Phone card collection - Phone card album

International Collection of Telephone Cards (Telecards) - 1990s - 194 units.
Category: Collectibles / Telephone cards.

Condition: Excellent, the album is good/Used (most retain their original shine; the album shows wear along the spine. See photo).
Countries included: Germany (Deutsche Telekom), United Kingdom (BT), France (Télécarte), Japan (NTT), Denmark (Telekort), Hungary (Matáv), Portugal (Portugal Telecom), Spain (Telefónica). Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Netherlands, Russia, Namibia, Japan, Belgium, Greece and Qatar among others...

Item Description
Wide and varied collection of international telephone cards, mainly mid-1990s specimens. The lot includes chips and magnetic stripe cards, organized in a dedicated binder. The telephone cards are in excellent condition for collectors, but the album has a small defect on the cover and was painted green. The last 4 sheets are added, so they are slightly larger than the original album. In total there are about 23 transparent pages with 8 cards per page, but there are 10 more cards which are the little animal cards from Japan; because they are very thin, they are placed on the back of a full page and two more on the reverse of the next page with kittens. (See photo)

Highlights of the collection:
Artistic and Museum Theme: Standout cards from the Prado Museum (Spain) featuring works by Goya, and reproductions of classical paintings and contemporary art on French and Hungarian cards.
Nature Series: Includes a full section of Japanese cards (NTT) with photographs of puppies (very popular among Asian collectors).
Social Campaigns: Interesting specimens raising AIDS awareness (France and Italy) with period graphic designs.
British Cards (BT): Includes the commemorative 35th anniversary of "Blue Peter" and other historically/military themed cards.
Technology and Miscellany: Danish cards with designs of spacecraft, airplanes, and 90s pop culture.
Buyer Note: Most of the cards have been used (units exhausted), but they are preserved in excellent aesthetic condition, protected in clear plastic sleeves. The album has a dark green rigid cover with the title "TELECARDS" in gold.
Highlighted Section: Prado Museum (Telefónica, Spain)
This part of the lot is of high interest to art-themed collectors. Includes copies from Telefónica’s prestigious series dedicated to the Prado Museum treasures:
Masterworks: Notable cards dedicated to Francisco de Goya, including the famous work "La Maja Desnuda".
Collection Information: The cards feature the official museum logo on the front and technical data of the works, turning them into small pieces of art cataloging.
Condition: Some copies show intact numbering and barcode codes, essential for verifying authenticity and series.
Highlighted Section: Nature Series (NTT, Japan)
Japan’s NTT cards are famous for their high print quality and popular animal themes. This album contains a carefully curated selection:
Kawaii Theme: Includes various cards from the puppy and kitten series, one of the most sought-after by animal-themed collectors.
Unit Variety: Cards of 50 and 105 units were observed, indicating different original usage values.
Japanese Design: Feature the characteristic top band with perforations indicating consumed balance, a technical detail highly valued among phonecard enthusiasts.
Highlighted Section: Jazz Vocal Classique Series (France Telecom)
An exceptionally elegant subset dedicated to the history of music, issued by the Fondation France Telecom:
Jazz Legends: Commemorative cards dedicated to iconic figures such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Cab Calloway.
Issue Details: Each card lists the artist’s name and biographical dates (e.g. Ella Fitzgerald, born 1918).
Musical Collecting: These pieces appeal not only to card collectors but also to jazz memorabilia enthusiasts.
Highlighted Section: Tele Danmark (Denmark)
Danish cards are highly valued for their clean aesthetics and varied thematic series. In this album we find:
Fauna and Flora Series: Cards with detailed illustrations of birds and mammals.
Pharmaceutical Advertising: Uncommon cards promoting medications (e.g., Pondocillin or Tedolan), a very specific niche within collecting.
Christmas Editions: Includes the 1996 "God Jul" (Merry Christmas) series, recognizable by festive Scandinavian-style illustrations.
Highlighted Section: BT Phonecards (United Kingdom)
The lot includes a significant representation of British Telecom (BT), characterized by their green magnetic stripe:
TV Commemoratives: Notable for the 35th anniversary of Blue Peter (the world’s longest-running children’s program), a piece with great nostalgic value.
Social and Institutional Themes: Cards supporting organizations such as RNIB (for visually impaired people) and NCH (child welfare), depicting scenes of British life in the 1990s.
Photography Series: Images of classic landscapes and black-and-white historical scenes.
Japan (NTT) – Furano Landscapes: Several cards dedicated to the Furano region (Hokkaido), famous for its lavender fields and rural landscapes photographed by artists such as Shinzo Maeda.
Venezuela (CANTV): Chip cards from the national fauna series, including the sea turtle, toucan, and giant otter.
Belgium (Belgacom): Cards with illustrations of hares and nature.
Russia: A card from the Nature Conservation Society showing a mandarin duck.
United Arab Emirates (Etisalat): A 30 Dhs card depicting a typical regional oasis.
Etc.