Press Releases
May 15, 2007 Baseball Card and Memorabilia Auction Shatters Industry Records At Robert Edward Auctions!!!
March 20, 2007 Historic Baseball Treasures 1838-1968 Highlight REA's April Auction
October 25, 2006 REA Public Service Announcement
For immediate release: May 15, 2007
Baseball Card and Memorabilia Auction Shatters Industry Records At Robert Edward Auctions!!!
$8.7 Million Sale Is Most Successful Multi-Consignor Baseball Auction In The History of Collecting
Watchung, New Jersey. Collectors, dealers, and market watchers were expecting great results, but in the end were absolutely stunned by the across-the-board record final prices, totaling a staggering 8.7 million dollars, on all nineteenth and early twentieth century baseball cards and memorabilia at Robert Edward Auctions on April 28th. "It is hard to put into words the success of this auction," said REA president Robert Lifson. "Everything went perfect. In many ways, this was the single most successful baseball auction in the history of the collecting world." The total $8.7 million in sales for the auction set a new world record for a multi-owner all-consignment baseball card and memorabilia auction. This total also represents a new world record for any multi-consignor auction in which the auction house, auction house executives, and employees are prohibited from bidding in the auction. In fact, the $8.7 million dollar auction total is also a new record dollar volume ever to be hammered down in a single day in the history of sports collecting, surpassing the previous record of $7.5 million set by REA in 2006. No other sports card or memorabilia auction in the history of the field has ever sold anywhere near this dollar volume in a single day. Even the number of catalogs shipped – ten thousand – was a record! The auction results at REA are widely recognized as providing the most important and respected snapshot of the vintage baseball card and memorabilia marketplace of the entire year. "The disclosure policies of the REA auction process, our focus on there being no conflict of interests, the unparalleled confidence that bidders have in REA, all of these factors naturally contribute to strong results and the market's confidence in these results," explains Lifson. "Of course, it helps to have great material, and we really had a lot of incredible consignments. The confidence our consignors and buyers have in us is the real key to the great success of this sale." Record prices were set on countless items, both in cards and memorabilia, and spanning all eras. "Compared to some companies, Robert Edward Auctions is a small firm. But that's actually part of our strength. We pay attention to details. We do everything better. No matter what criteria you have, we believe that we do the best job in the world for buyers and consignors. Our philosophy has always been very simple: If we do a great job, great things will happen. And the results show."
The extraordinary results do, indeed, leave no doubt that every item was sold to the person or institution that was willing to pay the most. The 1594 lots offered were won by an incredible 629 different bidders, illustrating the power of the marketing and auction process, and the breadth of bidder interest. Successful bidders included some of the nation's most prestigious museums and corporate institutional collections. By any measure this was one of the most carefully assembled, important, and successful baseball card and memorabilia auctions in the history of collecting. "We set record prices across the board" reports Lifson. "All areas of the auction received a tremendous response and very strong prices. Nineteenth-century baseball items were unbelievable, as always, as were all early baseball cards, advertising and display pieces, graded cards, Babe Ruth items, autographs, memorabilia, non-sport cards and artwork. This was a record-setting auction in every way."
The sale was the most successful auction in Robert Edward Auctions' 37-year history. Thousands of bidders from all over the world, primarily the U.S. but also including Europe, Japan, and Hong Kong, participated. Exactly 24,470 bids were placed and over 99% of the lots sold. The average lot sold for more than double the high-end estimate. "Prices were significantly higher than most consignors expected" according to REA president Robert Lifson. "Part of this, of course, is due to a strong market and having great material, but part of this is also because all of the most serious collectors in the world are comfortable bidding at Robert Edward Auctions. Our Honest-Auto Bid system allows bidders to place limit bids and know that they are the only ones in the world that know their limit. The fact that we are truly an all-consignment auction, maybe the only one in the field, and the fact that we don't allow auction house executives, employees, or the auction house itself to bid, is also very confidence-inspiring to serious bidders. We don't take any shortcuts in processing collections. Bidders have confidence in our expertise and opinions. We don't own the material so we naturally have more credibility than dealers or auction houses that are also dealers. Our commitment to research and authentication is universally recognized as unparalleled. Our expertise in general is highly valued by bidders in a way that is very rare for an auction house. There are many collectors that only bid with us. It's not an accident. We go out of our way to do a better job. It shows in the prices realized."
