Japanese Sumo Wrestling Cards and Menko
Monday, July 29, 2019
Calling all Sumo Wrestling Fans
As I slowly whittle down the want list on my main menko, bromide, and mini card collection, I have branched out into the other sumo card categories with the main one being telephone cards. The cliché Perfect Storm happened in the 1990s in Japan with the rise in popularity of both sumo wrestling and collecting telephone cards. Consequently, hundreds, if not thousands, of telephone cards were printed with the popular wrestlers of the time. And the majority of the subjects on sumo wrestling telephone cards were of the extremely popular brothers: Takanohana and Wakanohana. These dashing and talented guys pulled sumo wrestling into the new millennium and were rewarded with all sorts of memorabilia. This particular set, produced by the Nihon Sumo Kyokai, captures these two along with the first foreign-born Yokozuna, Akebono. The pre-cell phone days meant people had to use telephone cards in public pay phones and so these cards were not only collectible, but utilitarian as well.
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One of my favorite things to come out of the 90's is telephone cards. Combine it with athletes and you have some really cool collectibles.
ReplyDeleteMine too! I really like these collectibles.
DeleteWhen I first moved to Japan (in 1999) phone cards were still everywhere and I remember using them (none with sumo wrestlers on them unfortunately).
ReplyDeleteIts stuff like this that makes me realize just how long I've been in this country!
I had a ton of them for a while, but 1999 was the first year cell phones really took off. My cell phone was high tech for the era.
DeleteNot sure how relevant this is, but I lived in Japan around 1958 (Navy dad) and have a number of sumo trading cards. Any idea of value or how I could find out? Thanks, Becky
ReplyDeleteI honestly never knew what phone cards where until I got out of high school. I lived a sheltered childhood haha. These are awesome!
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