Hobby Slang Series: What Exactly Is A "Relic" Card?
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When it comes to the sports card hobby, there are several terms that often get thrown around in a conversation or among seasoned collectors and can be referred to as “Hobby Slang” and in this series of articles, the plan is to take a deeper, more informative dive into such terms.
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With that said, one of these terms that regularly gets thrown around in conversation, is referred to in breaks, or is mentioned in social posts and commentary is the term “relic” and collectors often get asked “What is a Relic?” or more specifically, “What is a Relic Card?”.
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The term “relic” or “relic card” is a type of sports card that contains a piece of memorabilia that is directly inserted into the card itself. These pieces of memorabilia are generally either player-worn or game-used and are most commonly a swatch or piece of either a jersey, a bat, a glove, a cleat or in some cases even the playing surface of stadium or arena.
Originating in the late 1990s, the idea of inserting relics into sports cards acted as a bridge to bring fans and collectors closer to both the game and the players that they admired. These insert cards elevated your typical sports card to new heights as it not only enhanced the value of the card itself but also created a level of excitement as collectors weren’t just chasing rookie cards, they were now chasing cards that contained player-worn or game-used memorabilia.
Over the last 30 years, the hobby has seen the concept of relics and relic cards evolve quite considerably. When they were first introduced, collectors were elated when they simply came across such cards, however today’s marketplace includes serial numbered versions of these cards, color-based parallels of these cards, and most importantly cards that not only feature a relic but also ones that is accompanied by an on-card autograph.
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So for those of you who were uncertain about what the term “relic” or “relic card” meant, this comprehensive breakdown hopefully offers you some key insight and gives you the ability to start using one of the hobby’s most commonly used “slang” terms.
Passionate sports card collector and writer based in Queens, NY. Lifelong fan of the New York Mets, Jets, and Rangers. Covering sports cards and collectibles with deep industry knowledge and enthusiasm, while bringing a fresh perspective to the ever-evolving hobby world on http://SI.com/collectibles.
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