Highlighted by The Barry Halper Estate Collection, the REA auction also included numerous additional important collections and new discoveries. The recently rediscovered 1838 Olympic Constitution, previously known to exist but which had been lost to the collecting world for decades, sold for an astounding $141,000, setting a record price not just for any baseball publication but a record price for any sports related publication of any kind. The 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth rookie card was consigned by a non-collecting family from Providence, Rhode Island. The grandfather, who passed away in 1985, was a casual collector who had a small vintage card collection he assembled mostly from frequenting flea markets. The collection, which had been kept in storage since 1985 until very recently, by chance included the Ruth rookie. Just prior to contacting REA, the family came very close to selling the heirloom outright to a dealer who offered $8,000. They're glad they waited. The card sold for $200,000. The Barry Halper Estate Collection, consigned directly from the Halper family and comprised of the "small collection" of items that Barry Halper kept for his personal enjoyment during his "retirement from collecting," was offered in 247 lots and realized $1.4 million dollars. The Halper baseball film library alone (reserve $2,500) sold for $117,500.
Significant card highlights in the auction include: A 1952 Topps set (reserve $50,000), entirely graded by PSA, sold for $164,500. An impressive collection of 403 1886-1889 Old Judge tobacco cards in varying conditions, with a reserve of $10,000, sold for an incredible $111,625. A complete set of T206 White Border tobacco cards in varying condition (reserve $10,000, est. $20,000/$30,000) sold for $105,750. The 1953 Bowman set (which was entirely graded by PSA, with an SMR value of $65,000 and a reserve of $25,000, sold for an amazing $94,800.
The M101-4 1916 Sporting News Babe Ruth card, graded Near Mint 7 by PSA, sold for an astonishing $82,250, by far a record price for this important card in this condition. Another example of this very same card graded by PSA in this very same grade sold for $41,520 at another auction just one day earlier. "When comparing apples with apples, REA consistently realizes more for vintage baseball cards," says REA president Robert Lifson, "But usually not 100% more on the very same card in the very same grade encapsulated by the very same company, auctioned just one day apart. At least not for a card of this stature and value. We can't explain why ours brought so much more, only that it's already paid for and shipped out! It could be that ours was just a better card. We are told all the time that the fact that we don't do anything to the cards and have a strict policy against resubmitting cards or in any way lobbying for higher grades, all of which are common practices in the baseball card industry, means that many times our professionally graded Near Mint card actually is better than another auction's Near Mint card graded by the same company. This is starting to show up in a big way in auction prices realized. Of course, grading is subjective and many cards we get are already graded when we get them, so it could have just as easily been the other way around. But it wasn't. And it usually isn't. When we catalog already encapsulated graded cards of significant value, we often provide our own commentary, sometimes positive, sometimes negative, which collectors take very seriously. Sometimes we absolutely kill these cards, they have so many problems. If the consignor won't let us describe them accurately, it's our policy to send them back. We know that sometimes our descriptions on overgraded cards sound harsh, but we're just telling it like it is. Bidders really appreciate this. When we get a completely professionally graded 1941 Play Ball set with an average grade of 7.19, better than Near Mint condition, and all the key cards representing a very significant percentage of the value of the set are extremely overgraded, like Lot 453 in this auction, there's no way to sugarcoat it. If those cards had deserved their grades this set would have sold for a huge premium to its SMR book value of $23,500. It sold for $21,150. Still a lot of money but a discount instead of a premium. A set like that should sell at a discount. The consignor was very happy by the way; we insisted on showing him our description before we went to press and he was fine with it. On the flip side, sometimes cards look nicer than their assigned grades. On the $82,250 1916 Sporting News Babe Ruth card, we thought PSA was very fair and, if anything, conservative in grading this card at Near Mint. In our catalog description we didn't say the card should have been graded higher, but it was such a beautiful card that we had to say "if the card was in a NM-MT 8 holder, we wouldn't bat an eye. It looks like a NM-MT 8." Our opinion on this card, which was right on the money, was very meaningful to bidders and probably contributed to why this important high profile card sold for literally double what the same card in the same grade sold for elsewhere just one day earlier. It works both ways."
