Are decks more valuable sealed?

Are tarot decks more valuable if they're sealed? If you're a "collector" do you keep shrinkwrapped decks in your collection?

Out there on the "market", yes, Id say they are definitely more valuable, definitely have more caché if still sealed. I'm a collector but I mean - really - how on earth am I meant to control myself upon receiving a lovely new deck for my collection? Of course I rip the shrink-wrap off. I can't imagine doing otherwise.

However, I have a few back-up decks (e.g Victorian Romantic, Liber T & others...) which are still shrink-wrapped. I haven't left them like that because of any sense of "worth", just that it is more practical right now not to open them and have them gathering dust. I don't need to use them. But then I guess that's probably exactly how shrink-wrapped decks end up on the market. The person just didn't get round to using them...

What Le Fanu said. Only to add that OP decks are almost never shrink wrapped because they've been used by a previous owner. I don't think I've ever actually bought an OP shrink wrapped deck. I do seem to have four shrink wrapped Liber T's though

I bought a Tarot of Prague here on AT and it came sealed. My husband and I are having a debate over whether I should open it. My opinion is that it's like Schrodinger's Tarot deck in there until it's opened. But he thinks that since it's already sealed, I should leave it like that and buy a used opened copy if I want to read with it and just put the sealed copy "on display".

But my "collection" only consists of about a dozen decks I think. And I have no designs on becoming a reseller. So I'm torn.

Personally, I prefer to know that all the cards are there. But, something like this would be a treat! I think you should leave it sealed for now. If an opened/used one presents itself at a good price, snag it.

Your husband sounds like my husband. He just does not understand why I have valuable decks and won't sell them, since I got them for less than I could ebay them for- or why I would rather trade a valuable deck than sell it.

Me, I'd open that bad boy up, I have no self control- but if your husband is saying, "just buy another!" WHY are you arguing? Display that one and buy a second.

ETA: "Schrodinger's Tarot Deck" made me LOL, btw.

Did you buy it to use it or because you thought it would be valuable?

If you bought it to use it then I think you should open it and use it. If it's going to be a reading deck then it doesn't really matter how valuable it is does it? On the other hand if you bought it because you thought it was worth a lot then leave it sealed.

Like Le Fanu I would never beable to keep from ripping open that shrinkwrap!! LOL I wouldn't beable to stand it.

One of the only backup decks I bought was a backup for my regular Victorian Romantic. I planned on leaving it sealed but when it got here I couldn't stand it. And........when I opened it up it was missing a card! If I had left it sealed until I needed it years down the line I would have been short a card. So since that I open them up right away mostly because like I said I can't stand it but also to check and make sure all the cards are there.

faunabay said:

One of the only backup decks I bought was a backup for my regular Victorian Romantic. I planned on leaving it sealed but when it got here I couldn't stand it. And........when I opened it up it was missing a card! If I had left it sealed until I needed it years down the line I would have been short a card. So since that I open them up right away mostly because like I said I can't stand it but also to check and make sure all the cards are there.

Click to expand...

mm... got me thinking... do I ? don't I?

I bought a backup for my favorite deck, Fey Tarot. I opened it because I wanted to know that all the cards were. Once something is OOP there is no option to get a replacement card.

If I were to buy an OOP deck, I wouldn't buy a sealed one unless it were very cheap... just in case a card were missing.

I've gotten decks with missing and/or extra cards several times!