a super rare card hidden from the Pokemon collectors' market! Any info about it

[pokepokemon]

This is one of the two cards I am looking for. It is more mysterious than the pre-released Raichu from the 1990's and rarer than the 1997 Pikachu Illustrator. I don't think I can afford either card. Very very few collectors have heard of this super mysterious and rare card and sold for 6 figures in US currency.

pre-released Raichu
I have heard that one of the staff members finally released an image of it in 2006 which solved the mystery. About 8 to 12 or more copies exist. I believe that some collectors have seen it. So it is no longer a mystery.

Pikachu Illustrator
Owning this card is Holy Grail. Definitely it is highly sought after by Pokémon card collectors. About 6 to 8 copies exist.

I am from a city in Canada where there is a large community that draws Pokémon fans to collecting cards. Some collectors are hard-core, love and own high-end cards. They have contacts from the US, UK and Japan. Believe it or not, initially only two of these local hard-core collectors heard about the super rare and mysterious card from somewhere. They shared their info with the members in our community.

I heard that some of our members have contacted some ebay sellers who specialize in Japanese Pokémon cards regarding this card. To my surprise, nobody on ebay knows anything about it. Below is a description of the card.

description of the super rare and mysterious card

It's a Japanese Pikachu card with a special error printed even before the Pikachu Illustrator. His left cheek is half red. It is the right-hand side if you see it from your point of view. It's actually his left cheek.

Don't mistake it for the Pikachu with the red cheek error in the English base set. That's what I thought before.

I heard that one mechanism of the printing press did not go down far enough and color the left cheek fully. One employee noticed and removed it. All other Pikachu cards were good. Only one copy of the card exists. The employee gave the card to his boss who was about to destroy it. He stopped him and suggested selling it in a silent auction. It sold for 6 figures in US currency. In the end, the employer gave his employee some money as a reward.

That's all I know. I don't even know the name of the company in Japan that printed the error card. Nor do I know how many people were at the auction.

It's certain mysterious because very few people heard of it. It's absolutely rare as only one copy exists and came out before 1997. It's horribly expensive since it sold for 6 figures US.

Do any of you on this forum have any knowledge of the card? For sure, I cannot afford the card let alone the Pikachu Illustrator and the pre-released Raichu.

I really want to see an image of the card. Can someone find a way to locate more info regarding the whereabouts of the card?

I would appreciate an image of it.

 

[PokePop]

Haven't heard of it, and to be honest, not horribly impressed by it either.
The type of printing press error that you describe happens all the time, so I don't doubt that such a card, or cards like it, exist.

Would an error caused by the process you describe command such a high price?
Frankly, I don't see it.
$50? Even $100? Maybe. But 6 figures? No. I don't think so. it's not the right kind of error to command that kind of price.

 

[mew12]

I've heard of the card a bit from three individuals who contacted me about it through ebay. I don't have the specifics, and I have never seen it physically or online. However, I believe with conviction that nothing is impossible. While it's true that condition and rarity are important factors for determining the value of cards, I don't think their value is limited to these requirements.

Cards with such an error may be common, but if there is a history behind them, they are special and may be worth a high price. That's what makes card-collecting so special and fascinating. From the three informers, two claimed that it is the very first error that has ever been found on Pokémon cards. If it was true, it would definitely command six figures.

I mean, how much one spends on Pokémon cards is different from person to person. For example, a few months ago, I went to a local auction and saw someone buying a Star Wars R2 D2 card published in the 1970's. He spent $5200 Canadian as the winning bid. It was a common card and in very poor condition. In my opinion, it's downright worthless and I wouldn't even spend a single penny on it. After the auction, I heard that most of the bidders wanted it because it was a special piece of their childhood. For some reason, it meant a lot to them. I think they are very rich, so money is not their top priority. Getting a piece of their childhood is more important to them.

If the buyer thought that particular Japanese Pokémon card with the half-red cheek meant something special (being the very 1st Pokémon card error) to him and was excited to spend a six figure sum on it, it would make sense to me.

This is just my own opinion.

 

[mew12]

This card is shrouded in a lot of mystery. I have been trying to research it but I have no success.

 

[PokePop]

The reason that the Prerelease Raichu was worth a lot of money is:

* There are a very limited number in existence.
* There was a specific incident that led to its creation that ensures the quantity in existence being known and giving it a chain of custody.
* There is a history of the card being seen but denied as existing in writing, but shown at events in person. In short, it had a story and a mystery to it. This let to:
* There is a high demand from collectors who want it. Virtually every high end Pokemon collector has it on their want list.

This card is suddenly being talked up after being unknown for literally 20 years, so it has no history of being sought after and desired.
There is no knowledge of how many like it there may be.
The method of creation is not unique. Printing drop outs occur all the time and many examples of them can be found. The partially printed "1st Ed" Pikachu is probably the best known of these and it commands 2 to 3 figures.
"First error"? Not really sure how much this adds. There are a number of errors in the US Base Set. The starter deck and theme decks were released before the set, so one could say that sideways fist Diglett and no damage Ninetales are the "first US Pokemon errors and they go for reasonable amounts of money. The Ninetales going for a few hundred. If "first error" meant anything, I'd expect the price of that to be much higher.

Sorry, but I'm just underwhelmed by this whole thing.