Couple hopes rare Pokémon cards found attic can help pay for wedding

By James Gamble

A teaching assistant is hoping rare Pokémon cards found in an attic after 20 years could help pay for his wedding - after being estimated to sell for $31,250.

Ex-collector Andrew Braund found the three Pokémon cards while clearing out his childhood home in Wimborne, Dorset.

The 37-year-old brought his recovered collection to a friend's trading card store, hoping all his cards combined might be worth a few hundred dollars.

But he was shocked when his friend singled out three Charizard cards not in his organized binders - telling him they're worth tens of thousands.

Stumbling upon the rare cards couldn't have come at a better time for Braund, who is due to marry his fiancée, Rachel Moseley, in August.

He now hopes the cards, which are being sold by Ewbank's Auctions, could earn enough to pay for his wedding.

Braund's mint condition Skyridge Charizard Holo Pokémon card is tipped to sell for between $10,000 and $15,000, while another near-mint copy of the same card could go for up to $12,500.

A third, Reverse-Holo of the same card is estimated to sell for between $2,000 and $2,750.

“When my friend told me how much the Charizard cards might be worth, I got quite lightheaded,” Braund, who got engaged to Moseley at last year’s Chalke Valley History Festival, admitted.

"I was very big into Pokémon cards as a child... I remember them being banned at boarding school.

"When they were unbanned, everyone just pulled them out of their pockets.

"Ironically, the three Charizard cards must have been from one of the last packs I ever bought.

"They have the highest monetary value, but the lowest sentimental value. The ones I loved as a kid look worn from being in my pockets all the time."

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Braund explained that his parents had asked him to clear out some of his things from the loft of his childhood home in Wimborne when he discovered his old collection.

"I didn't think they would be worth anything," he admitted.

"I was helping out at a friend's trading card shop a few days later and took my collection down.

"I was expecting the entire collection to be worth $625 or so.

"My friend told me how much these Charizards were worth and I almost had a panic attack, quite frankly.

"Those three weren't even in the binder - they were in a separate tin.

"I wasn't expecting them to be worth anything like that.

"I'm hoping the sale of these cards might contribute toward the cost of my wedding."

Other highlights in Ewbank's sale include a factory-sealed display of the first preconstructed theme decks, released alongside the Base Set in 1999.

These decks were intended to teach people how to play the game and carry estimates of between $3,125 and $4,375 each.

The display contains eight decks in total - 2x Zap!, 2x Overgrowth, 2x Blackout, and 2x Brushfire decks.

Each comes with 60 cards, with a collective total of 480.

The cards have copyright years of 1999-2000, unlike the unlimited version, which only have 1999.

A Team Rocket complete 1st Edition set of Pokémon cards, including the Dark Raichu secret rare and an additional Mew Black Star Promo Card, are expected to sell for between $3,750 and $5,000.

And a near-complete 1st Edition Fossil Set -with only two cards missing - is tipped to sell for as much as $2,000. with 60 cards for a total of 480.

Ewbank's sale takes place later this month, on April 16.