Additional auction highlights include: The 1912 Fenway Park First Pitched Ball sold for $85,000; a 1915 Yankees jersey (with a reserve of $2,000) sold for an unbelievable $55,812, by far setting a record for a non Hall of Famer jersey style of any team from any era; the circa 1869 bat attributed to George Wright, with a reserve of $10,000, sold for $88,125, setting a new auction record for any nineteenth-century bat; Mickey Mantle's 1955-1965 era cap (reserve $5,000) sold for an incredible $52,875, setting a new world record for a postwar game-used cap.
Additional early card highlights: The Tango Eggs near-set (16 different cards, #1 on the PSA Set Registry) sold for $58,175. The $100,000 reward publicly offered by REA for proof of the existence of six rumored-to-exist but not yet formally documented Tango Eggs cards went uncollected. "They could certainly be out there but, fortunately for us, no one actually came through to claim the reward" reports Lifson. "But it was fun talking to collectors about the reward money." The previously undiscovered Baltimore News team card with Babe Ruth (found with the individual $200,000 Ruth card) sold for $52,875, bringing the total take for the Rhode Island family to just over a quarter of a million dollars for the two cards. "This has been very exciting. It's been like winning the lottery for us, only more fun," said a family representative. The auction included two examples of legendary T206 tobacco card rarity Eddie Plank. The first was graded PR-FR 1 by PSA, the lowest grade possible. With a reserve of $2,000, the PR-FR example sold for an incredible $21,500. The second T206 Plank (reserve $2,500) was graded "Good" by SGC and sold for an amazing $35,250. Both of these results are by far record prices for this card in each of these grades. The T204 Ramly tobacco set in mixed grade sold for $52,875. A very clean mixed-grade T205 Gold Border tobacco card set (208 cards) with a reserve of $10,000 generated tremendous interest, finally selling for $70,500. "Some of the prices on these vintage mixed grade sets may seem high, but collectors were particularly drawn to these sets. They may have ranged from Fair to Excellent condition, but most of these cards were assembled decades ago by old-time collectors, as opposed to being collected in modern times. Collectors told us again and again that they appreciated that the cards had not been doctored or tampered with. Many bidders were willing to pay a significant premium because of this," explained Lifson.. "I can't blame them."
Nineteenth-century cards and memorabilia were extremely strong, setting record after record, as is always the case at REA. The 1887 N690 Kalamazoo Bats cards of Danny Richardson, graded EX/MT by SGC (which was previously sold by REA in June 1995 for $3,357, and was consigned to the 2007 REA auction directly by the original 1995 buyer), sold for a record $49,937. An 1871 George Wright cabinet card by Warren Studios (reserve $1,000; est. $2,000/$4,000), which was the only baseball item discovered among a group of unrelated-to-sports documents during the settling of an estate in Colorado, sold for a record $17,625. The 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings Peck & Snyder advertising trade card, one of the classics of nineteenth-century card collecting and featuring the first professional team, was encapsulated as "Authentic" by PSA and sold for a new world record price of $29,375. An exciting collection of 59 1898 Cameo Pepsin Gum pins, one of the largest groups of these important early baseball celluloid pins ever assembled, was offered in seven lots and sold for $44,236. The 1864 Brooklyn Resolutes CDV team card featuring Henry Chadwick, which last sold for $16,000 at auction just a few years ago, set an extremely important new record when offered at REA, selling for $47,000. This is a record price not just for this particular nineteenth-century team card, but for any baseball CDV of any kind to appear at auction ever. "It was great to see this card get the respect it deserves. This is a card that in the past, in our opinion, was always undervalued and underappreciated. We never understood why. We were happy to see the market appreciate the significance and rarity of this card in this auction."
Results on all 1910 era cards, especially extreme rarities, were very strong. A T206 of Ty Cobb with a rare UZIT advertising back sold for $29,375. This very same Ty Cobb tobacco card with a common advertising back lists for just $2,900 in the SMR this grade. A T206 tobacco card common player (Pastorious) graded MINT 9 by PSA (SMR value $2,400) sold for $8,225. A complete set of 1910 D322 Tip Top Pirates bakery cards in mixed grade (reserve $2,000; est. $4,000/$6,000) sold for an incredible $23,500. The largest collection of E125 American Caramel Die-Cuts to ever be assembled, a total of 37 cards, was presented in nine lots. The collection realized a total of $154,000, including $26,437 for Eddie Plank, a record price for any E125 of any player ever. A collection of seven T3 Turkey Red tobacco cards, all Hall of Famers and all graded by PSA (reserve $5,000; est. $10,000/$15,000), sold very strong at $26,437. Four M110 1911 Sporting News cabinet cards, each graded by SGC, were offered individually and sold for an incredible total of $47,587, including a record $22,325 for Honus Wagner in Vg-Ex condition. A T205 Gold Border of Christy Mathewson graded NM+ by SGC sold for $10,575; and a 1911 M116 Sporting Life card of Walter Johnson, graded MINT 9 by PSA, was hammered down at $12,925.
