Winter Auction 2017 Ending January 29
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/29/2017
Graded NM-MT 8 by PSA. Hall of Famer. Among a total of 128 copies recorded in PSA’s census reporting, just nine examples have been awarded a higher, unqualified tier. The odds against a Mickey Mantle "Who Am I?" card surviving nearly five decades in uncirculated condition are long, indeed. Obviously, this fragile card is immensely scarcer than the sturdier Mantle item in the company's standard 1967 baseball issue. But, additionally, this "Who Am I?" card could only be obtained in "non-sports"-themed packs that advertised no baseball subjects at all on their wrappers and were, in fact, probably intended for marketing to those few gum-focused customers who held no specific interest in the National Pastime. At any rate, in order to get a Mantle, one had to sift through such subjects as James Monroe, Clara Barton and Lady Bird Johnson. This spectacular piece conceals the Yankee slugger behind a scratch-off "disguise," which covers his face and caption with a football helmet and comical dialogue. Incredibly, this sensitive and opaque material is well-preserved and unbroken on the offered specimen. A superb example of this very scarce, specialized Mantle card, in Near Mint to Mint condition.