collectors recognize provenance value.
Solana’s historical collections haven’t yet received this recognition. Many collectors don’t even know which collections came first, or that NFTs existed on Solana before the infrastructure we now take for granted. This represents both an educational gap and a cultural opportunity for those who want to understand the roots of this ecosystem.
The Solana Historical Society was founded to change that—to document, verify, and preserve the history of Solana NFTs before it’s forgotten.
The Pre-Infrastructure Era (March–June 2021)
Before diving into individual collections, it’s essential to understand the context. The first Solana NFTs were minted in what we call the “primitive era”—a time when:
No standardized marketplaces existed — Trading happened peer-to-peer in Telegram groups
No Candy Machine — Minting required sending SOL to a wallet and trusting the team
No metadata standards — Many early NFTs lacked proper on-chain attributes
No established wallets — Phantom launched in beta April 2021, went public July 2021
This context makes the early collections even more remarkable. Creators and collectors took significant risks, trusting in the potential of a blockchain that had only launched its mainnet beta a year earlier.
The Solana Historical Society Official Rankings
Based on on-chain verification of mint dates and historical documentation, the Solana Historical Society has established the official ranking of the first 10 Solana NFT collections:
#1 Kreechures Gen-1 — March 26, 2021 — First ever Solana NFT
#2 Solarians — April 2021 — First generative + animated
#3 SolPunks — June 14, 2021 — First to sell out + metadata
#4 Legionpunks — June 2021 — Early punk derivative
#5 ApeShit Social Club — Summer 2021 — Early ape + charity angle
#6 Frakt — June 8, 2021 — First generative art project
#7 Solana Monkey Business — June–Aug 2021 — “CryptoPunks of Solana”
#8 Solana Mees — Summer 2021 — Early character collection
#9 Degenerate Ape Academy — August 14, 2021 — First million-dollar collection
#10 Abstratica — Summer 2021 — AI-generated art pioneer
The Top 10: Deep Dives
#1: Kreechures Gen-1 — The Genesis Collection
On March 26, 2021, history was made. The first mint transaction on Solana created a Kreechure—a strange, alien creature that would become the equivalent of Bitcoin’s genesis block for Solana NFTs.
The context is crucial: Kreechures was created “when everything was in the field.” There was no Magic Eden, no Phantom wallet, not even proper metadata standards. The team had to build everything from scratch, pioneering techniques that would later become standard.
Originally planned as a 20,000-piece collection, Kreechures didn’t achieve the hype of later collections. The team eventually burned unsold supply, reducing the collection to approximately 5,000 NFTs across 49 “species” with three rarity tiers.
Why It Matters: As the literal first NFT ever minted on Solana, Kreechures represents a foundational piece of blockchain history. Every Solana NFT that followed—including billion-dollar ecosystems—traces its lineage back to this collection.
#2: Solarians — The First Generative Collection
Solarians minted in April 2021, just weeks after Kreechures, and holds an extraordinary number of “firsts” for the Solana ecosystem:
First on-chain generative NFTs on Solana
First NFT collection minted by users (vs. team distribution)
First original NFT collection with on-chain metadata
First animated NFT collection on Solana
The collection features 10,000 robot-themed generative NFTs inspired by science fiction literature. Each Solarian is animated, a technical achievement that was groundbreaking at the time.
Why It Matters: The stacked “firsts” make Solarians a cornerstone of Solana NFT history. If CryptoPunks are significant for being the first profile picture project on Ethereum, Solarians has an even more compelling claim as the first generative, animated, user-minted collection with proper metadata on Solana.
#3: SolPunks — The First Sellout
SolPunks completed its mint on June 14, 2021, becoming the first collection to sell out on Solana. In the early days, trading happened peer-to-peer in Telegram groups—SolPunks pioneered this model and achieved nearly $400,000 in early sales.
The collection is also credited as the first to have proper metadata, setting standards that would influence every collection that followed. Today, SolPunks has an active DAO with staking mechanisms and a devoted OG community.
Why It Matters: SolPunks proved that Solana NFTs could achieve commercial success. The “Punks” brand recognition, combined with genuine historical significance, gives it a unique place in Solana culture.
#4–10: The Foundation Builders
Legionpunks (#4) emerged alongside SolPunks as an early punk derivative, contributing to the “punk” aesthetic that would define early Solana NFT culture.
ApeShit Social Club (#5) brought the ape aesthetic to Solana with a unique charity angle, presaging the social club model that would later dominate NFT culture.
Frakt (#6) launched June 8, 2021 as the first generative art project on Solana—a collection of uniquely patterned “fractal art” appealing to both math and art enthusiasts. Where Solarians pioneered generative PFPs, Frakt pioneered generative art.
Solana Monkey Business (#7) needs little introduction. Often called the “CryptoPunks of Solana,” SMB’s Gen 2 collection (August 2021) became the ecosystem’s first true blue chip. The collection holds the record for the most expensive Solana NFT sale at over $2 million.
Solana Mees (#8) represents the early character/avatar collections that preceded the PFP explosion.
Degenerate Ape Academy (#9) sold out in under 10 minutes on August 14, 2021, becoming Solana’s first million-dollar NFT collection. The mint was so anticipated it temporarily crashed SOL’s price when technical issues occurred. DAA effectively kickstarted the Candy Machine era.
Abstratica (#10) pioneered AI-generated art on Solana, using deep neural networks to create one-off digital art pieces—years before AI art became mainstream discourse.
Collections 11–20: The Ecosystem Expands
The next wave of collections (August–October 2021) saw rapid growth and professionalization of the Solana NFT ecosystem:
ThugBirdz (August 24) — 3,333 pixel birds, notable for having Solana founder Anatoly Yakovenko and Wiz Khalifa as holders
Bold Badgers (August 18-19) — 10,000 hand-drawn badgers with 170+ traits
Galactic Gecko Space Garage (September) — Early community-driven project with strong storytelling
Solsteads (September 29) — First surreal estate NFTs on Solana
Pesky Penguins (October 9) — First deflationary NFT collection
Aurory (Fall 2021) — First major play-to-earn game, record-breaking IDO
Conclusion: Preserving Digital History
The first 20 Solana NFT collections represent more than historical curiosities. They’re artifacts of a pivotal moment in blockchain history—when a new ecosystem was born and pioneers took risks without any guarantee of success.
The Solana Historical Society exists to ensure this history isn’t forgotten. Whether you’re a collector seeking provenance, a researcher documenting blockchain culture, or simply curious about how Solana NFTs began—these collections are where the story starts.
From a single Kreechure minted on March 26, 2021, to the thriving ecosystem we see today, Solana NFT history is still being written. But it’s built on the foundation laid by these first 20 collections.