1991 Topps Desert Shield Baseball Cards
Issued to our troops serving in Iraq during the first Gulf War
When news hit the hobby that Topps was planning a special parallel set of it's 1991 Topps baseball set for the U.S. troops serving in Desert Shield/Desert Storm, the set was immediately sought after by regular non-military collectors. The only difference in the regular Topps baseball set and the Topps Desert Shield parallel set is that the Desert Shield baseball cards all have a gold foil stamp on the front, featuring a palm tree inside of a shield, and the words "Operation Desert Shield" beside an American Flag. However, the checklists were not stamped, they are exactly the same as the regular 1991 Topps checklists.
1991 Topps Desert Shield baseball cards were issued in wax packs and wax boxes, just like the regularly issued Topps cards from that year. There is no way of telling if a pack has Desert Shield cards in it without opening, the pack wrappers are identical to the regular wax packs. Supposedly, Topps produced enough cards to make approximately 6800 complete sets.
Soon after it came out, prices for 1991 Topps Desert Shield baseball reached over $15,000 in the United States for a complete set. The early 1990's were an interesting time in the sportscard hobby, and this was certainly one of the more interesting sets of the time. Although the cards were meant for soldiers, it's believed that some wax boxes were probably stolen or got out the backdoor here in the United States before being shipped overseas.
The fact that the 1991 Topps Desert Shield set was distributed overseas, combined with relatively limited production in comparison with the large hobby of the era, made the demand outweigh the supply in 1991. It's rumored that many of the cards that were given to soldiers ended up being lost in the turmoil of war, moving from base to base, back home, etc...or just thrown away to minimize what a soldier had to carry with him. Another rumor that's floated around the hobby is that one of the distribution centers where some of the cards were being kept over there caught fire and many of the cards were destroyed as a result.
Counterfeit 1991 Topps Desert Shield Baseball Cards
There are believed to be quite a lot of counterfeit cards from the 1991 Topps Desert Shield baseball card set, but I personally have never seen one myself. I've bought quite a few online and had them authenticated through the major grading companies and never had one rejected for having questionable authenticity.
I've also heard various tips about details to look for to spot counterfeits, and it seems the most common characteristic is that the fake ones have a more pointed bottom on the gold foil stamp, whereas the authentic 1991 Topps Desert Shield cards have a rounded or almost flat bottom on the gold stamp.
I've also heard of variations in color on the stamps, and the detail of the American Flag, and how detailed the coconuts are on the palm tree, but I honestly don't know what to look for in those situations. I usually just look for the rounded/flat bottom on the gold foil stamp. The fortunate thing is, these cards are fairly affordable and easy to find now on ebay, depending on what condition you want to buy. Ungraded commons can be picked up cheap, and ungraded stars can even be had at reasonable prices, but of course you should know there is a chance of getting a counterfeit card when you buy them ungraded. Only buy graded cards from one of the well-respected grading companies such as PSA, BGS, SGC, or GAI. As you probably know, there are too many other small no-name grading companies that with put a grade on anything, whether it's authentic or not.
Exactly how many counterfeits were produced, and how many variations of the gold foil stamps on the counterfeit cards can be found, I'm not sure.
Putting together an authentic complete set, or just collecting your favorite players from the 1991 Topps Desert Shield set can be a rewarding experience, and in doing so you will own part of a monumental set in sportscard hobby history.
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