Your old Pokemon cards could be worth thousands

Could you secretly be sitting on a fortune? (Photo: Shutterstock)Could you secretly be sitting on a fortune? (Photo: Shutterstock)
Could you secretly be sitting on a fortune? (Photo: Shutterstock)

If you, or your kids, grew up in the 90s, chances are you had some Pokemon trading cards kicking around the house.

If you’ve still got some, you could be unknowingly sitting on a fortune.

Worth thousands

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Some cards will be more valuable than others - the highest amount ever paid for a single card was £43,450.

This was for a Pikachu illustrator card purchased at an auction in the US in 2016.

The card was originally a prize for the winners of the CoroCoro Comic Illustration Contest, and there’s thought to be fewer than six in the world.

Other than that ultra-rare card, the most valuable cards are ones from 1999 to 2000, the original 150 set.

Details to look out for

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Holographic cards are the most valuable ones and come in three different types:

Entirely holographicWith holographic edges onlyWith a holographic Pokemon

“Shadowless” cards are highly sought-after as well.

Originally, Pokemon cards were designed to be shadowless, but later the design was changed to include a shadow underneath the Pokemon.

First edition versions are also valuable. You’ll know if your card is first edition because there will be a small stamp underneath the image of the Pokemon which says “first edition”.

Most valuable cards

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Gaming website The Gamer ranked some of the most valuable Pokemon cards you should be checking your collection for:

Holographic Shadowless First Edition Charizard - This card is valued at around £9,500 thanks to its combination of being holographic, shadowless and first edition.

Shining Charizard - this card wasn’t as mass-produced as other cards and was the very first version of Shining Charizard. It’s valued at £2,750.

Misprinted Fossil Krabby - a misprint on this card is what sent its price tag soaring. If you happen to have a Krabby Pokemon card with some of the fossil symbol missing, you could fetch yourself up to £3,900.

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Holographic Shadowless First Edition Venusaur - much like it’s Charizard counterpart, this card could bring in some big bucks. Not valued quite as highly as Charizard, it could still go for the likes of £5,100.

Selling on eBay for thousands

Some of the recent cards that have brought in a fair amount of money include:

Booster Shadowless Charizard Pokemon Card Holo for more than £4,000Booster Shadowless Clefairy Pokémon Card Holo for more than £1,020Holo trophy Kangaskhan card for £5,302

This article originally appeared on our sister site Edinburgh Evening News