Butterfree

Butterfree is card 33 of 64 in Jungle, released in June 1999, an Uncommon. It is a Stage 2 Grass-type with 70 HP.

As a Stage 2, it evolves from Metapod, which places Butterfree deeper in its line and means most collectors hold it alongside the cards it evolves from.

Illustrated by Kagemaru Himeno. Himeno is one of the most-recognized vintage illustrators, with a softer, more textured style that shows up across the Jungle and Neo runs.

The card's flavor text gives Butterfree a line of lore: "In battle, it flaps its wings at high speed to release highly toxic dust into the air."

The bug-flying final form of the Caterpie line. Compound eyes, large purple wings, a butterfly silhouette. Jungle holo Butterfree has a small but loyal collector following. PSA 10 examples are reasonably accessible.

Butterfree is an Uncommon, so raw copies are inexpensive and easy to find. The value is in condition: a genuine PSA 10, especially 1st Edition, can still reach a surprising figure for an otherwise common card. The live price above breaks it down by grade.

Jungle shipped in 1st Edition and Unlimited, with no Shadowless print. The Edition 1 stamp under the artwork separates the scarcer 1st Edition Butterfree from the Unlimited copy. The set also has the famous No Symbol error from its first print run, which adds a premium when the lower-right set symbol is missing.

Butterfree grades forgivingly, but the same centering and edge standards apply. Pack-fresh raw copies are easy to find, which makes a clean PSA 10 submission a low-cost way to learn how the cardstock behaves under grading.

Raw copies of Butterfree are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Butterfree is the practical move.