1996 Pokemon Japanese Beta Presentation Mounted On Card Mewtwo #150 CGC 10 GEM

Prior to 2024, very little was known about the creation of the Pokémon TCG. Fans and collectors knew the general story behind the birth of the franchise, but what actually went into those first iterations of the 1996 Japanese Media Factory Base Set that established the foundation for the beloved cards was a mystery. Photos of early printings known as Presentation cards appeared in the late '90s in CoroCoro Magazine, but nobody could confirm if they were ever actually printed, or at what stage of the creation process they played their part. Fast forward almost 30 years and groundbreaking discoveries have provided Pokémon collectors and historians with a clearer picture of Presentation cards' importance. In July 2024, Takumi Akabane, one of the founding fathers of Pokémon, verified that Presentation cards were made in the months following the creation of Prototype and Playtest cards. Those three iterations followed Proof of Concept cards, of which there are believe to only be three examples. While Prototype and Playtest cards feature energy symbols only found on those two early creations, Presentation cards are the first versions to have the same energy symbols eventually included on cards in the 1996 Japanese Base Set and beyond. Similar to the Prototype and Playtest cards, Presentation cards also lack the rarity symbol, which would later be added to the bottom right corner of 1996 Japanese Base Set issues. Featuring watercolor designs by beloved illustrator Ken Sugimori and colored-in backgrounds, Presentation cards are some of the rarest, most historically significant Pokémon cards to come up for auction. This month provides an opportunity to add a piece of Pokémon history with this Japanese Beta Presentation Mewtwo. The service has assessed three of these Mewtwos, with this one of two to earn a 10 Gem Mint grade. Learn more about the creation of the TCG in our guide What are Pokémon Prototype, Playtest, and Presentation Cards?: https://www.fanaticscollect.com/definitive-guides/what-are-pokemon-prototype-playtest-and-presentation-cards The certification number on this card has been checked against the third-party grader's online database and is active as of 12/9/2024.

This item was flash inserted on Dec 7, 2024.