Nintendo's Ultra Hand and original hand-made Hanafuda cards -- How much do they run?

[aclbandit]

If I wanted to buy an original Nintendo Ultra Hand (a toy invented by Gunpei Yokoi, released sometime around or before 1970 in Japan) with the three balls and stands, what price would it command?

And, if I were looking for an original set of Hanafuda cards from Nintendo (preferably something around the year 1900; that is, some of their oldest), what price would I be looking at?

My senior capstone for Japanese is on the history & evolution of Nintendo as a world cultural force, and I think it would be endlessly cool to have originals of some of these historical items to show off during the presentation.

Thanks!

[joshnickerson]

Vintage Nintendo toys tend to go for crazy amounts in Japan (where you would most likely find them). You're probably looking at spending several hundred dollars, at the very least.

[aclbandit]

Vintage Nintendo toys tend to go for crazy amounts in Japan (where you would most likely find them). You're probably looking at spending several hundred dollars, at the very least.

I figured as much. Since I don't see any on Yahoo auctions Japan, I just wondered if anyone had any idea of specific prices. Because, besides being super-cool for the presentation at the end of the semester, they'd also be GREAT items to have as a collector, too.

[Gameboy415]

Vintage Nintendo toys tend to go for crazy amounts in Japan (where you would most likely find them). You're probably looking at spending several hundred dollars, at the very least.

Not all of the vintage stuff is crazy expensive.
I scored a CIB Duck Hunt Light Gun set from 1976 for about $50 while living in Osaka.

Never saw an Ultra Hand or Hanafuda cards (besides the current ones) anywhere in my 5 years of living in Japan. :bawling:
....I want them for my collection too!

[Aussie2B]

I think you'd be better off just getting the Napoleon deck of Nintendo's Hanafuda cards (which is around $30 to import). They're still in production, but the design itself is ancient. Dates back even prior to when Nintendo started Hanafuda production. While there are novelty decks, Hanafuda is a very traditional game in Japan that hasn't changed much in hundreds of years, so you can buy a deck that's practically the same as one from 1900, minus the age and modern manufacturing methods.