June Premium Card and Memorabilia auction ending June 26-27
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/26/2021
This lot closes on June 26, 2021 at 10:00 PM EDT for initial bids.
Graded PR 1 by PSA. Hall of Famer. "Sweet Caporal - 350 Subjects/Factory No. 30" back. The tale of Eddie Plank's T206 card still perplexes cartophilic scholars nearly a century after the item's release. Although riding on the coattails of the famous Honus Wagner card since the beginning of the organized hobby, no definitive explanation has ever surfaced to explain Plank's rarity. Some attribute it to the same cause as the purported reason for Wagner's scarcity (an aversion to tobacco consumption), but this is as unlikely for Plank as it was for Wagner. Did Plank follow suit, with Wagner, to demand payment for the use of his image by the tobacco companies? Possibly, but it's doubtful. Did the printing plate break? Not likely. We do know that when Piedmont produced its first cards in 1909, Wagner was printed on the same sheet as Plank. But only a tiny number of Wagners have ever surfaced with Piedmont backs and only a few Planks are known from that brand. Perhaps when Wagner's card was withdrawn, Plank's had to go, also, because of some obscure, production-related factor. Regardless, the absence of Plank's card remains burningly evident in sophisticated hobby circles, and just a scant number of credible examples have been confirmed. Coupled with the fact that the T206 "Monster" set of cigarette cards is one of the most desirable arrays in the hobby, the scarcity of Plank only adds to collectors' frustration, and fans the flames of the item's value. The offered card of Eddie Plank exhibits considerable overall wear and heavy creasing throughout, but does not cease to command envy: it represents a too-seldom-encountered opportunity to add the compelling portrait to an advanced assembly. Acknowledged faults aside, the card's portrayal has retained clarity, and the reverse is almost entirely legible. Although in Poor condition, this remains one of the most ardently desired cards in our hobby, and thus features a still-mesmerizing appearance.