1990 Marvel Hologram Cards Value (Most Expensive Sold For $15,000)

For many young people in the 90s, Marvel trading cards were their first exciting introduction to the Marvel Universe. Striking artwork and detailed information drew numerous fans into the incredible franchise.

The 90s was a special time for the Marvel Universe. TV adaptions of some of the most famous comics of all time enraptured entire generations of children and teenagers – Spiderman and The X-Men probably being the most famous examples.

Alongside these popular animations were a whole host of trading cards, a serious trend in the 90s. While Marvel trading cards weren’t as famous or widespread as the real hits such as Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh, they were a real hit among Marvel Universe fans.

Today, the Marvel Comics Universe has really broken through to the mainstream. This can make retro trading cards much more valuable as new fans begin to collect high quality Marvel spin-off products. In general, 1990 Impel Marvel Universe Cards are not highly valuable collectibles. However, rare, autographed, and complete sets of cards in mint condition can fetch thousands of dollars.

Whether you’re looking to form a collection yourself, or want to find out how much your old card collection is worth, you’ve come to the right place. We have compiled an identification and value guide for 1990 Marvel trading cards, as well as a buying and selling guide to help you out on your retro trading card quest.

Marvel Universe Cards: Background

Marvel Universe Cards were first published in 1990 by the company Impel (later known as SkyBox International Inc.), and are also known as Series 1 in the Marvel Universe collectible trading cards series. The card set featured a total of 162 cards jam-packed with key Marvel characters, heroes and villains alike.

The 1990 Impel Marvel Universe cards featured either an individual hero or an event on the front of the card, depicted in beautiful graphic artwork. The back of the cards displayed important information like real names, origin stories, a “did you know” section and critical win-loss statistics. Some of the key themes included on this card set are: Super Heroes, Super Villains, Rookies, and Famous Battles. Unique to this card set are 12 “Spiderman Presents” cards, a card featuring Stan Lee, multiple trading cards within the same category (e.g. 3 Spiderman cards within the Super Hero category), and nicknames!

Following the success of Series 1 in 1990, another four series were released between 1991 and 1994. The cards focused on specific characters, events, or the work of particular artists such as Andy and Adam Kubert.

1990 Marvel Card: Identification And Value

Before finding out how much 1990 Marvel cards are worth, its important to identify card types and subsets. Once you know what you’re looking for (or what you’re looking to sell), you can easily do a little market research to find out their current value.

Each card pack was sold with 12 cards, and limited-edition factory boxes were sold with 36 cards. Usually, each box contained one hologram card.

Complete collections, complete subsets, sealed packs and boxes, and cards in mint condition are the most valuable. For example, the auction record for 7 sealed cases was $9,100 in 2020!

Let’s take a look at the subsets and themes contained within the Impel 1990 Marvel Cards set to help with card identification. We will also list the average value of individual cards according to PSA using a few handy tables. Additionally, we have included some top auction records for the most valuable 1990 Marvel Cards of all time.

Please note that values stated are correct at the time of writing but are subject to fluctuation according to supply and demand, card condition, and card rarity. Values are based on the grades NM-MT 8 and GEM-MT 10, and some card values are missing because there is not enough data available from market transactions to calculate an average value.

For accurate values, make sure you check out current listings through reputable auction sites or trading card specialists.

Also Read: 18 Most Valuable Marvel Cards (Spiderman 2013 Sold Via Auction for $34,440 in May 2021)

Heroes And Villains

The entire first half of the card set is composed of Marvel heroes and villains. On the front is a portrait of the character along with their hero or villain nickname, and on the back is detailed information including their real names, group affiliation, height, weight, battles fought, wins-losses-ties, win percentage, nicknames, arch-enemies, first appearances, some background information, and a “did you know” section with interesting facts.

A Spiderman card with a GEM-MT 10 PSA grade made an auction record by selling for $1200 in September 2022! While a Loki card made an auction record by selling for $500 in 2020! A super rare PSA grade 10 Black Panther smashed these records by selling for $4800 in 2023!

 

Rookies

The Rookies subset includes 6 cards numbered 82 to 87, featuring newer characters and reinvented examples of characters such as Ghost Rider.

Famous Battles

An exciting host of the most epic and renowned battles in Marvel Universe history (pre-1990) are featured on the Famous Battles subset.

Most Valuable Comics

There are 13 cards in the Most Valuable Comics subset, with the value of each comic according to the 1990 Overstreet Price Guide. This is a historical theme which features important issues (along with their issue number) for their value as stories as well as the artists and writers that created them.

Teams

The Teams subset features the main groups or affiliations from the Marvel Universe such as The X-Men.

Spiderman Presents

12 “A dozen Spider-Man Presents cards have the wall crawler chatting it up with various characters. These are done across multiple panels on both sides. These get to the personality of both Spider-Man and those he’s chatting with. Each sets up a joke, showing a little trading card humor.”

This 12 card subset is a real display of Marvel Universe comic humor. Spiderman Presents cards feature the hero himself interviewing other key characters from the Marvel universe. They involve humorous and insightful questions and answers.

#161 Stan Lee, #162 Checklist

A card that deserves its own heading is number 161, potentially the most famous card in the whole 1990 set. This card features a portrait of Stan Lee, a Marvel comics legend, which is an amalgamation of several of the infamous characters he helped to create within the Marvel Universe. This is an incredibly popular and valuable card for its iconic appeal and historical value. This set of 9 Stan Lee cards sold for $599.99 in 2020! Cards which have been autographed by Stan Lee himself are worth a small fortune.

The final card in the set, number 162, is an Impel 1990 Marvel Cards checklist.

Hologram Cards

There are 5 hologram cards to collect in the 1990 Marvel Cards set. Hologram trading cards were ubiquitous in all the popular trading cards packs during the 90s. While these early Marvel hologram cards might be a pretty basic representation of hologram card technology, they are highly collectible and showcase the main fan favorites:

• MH1: Cosmic Spider-Man (auction record: $488 in 2023!)
• MH2: Magneto (auction record: $359 in 2023!)
• MH3: Silver Surfer (auction record: $1500 in 2023!)
• MH4: Wolverine ($400 in 2023!)
• MH5: Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin (auction record: $499 in 2023!)

Factory Tin Sets and Binder

The pre-packaged factory set came complete with a custom tin. Only 4000 of these were produced, and the unique numbering can be found on the bottom of the factory tin. It’s very rare to find these tins still sealed, but a 1990 Marvel factory tin which has never been opened and is in mint condition is a very valuable find. A recent auction record for a sealed factory tin containing all 162 cards and 5 holograms sold for $875 in November 2022!

Binders were available by mail order, originally costing $19.99. It is a black album which features a hologram of Spiderman on the front, and a color image of Spiderman on the reverse. It also has a 1990 copyright on the reverse. Binders containing a complete set of cards can reach hundreds of dollars. A recent auction record goes to one complete original binder including hologram cards which sold for $275 in November 2022!

Error Cards

There are a few error cards within the Impel 1990 Marvel Card collection which can sell for a high price if they are in mint condition. These include the:

• Spiderman vs. Green Goblin hologram error card (the auction record for this card was $499 in 2023!)
• Upside-down blurb Hulk error card (at the time of writing a rare Hulk error card was listed for $15000 in PSA9 grade!)
• Magneto hologram error card (auction record: $204.80 in 2023!)
• Wolverine negative print error card

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