Help determining the print origin of 1999-2000 Fossil Cards

General
1

Hello everyone,

I recently stumbled on the oddity that is the 1999-2000 “Australian” Fossil subset. Since then, I have attempted to learn as much as I can about the later print runs of the relevant vintage sets.

Most of my information came from these threads, so if there is a useful guide I have missed, please let me know!

www.elitefourum.com/t/pokemon-fossil-1999-2000-australian-3rd-print-run/11344/1
www.elitefourum.com/t/base-set-2000-a-guide-to-the-last-print-of-base-set/22312/1

As mentioned above, I am primarily interested in Australian Fossil cards. After reading these guides, these are my assumptions (please correct if any are at all wrong):

  • There was a print run of Fossil in Australia that was distributed in packs labelled “Made In Australia” with red Pokemon logos on the packaging/pack art.
  • These booster packs contain Fossil cards marked with 1999-2000 instead of just 1999.
  • The foil slots in these booster packs were filled with regular 1999 holofoils, so there are no 1999-2000 Fossil foils out there (with the exception of Thunderstorm-theme-deck Zapdos).
  • The Fossil cards within the Thunderstorm theme deck all bear the 1999-2000 year, and are common in the US.
  • The 1999-2000 cards are supposedly more “glossy” than normal vintage WotC cards (this seems subjective and hard to demonstrate with photos).

Here are my questions:

  1. What is the physical origin of the 1999-2000 cards in the Zapdos theme deck? Were they printed in Australia? From a collection standpoint, would you ‘count’ these cards if attempting to assemble an Australian set of Fossil?

    a. Are these cards considered to be ‘glossy’ as the other 1999-2000 Fossil cards are?
    b. Assuming they are different, how would you tell a Thunderstorm Raichu non-holo from a 1999-2000 Australian Fossil Raichu non-holo?

  2. Were any of the Australian Fossil cards printed with 1st edition stamps (seems like no)?

  3. If a Fossil card (let’s assume NOT from Thunderstorm) is marked 1999-2000, can it be guaranteed to have been printed in Australia?

  4. Does anyone have scans of the complete set? The album from the guide above has sadly been taken down.

Thank you so much for your help!

1 Like
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@mao, the deck was printed after base set 2 in 2000 so I believe that is why the copyright is different. No there are not 1999-2000 1st edition cards.

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There are three different versions of this theme deck according to Bulbapedia:

The first one (Thunderstorm Gift Box) was produced and distributed in the US; the second (Tempest Gift Box) was produced in the UK and distributed in Europe; the third I dunno, and might possibly be printed and distributed in Australia, or a second version of one of the other two that was printed later on. All three of these contain the Cosmos Holofoil Zapdos and all cards contain the ©1999-2000 copyright date.

So to answer your question: no, not all of these were printed in Australia.

Possibly. It’s likely none of these three decks were printed in Australia. But I do think at least some of these were distributed and sold within Australia (probably one of the last two versions).

No. All English 1st edition Fossil cards were ©1999.

If it’s not part of the theme deck, then yes, it can be guaranteed to have been printed in Australia and distributed in Red Logo Fossil products (i.e. red logo booster boxes/packs or BodyGuard / LockDown theme decks/cases).

Maybe @funmonkey54 , who helped create that article, has some back-up scans/pictures? I also know that @scratchdesk has a full set of these, who might have some pictures possibly?

I assume they’re similar as the Jungle cards from Australian red logo Jungle packs? I own a Pikachu from those Australian red logo Jungle packs, and although you can’t really see it with the naked eye. The back of the card is indeed slightly glossier (no where near a Japanese magazine/vending machine Glossy promo, or the glossy misprints from Unbroken Bonds Commons and some other sets), which can be picked up by shining on it with a light and compare it to a regular US printed card:

The left one is from an Australian red logo Jungle pack, where you can clearly distinguish the induvial LEDs from my flashlight. Whereas the US print on the right only has a vague general reflection.

Also, out of curiosity: why Australia specifically? Why not collect all Fossil ©1999-2000 cards including the Thunderstorm/Tempest theme deck cards? Is there a specific reason you only want to include Fossil cards actually printed (and/or distributed) in Australia?

Greetz,
Quuador

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@quuador, thanks for the detailed reply! That really helps answer my questions about collecting the set. It seems like the only distinguishing feature between Thunderstorm 99-00 cards and red logo pack cards would be the slight difference in gloss… Definitely a challenge!

To answer your question about why Australia, I just have a personal affinity with the country. I lived there for a year and my partner is from there. That’s why I was so excited to discover this cool subset of Aussie Fossil cards. As you can tell, I am currently trying to assess what I am getting myself into!

1 Like
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Great set to collect.

Im picking up a collection of rares tomorrow and can always buy the uncommons/commons to help if you decide to go down this path.

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There’s a 4th deck, Thunderstorm alt art. I’m assuming that the two with the additional pokemon are just reprints but I don’t really have anything to confirm that

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