Elvis Presley appears on Dutch gum cards more times than any other star — by my count, 459 individual cards across 57 different series printed between 1957 and 1979. He spans the entire history of the format, from the first cheap black-and-white prints sold in Swedish corner shops to the color pop-idol series of the late 70s. If you're starting a Dutch gum collection and want to anchor it around one subject, Elvis is the obvious — and the most rewarding — place to begin.
The three Elvis eras
1957–1962: the portrait years. The earliest Dutch gum cards featuring Elvis are 1957 Stora Nummer till vänster (23 cards) and the cult 1958 Svart/Vita Elvis-Tommy set — almost forty cards of nothing but Elvis and Tommy Steele. These are mostly black-and-white head-shots and publicity portraits, printed on thin card stock that's now fragile. Condition matters more here than on any later series.
1962–1965: the color explosion. As printing got cheaper, color cards arrived in volume. The 1962 Serie N set has 21 Elvis cards spanning the early film roles. TEVE (1962) and TV-Film-Idoler (1965) reflect the moment Swedish TV started broadcasting his movies. The 1961 Serie X set is a sleeper — 18 Elvis cards, less common than the early portraits, often overlooked.
1974–1979: the pop-bilder reissues. After the 1968 comeback special and his Las Vegas run, Swedish publishers issued large numbered pop-bilder sets that mixed Elvis with newer stars. The 1979 Popbilder med punkt I and 1978 Popbilder med punkt IV include some of the only late-period Elvis cards on the format — Vegas-era jumpsuits, not the slicked-back pompadour. Often dismissed by purists, but they round out a serious collection.
The must-have series
If you want one card from each of his definitive sets, target these first:
- 1958 Serie A — 29 cards, the first proper color-portrait era for Elvis
- 1959 Gamla A — 26 cards, including the iconic Jailhouse Rock-era poses
- 1959 Kalendarium-59 — 29 cards, calendar-format with film-promo art
- 1961 H — 15 cards, Blue Hawaii promo era
- 1962 Serie N — 21 cards
- 1958 Svart/Vita Elvis-Tommy — 39 cards, a complete-set goal for any Elvis collector
Scarcity and condition
Two things to watch on every Elvis card.
Corners and edges. These cards were handled by Swedish kids in the 50s and 60s — most surviving examples have rounded corners and bent edges. Sharp-cornered examples command a real premium, especially on the 1957–58 sets.
Print register. The early color sets used a four-color printing process with inconsistent registration. Cards where the red and cyan plates are visibly misaligned are common; cards with crisp registration are noticeably scarcer. Worth paying extra for.
The 1958 Svart/Vita Elvis-Tommy set is the white whale: almost 40 different cards in a single set, all Elvis or Tommy Steele, printed in modest numbers compared to the multi-subject series. A complete run in clean condition is genuinely rare.
Where to buy
Almost every Elvis card from these series passes through eBay sooner or later — search the year + series name (e.g. Dutch Gum 1959 Gamla A Elvis). Etsy and Tradera have thinner inventory but occasionally better prices.
If you're new to the format, start with one or two cards from a 1958 or 1959 set in mid-grade condition — expect to pay $8–$15 per card. Complete sets are a different commitment and best built one card at a time.
For the full picture, browse every series Elvis appears in via the sidebar links on this site — each page shows the full checklist with the current eBay availability for that specific card number.