Collecting Casino Memorabilia is an extremely popular hobby these days. With casinos being built all over the world, and the fact that Las Vegas is one of the most popular vacation destinations, many more people are starting to collect casino chips, dice, cards, slot tokens and other casino memorabilia.

For the novice, some of the terms used by the casinos (and collectors) can be somewhat confusing.

For instance, if you decide to collect casino dice or cards, you will certainly come across the term "cancelled".

"Cancelled" means that the casino marks the dice or cards so that they cannot be put back onto a live table game without someone (dealer, boxperson, or floorperson) noticing that they have already been used. This prevents someone from altering the dice or cards to effect the outcome and then slipping them back on the game.

The dice that are used on a live craps game are changed every 8 - 24 hours, and the cards used on a live blackjack game are changed every hour or two.

Most cancelled dice and cards are not damaged by the cancelling, and the logos are still readable. These are the dice and cards that are most collectible. Plus, for those who would like to use the dice or cards when playing games at home, the dice and cards can still be used.
 
Cancelling Dice:

Most casinos have a small hand operated press that imprints a circle on the dice (usually on the "four" side of the dice, so as not to damage the logo side of the dice), or they make a scratch on one side of the dice, or a small round dent on one side of the dice.  Some casinos (in New Jersey for example) drill a hole through their dice. Dice that are drilled are not as collectible to some collectors.

It is our understanding that the New Jersey Gaming Commission requires all Atlantic City casinos to cancel the dice by drilling a hole through the dice. It's too bad that they don't follow the Nevada practice of cancelling the dice with a small mark. This would make them more collectible.

Here are some examples of cancelled dice:

Of course, the cancelling is not done on the side with the casino logo, so collectors are still able to display their dice without the cancelling mark showing.

To see pictures of the logo sides of casino dice, please visit the dice section of our eBay Store:  Casinobilia - Dice
 
Cancelling Cards:

Many casinos cut one or more corners off the deck of cards. Some casinos drill a small hole through the entire deck. And, still other casinos make a mark with a felt tip pen down the side of the deck.

The cards are still usable, if you choose to use them.  But, most collectors of casino cards keep one from each casino in a binder, for display purposes. Since the casinos have many different styles and colors of cards, many collectors attempt to acquire one of each style and color.

To see pictures of casino playing cards, please visit the playing card section of our eBay Store: Casinobilia - Playing Cards