It was only a few years ago, in May 2004, that a color 1912 Boston Garter of Hall of Famer Christy Mathewson in Very Good to Excellent condition sold for a then mind-boggling record price of $31,900. In this auction a common player, Robert Bescher, in Very Good condition sold for an astounding $35,250. "We can't explain some of these prices," comments Lifson, "It just goes to show that in an auction, anything can happen, and when it comes to really rare material, collectors will often throw out the book as far as referring to past prices. As advanced collectors grow more and more experienced, they're learning what they will see again and what they won't. There will always be cards that get a lot of hype and go for a lot of money but aren't that rare. Advanced collectors are growing more sophisticated and many are putting a greater emphasis on rarity in determining values. That hasn't always been the case. The market is constantly changing. It's hard to predict what some significant rarities will bring when they finally go to auction, but clearly, in some cases, it's a lot more than any guide will say and a lot more than people expect."
Additional interesting highlights: In 2006 REA offered a pair of 1911-1914 D304 Martens Bakery cards, representing two cards from a find totaling six of these rare cards, all in high grade, which were discovered tucked within the pages of a book, undisturbed for decades. Those two cards offered last year sold for such an incredible and unexpectedly high record amount ($18,000) that the consignor was moved to offer the remaining four cards (which he had planned to keep forever) in 2007 in the hopes that the remaining cards would bring a similar record price. Lightning did indeed strike twice! The four remaining cards, three high-grade and one only graded Vg by SGC, sold for $32,312. A 1915 Cracker Jack of Joe Jackson graded EX by PSA, which lists for $6500 in SMR, sold for $18,800. A 1914 Cracker Jack of Joe Jackson graded EX+ by SGC sold for $21,150. A 1933 Goudey #106 Nap Lajoie, one of card collecting's famous gum card rarities, was graded Near Mint by PSA and sold for $32,312. A 1933 Goudey #53 Babe Ruth graded NM-MT 8 by PSA sold for $38,187; a T206 Ty Cobb with green background graded NM 7 by PSA sold for $17,625; a 1953 Topps Mickey Mantle SGC 92 NM/MT+ sold for $16,450; a 1955 Topps set with all 206 cards graded NM 7 by PSA sold for $19,975; an extremely high-grade 1959 Topps set, #11 on the PSA Registry, sold for $38,187. A high-grade 1959 Fleer Ted Williams set, with seventy-eight cards graded MINT 9 by PSA, sold for $15,275. An unopened cello pack of 1954 Topps, looking exactly as it did when it originally sold for a nickel some fifty-three years ago, sold for a "slight premium" to its original cost: $5,581. For what this pack sold for in 2007 at REA, in 1954 you could have gotten 110,620 packs!
As strong as cards were, a case can be made that memorabilia was even stronger: An original 1923 Yankee Stadium Terra Cotta figural piece, one of the great souvenirs from Yankee Stadium which previously had an auction record of $9,600 sold for an astounding $52,875. The Joe Jackson signed document in the sale was last sold at REA in 2004 for $25,875. In 2007 this very same document sold for a record $44,062. Additional signed items include: An autographed photo of Christy Mathewson sold for $19,975; an autographed photo of the 1939 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies brought $23,500; a Roberto Clemente single-signed ball sold for $9,987. A presentation photograph of the 1917 All-Star team assembled in honor of Timothy Murnane Day was highly sought after, selling for more than double its previous auction record at $18,800. The 1870 New York Fashions litho, the auction catalog cover piece, was instantly propelled to being one of the most valuable nineteenth-century baseball display pieces, selling for more than three times its previous record at $22,325. A recently-discovered Babe Comes Home insert movie poster with restoration sold for $23,500. The title lobby card from this same movie sold for $16,450. A particularly strong and magnificently signed example of Mathewson's book "Pitching In A Pinch" (reserve $2,000; est. $4,000/$8,000) sold for $26,437, by far setting a record for any Christy Mathewson-signed book ever sold at auction. A check written to and endorsed by legendary deadball era pitcher Joe "Iron Man" McGinnity, the first McGinnity check REA has ever seen, had a reserve of $500 and was estimated at only $1,000 to $1,500 because it was laminated, a condition problem which traditionally very significantly impacts the value of autographed items. "We're seeing more and more that technical condition problems are secondary when it comes to important rarities. Eye appeal will always play a role, of course" adds REA president Robert Lifson, "but if it's rare, important, and is pleasing to look at, even if it does have serious technical condition flaws, it might bring as strong a price as if it were perfect." That is certainly what happened to the McGinnity check. It sold for $19,975.
