My collection of over 1,000 Catan related items is now open to view.
To celebrate 2020, the 25th Anniversary of Catan I have decided to make my collection available to the public.
There is no entry fee or other access costs - there is not even a gift shop! However, due to the location being a limited space these visits will need to be pre-booked.
What you can see...
My Catan collection has been growing steadily over the past few years. In September 2019 I also merged a large international collection from the Netherlands into the display too. Currently the collection contains over 1,000 different boxed sets, extensions, scenarios, other Catan games, memorabilia and merchandise. Most of these can be seen in the public display.
As well as the many rare sets for people to view, I am also keen to have as many sets as possible available for people to play. Subject to time constraints people can choose to learn and play not only the base Catan game but also the various extensions and scenarios as well. I also have play sets for many of the rarer standalone versions of Catan including Catan 3D anniversary, Water of Life, Communication in Catan, Ancient Egypt, and Starfarers
There are also videos available to view and there is a web linked screen for people to watch tournaments or to play online too.
You can also view the rarest item in the collection. A very unusual pre-launch factory test copy of Catan. This set is signed by the game creator in 1995 (the year the game was released) and features many hand written components. The draft format instructions/almanac with the game have hand written changes to be made to the final production version. While it is unknown how many of these tests sets were made, or how many still exist, this is a very unusual item and an interesting part of Catan history.
Why put the Catan collection on display
I am a keen collector and part of the passion with Catan is a desire to share it with others so that they too become keen players (and/or collectors) of this great game.
Also I am not wanting to collect the game simply to store it in cartons that never get looked at. Catan is a game to be played, enjoyed and shared. Therefore I would much prefer to have my items on display and being used rather than just gathering dust out of sight.
I only plan to run this public display for 2020, the 25th anniversary year. I believe it is a rare opportunity for people to see just how vast the Catan universe has expanded from the first base game back in 1995. While the collection is by no means the largest Catan collection in the world, it is a significant collection in its own right and it is unusual to see so many of the hard to find games in one place.
Click on any image to see a larger version.
