Man Finds Pokémon Card He Hid 20 Years Ago—'Shocked' to Learn Current Value

A Texas man could be in line for a significant windfall after stumbling on a pristine condition Pokémon card he stowed away inside a book 20 years ago.

The market for trading cards is thriving. In 2024, a research report by Market Decipher put the value of the entire trading cards market at an estimated $21.4 billion, projected to rise to as much as $58.2 billion by 2034.

With over 64.8 billion cards produced to date, Pokémon is a key player in this market. It's an enduring one, too, having first been published in Japan back in 1996.

To adult collectors like Jamelle from Houston, longevity and the fact he's been a fan since childhood are part of the appeal.

"For collectors my age, it's nostalgic to a simpler time in our childhood," Jamelle told Newsweek. "A lot of collectors my age also have small children, and they want to pass down the same joy and excitement they felt as children."

At 37, the opportunity to indulge in his passion for Pokémon is also a chance for Jamelle to engage with something plenty of adults his age have an appreciation for: nostalgia. It's more than just that, though.

"There's a certain feeling that comes with hunting down your favorite card or finding it randomly in a booster pack," Jamelle said.

Yet the two aspects collided dramatically one day recently when Jamelle made the most unexpected discovery.

"I was cleaning out the garage and was looking through some old stuff from my childhood. I was an avid reader as a child and kept all of my books and journals in a giant plastic tote," he said.

"I cracked open my old hardcover journal from junior high to reread some entries, expecting some cringe, but was surprised when a card tumbled out."

It was a pristine condition Charizard card. Jamelle realized he had stowed away inside the book 20 years ago for safekeeping.

"I had entirely forgotten about it. It was like childhood me knew that the only way to keep it safe was to hide it from," he said. "I was completely shocked. It seemed like a high IQ play for child me."

Charizard cards have been known to fetch significant sums. Three of the 10 most valuable Pokémon cards sold on eBay were Charizards. In 2021, one man sold a Charizard-Holo (Shadowless) from 1999 for $50,000 after discovering the card gathering dust in his attic.

Despite being an avid collector, Jamelle admits he's something of a novice when it comes to super valuable cards.

"I've never stumbled upon something with that much value in my collection," he said.

The card will need to be graded professionally to determine its value.

"Grading is usually done on a scale from 1-10, 10 being the best score, and takes in card condition, surface and edges into consideration," Jamelle said. "The card being stored in a book, flat in the dark, untouched for 20 years, gives me good odds for a high grade."

But, if it gets a high grade, then Jamelle reckons the card could be worth somewhere in the region of $8,000. The online Pokémon community seemed impressed when he revealed the discovery in a Reddit post shared under the handle u/Radiantgreninja.

While there's a little way to go before he can cash in, Jamelle's discovery could have a few other adult Pokémon players searching through their old things for similar goldmines.