Additional highlight memorabilia results include: 1927 Jim Bottomley St. Louis Cardinals game-used road jersey (reserve $5,000) sold for $38,187; a 1911 Boston Red Sox jersey of a common player realized $12,925; Derek Jeter game-used 2002 Yankee pinstripe jersey (reserve $2,000) sold for $15,275; 1911-16 Ty Cobb pro model bat sold for $29,375; 1917-1920 era Joe Jackson pro model bat sold for $35,250; 1939 era Ted Williams pro model bat $17,625; 1956 Mickey Mantle game-used bat $32,312. Pete Rose's Hall of Fame Lifetime Pass signed inscribed to Barry Halper: "Barry, I shouldn't need this pass to get into the Hall of Fame" was always one of Halper's favorite "story" items, and sold for $18,800. A very noteworthy new record was set for highly respected baseball artist Mike Schacht (1936-2001). His Warhol-style four portraits on one canvas of Joe DiMaggio sold for a world record for this important artist at $29,375.
As usual, all items related to Babe Ruth were red hot. A never-before-offered autographed photograph of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, taken on July 4, 1939, the day of Lou Gehrig's famous farewell speech, sold for $58,750, deservedly selling for a great premium to what Ruth-Gehrig autographed photos normally bring. A beautiful and extremely striking large-format 11 x 14-inch signed presentation photograph of Babe Ruth originating from the H&B archives sold for $26,437. Ruth's book contract for his biography, The Babe Ruth Story, sold for $38,187. A promissory note relating to the 1920 sale of Babe Ruth from the Yankees to the Red Sox, signed by Frazee, Ruppert, and Huston, sold for $44,062. Ruth himself was sold for only $100,000. Even Babe Ruth's hair, which REA officials noted they have no way to authenticate but which had for decades been a highly-prized keepsake in the legendary Barry Halper Collection, sold for $38,187. Ruth's personal toiletries, including a hand mirror, hair brush, comb, shoe horn, and glass toothbrush holder with metal cap, all with Ruth's monogram and which were a gift direct from Mrs. Ruth to Barry Halper, sold for $16,450. A 1934 Tour of Japan photo album with signatures of all the tourists including Ruth and Gehrig, realized $26,437. Numerous Babe Ruth signed baseballs in all conditions were sold, including a particularly impressive signed (non-Major League) Goldsmith brand ball (reserve $1,000; est. $2,500/$5,000+) that realized $26,437. "Non-Major League Ruth balls traditionally sell for a significant discount, but this result shows that non-Major League signed balls can bring big money too." This was a record for a non-Major League Ruth-signed ball.
The last lot in the auction, Lot #1594, was comprised of cards donated by generous vintage card collectors to raise money for charity. The lot raised $7,050 for The Painted Turtle, an innovative camp and family care center for children with life-threatening illnesses. It seems most fitting to us that a shared interest in collecting baseball cards, which were intended to bring joy to children long ago, should play a role in contributing to the well being of children today who have to deal with the most serious hardships that life can offer to them and their families. This project was conceived, organized, and executed by the vintage card collectors of the Net54 Vintage Baseball Card Forum. It was an honor for REA to contribute our services to this project, and to help execute the vision of the generous collectors who have donated their time, effort, and material to such a worthy charitable cause. We hope this will be the first of many similar auctions, in which, working together, collectors with an extra card here, or duplicate there, can make a difference. The Painted Turtle and the children whose lives they enrich give thanks to the contributing members of Net54, all bidders, and to auction winner Jon Rogers of North Little Rock, Arkansas for your great generosity.
