July Monthly Card Auction ending July 10
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/10/2021
Graded VG 3 by PSA. Hall of Famer. A tiny treasure! This scarce, 7/8" x 1-7/16" collectible is among the "key" pieces in one of Topps' earliest trading card productions. The offered example boasts a bright white back (much cleaner than usually seen) complemented by a nicely developed obverse illustration; preservation liabilities in this piece are expressed primarily in corner wear. "Self-developing" cards from this release had blank fronts, and the sepia photos on those fronts could be "developed" by youngsters who would – seriously! – lick the surfaces and then expose them to sunlight. This set has always been very popular among non-sport collectors, but its great significance as Topps' first baseball card set has never been fully appreciated by baseball card enthusiasts. This may be due, in part, to the fact that the self-developing process produced very inconsistent results, and many cards that have survived – unlike the crisply resolved example presented here – exhibit images that are quite poorly developed. Very pleasing, minimally Very Good condition.