Cards for Service Members: The 1991 Topps Desert Shield Set on Veterans Day
This Monday, we'll honor Veterans Day by recognizing the bravery and sacrifices of our nation's armed services members. American sports have long demonstrated appreciation for these heroes through special tributes, from commemorative uniforms on holidays to poignant pre-game ceremonies.
The collectibles hobby is no different with frequent insert sets and parallels dedicated to military service
One of the most unique and iconic examples of this is 1991 Topps Desert Shield Baseball. Made in the middle of the so-called ‘junk wax era’, characterized by over-the-top mass production of trading cards, this set is unique for both its scarcity and how it was distributed.
In the early 90’s the United States had tens of thousands of military personnel deployed to Iraq and surrounding region as part of the Gulf War (alongside 41 other nations). To provide a morale boost and a taste of home, Topps printed a special version of their 792 card 1991 Topps flagship set to send overseas. These packs of 15 cards were to be given to each service member while deployed. The only difference between the flagship set and the Desert Shield Set was a gold foil logo of a shield, palm tree, and inscription of ‘Operation Desert Shield’. An exact print run is unknown, but it’s estimated that a little more than 6,000 sets were produced.
The set has remained incredibly popular and valuable over the years, with key cards in high-grade commanding thousands of dollars. It’s also notable that very high grades of cards are uncommon, which isn’t surprising considering they were sent into the middle of a war zone (toploaders probably weren’t too easy to find).
The key cards of the set are the expected superstars. Cal Ripken Jr., Ken Griffey Jr., Tony Gwynn, etc… The most desirable card, however, is the Chipper Jones rookie which a PSA 10 sold for nearly $10,000 at auction earlier this month. Because of the value and similarity to the flagship set, this is also one of the most frequently counterfeit cards. Use caution if purchasing un-authenticated copies.
At a time when companies were printing as many cards as they possibly could, the Topps Desert Shield set is a unique moment in hobby history for a number of reasons.
Patrick is a lifelong sportscards and collectables fan. He's passionate about the Mets and Eagles (yes, really), pre-war tobacco and caramel cards, and writing. You can follow his often neglected account at @pg.sportscards