The auction also included an impressive selection of select items from other sports, Americana, nonsport cards, and original card artwork, all of which sold extremely strong, including: A Michael Jordan rookie jersey (reserve $10,000) sold for a new world record price, an extraordinary $70,500. The 1992 Jordan Olympic jersey also sold very strong at $38,187. A 1948 Leaf football card of Sammy Baugh, graded NM-MT 8 by PSA and which lists for $2750 in the SMR, sold for an amazing $12,925. A 1975 Peanuts daily by Charles Schulz sold for $11,750, and a 1991 Peanuts Sunday sold for $23,500. Many high quality non-sport cards sold at levels that have historically been reserved only for rare baseball cards. Among the many impressive non-sport card auction results: There was tremendous interest in the complete set of 1932 U.S. Caramel "Presidents" cards (reserve $2,500) that included the rare McKinley card, universally recognized as one of non-sport card collecting's great rarities. The set finally sold for $22,325. A complete set of 1936 Gum, Inc. "G-Men & Heroes of the Law" (reserve $2,500, est. $5,00/$7,000) was hammered down at $22,325; and a tremendous collection of miscellaneous nineteenth-century non-sport tobacco cards sold for $32,125.
Many other auction records were shattered for pre-1948 baseball cards, nineteenth-century baseball cards and memorabilia, non-sport cards, and Americana. Further information and complete auction results are available online at www.RobertEdwardAuctions.com
Copies of the 680-page full-color premium catalog are also still available free. Go to www.RobertEdwardAuctions.com, click "Free Catalog," and fill in name and address. Robert Edward Auctions is currently assembling its next sale. For further information contact: Robert Edward Auctions, PO Box 7256, Watchung, NJ or call (908)-226-9900.
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Robert Edward Auctions, LLC is a one of the world's leading specialty auction houses, devoted exclusively to the sale of rare baseball cards, memorabilia, and Americana.
For immediate release: March 20, 2007
Historic Baseball Treasures 1838-1968 Highlight REA's April Auction
Collectors brace for one of the most historic auctions in the history of collecting
The very first Robert Edward Auctions catalog off the presses on April 5, 2007 will be presented to The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York, for their library, as is the longstanding tradition. The following day, however, Ten-Thousand 600-page catalogs will be sent to collectors all over the country and the world who have anxiously been waiting all year for the collecting world's most exciting and highly-anticipated auction, the annual sale by Robert Edward Auctions. Inside the auction catalog will be hundreds of items worthy of Cooperstown, many of which will ultimately find their way into the most prestigious collections, both private and public, in the world.
The final date of bidding is April 28. Bidding starts April 9 by FAX, phone, or the Internet via the Robert Edward's site. Robert Lifson, president of the Watchung, New Jersey, auction house, expects the total sales for the event to exceed $5-million. Coming to the block will be over 1500 lots of baseball collectibles covering the entire history of the game from 1838 to the present. Of special note is the unveiling of the recently discovered 1838 Philadelphia Olympics Constitution, the earliest relic of organized baseball from the first organized baseball team in existence. Referred to by some as the "Magna Carta" of the game of baseball, this item is arguably the most historically significant item relating to the origins of the National Pastime in existence. This is the document that records the birth of organized baseball.
The auction will include many remarkable discoveries and extraordinary rarities in all areas and from all eras, including: over 200 lots of pre-1900 baseball cards and memorabilia; display pieces; original art; rare pinbacks; autographs; graded cards; tobacco cards; caramel cards; regionals; 1930s gum cards; Topps and Bowman sets; bats, gloves, uniforms, and other equipment.
"This is one of the best auctions we've ever put together," says REA president Robert Lifson. "The highlight section in my eyes is The Barry Halper Collection. Barry Halper was the preeminent collector in the history of baseball cards and memorabilia. It would be impossible for us to put into words the positive impact he had on the entire field of collecting and on me personally. It's a special privilege and honor for Robert Edward Auctions to be chosen by the Halper family to present the balance of the Barry Halper Collection in this auction." Robert Edward Auctions oversaw the sale of the legendary Halper Collection in 1999, which realized over $26 Million. When he sold his collection, Barry kept a significant selection of items. It was a modest collection to Barry – but that was only in comparison to the extraordinary magnitude of the Halper Collection intact. In fact, the "modest" collection he kept was itself larger than most advanced collectors could ever hope to assemble in a lifetime. The Barry Halper Collection, comprised of those items that Barry Halper particularly enjoyed and personally held back from his famous sale for display during his "retirement from collecting," will be presented in over 200 lots in this sale.
