Ten years ago, collectors of casino chips were only a small niche market; today however, thousands have emerged to represent a major ancillary market for gaming companies.
Casinos once disdained collectors, but now make limited edition chips to mark special casino events and ceremonies. A complete set of Nevada commemorative chips at face value would cost a serious collector $3,609.
This book encompasses chips from casinos in Nevada, Atlantic City and states with riverboat casinos in the Midwest region.
Poker
Collectors often appreciate older casino chips made of ivory or bone from the 18th century as well as those produced for fraternal organizations and promotional use.
Collectors often seek rare cards featuring two photos of silent screen cowboy stars encased within a round poker chip as an object of desire. Other collector-worthy pieces may include old gambling indictments dating back before poker was even mentioned in print.
Collectors frequently scour antique shops, auctions and flea markets to find rare items. But for serious collectors who go all-out in searching out rare finds in Nevada can bring immense reward – as one recent sale boasted ivory casino chips complete with case, an antique lighter and F.R. Ritter’s rare booklet on how to cheat at cards (written over 100 years before Penn and Teller made similar claims) featuring its first photo ever published depicting Jacob’s Ladder-style holdout for hiding cards!
Blackjack
Blackjack is one of the world’s most beloved casino games and many people love collecting its chips. Collectors frequently seek high value chips with rare colors or high quality and good condition; dealers and collectors use CC>CC’s grading system to help determine their collectible value versus face value of chips they sell or collect.
As casino chip collecting became more prevalent during the 1980s, several chip trading and collecting newsletters emerged to cater to collectors. One such popular newsletter was Bill Borland’s Worldwide Casino Exchange which ran for several years during that decade – featuring casino stories with several dozen chips for sale per issue – further increasing interest in collecting casinos chips and their collectors.
Craps
Craps is a casino game in which players bet on the outcome of rolling two dice. They place their chips on designated areas on the table before throwing the dice; those betting on either pass line are known as right bettors, while anyone wagering against pass lines are known as wrong bettors.
Craps originated in America as an adaptation of western European hazard. On any first dice roll regardless of what number the shooter chooses as his main number, two, three, twelve, and seven are always instant-losing numbers; while seven is always guaranteed as an instant winner on come out rolls.
Craps games typically involve four staff members: a boxman, stickman and two base dealers. The boxman sits behind the table’s chip bank to oversee all money-related matters while taking players’ bets with wooden sticks from players while also announcing roll results and paying out winning bets.
Roulette
Roulette is one of the more renowned casino games, earning itself several nicknames including “The Devil’s Game.” This moniker comes from superstitious players believing that when all numbers on a wheel are added together they equal 666, signifying involvement by Satan himself.
Roulette betting involves placing bets on either red or black numbered compartments on a spinning wheel in which a ball will eventually land, overseen by a “croupier.” As opposed to dealing cards and competing against players directly, croupiers oversee all bets placed at a table and spins the roulette wheel.
Bettors have various betting options at their disposal when it comes to roulette betting, with most placing their chips either on an individual number or small clusters of numbers (inside bets). 17 is often the number that hits, likely due to its central placement on the layout.