Graded cards are a special strength of the auction. Included are many of the highest-graded cards and finest baseball card sets ever assembled. Among the items of special interest will be: one of the finest 1952 Topps sets ever assembled, all PSA-graded, with an average grade of 7.5; the set includes 228 NM-MT 8, 164 NM 7, and seventeen cards EX-MT 6, (the SMR value is $163,000, the reserve is $50,000); one of the finest 1953 Bowman Color sets ever assembled, with 159 cards graded NM-MT 8 and one NM 7 (Reserve $25,000; est. $50,000+); the #1 PSA Registry set of 1916 M101-4 Sporting News Complete Set (198 cards are offered as one lot, reserve $10,000; Ruth and Jackson, each graded PSA NM 7, will be offered as separate lots); the #1 PSA Registry Collection of 1916 Tango Brand Eggs cards (16 of 18 cards known, reserve $10,000); the #1 PSA 1956 Registry 1956 Topps pins complete set (Reserve $2,000, est. $5,000+); the #2 PSA Registry set of 1909-1911 E90-1 American Caramel Near-Complete Set (112 of 120 cards, reserve $10,000): the #7 PSA Registry set of 1941 Play Ball (average grade 7.19, reserve $10,000); the #9 PSA Registry set of 1954 Bowman (average grade 7.05, reserve $2,500, est. $5,00/$10,000+); the #11 PSA Registry set of 1959 Topps (average grade 8, reserve $10,000, est. $20,000+); plus numerous other completely PSA-graded sets and key single cards.
The newly discovered 1914 Baltimore News team card of Babe Ruth, and the newly-discovered individual 1914 Baltimore News card of Babe Ruth in Good condition, each carry a reserve of $10,000 and are expected to sell for considerably more than their modest minimums. The last 1914 Baltimore News Ruth card offered to the collecting world at auction was in lower grade (PR-FR) and sold for $150,800 at Robert Edward Auctions in 2006. Additional highlights include: the largest collection of E125 American Caramel Die-Cuts to ever be assembled, let alone come to auction (37 of the 42 cards which theoretically exist); complete sets of T204 Ramly Tobacco cards, T205 Gold Borders, and T206 White Borders; complete or near-complete sets of many 1910-era caramel card sets; over 200 PSA-graded T202 Hassan Triple Folder cards; two rare T206 Eddie Planks; an extremely rare 1869 Peck & Snyder advertising trade card featuring baseball's first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings (est. $10,000+, reserve $5,000); an 1864 Brooklyn Resolutes Carte-de-Visite including Henry Chadwick, one of the most important of all pre-1900 cards and one of only two examples known (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000/$20,000); an extraordinary array of rare nineteenth-century baseball cards including examples issued by Kalamazoo Bats, Yum-Yum Tobacco, and G & B Gum, as well as many rare nineteenth-century baseball cabinet cards; Cracker Jack baseball cards issued in 1914 and 1915; literally thousands of 1910-era baseball tobacco cards, one the largest selections to ever be offered at auction; a collection of over 400 N172 1887 to 1890 Old Judge baseball cards issued by Goodwin & Co.; complete Topps and Bowman sets from virtually every year including three complete sets of 1952 Topps with the rare high-numbers.
The auction also features one of the finest selections of game-used bats to ever come to auction, including Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Ted Williams, Hank Aaron, Jimmie Foxx, one of only two known signature model bats dating from Joe Jackson's playing days (reserve $10,000); and two extraordinary Mickey Mantle bats including one dating from 1956, his triple crown year (reserve $5,000; est. $10,000/$15,000). Also included is a 1927 Jim Bottomley St. Louis Cardinals Jersey, the only example known for this Hall of Famer (reserve $5,000; est. $10,000/$15,000); a Joe Jackson signed document, one of only a few examples known (reserve $5,000; est. $10,000/$15,000); a 1937 Rock-Ola World Series Arcade electronic game, 53" x 41" x 29", (est. $20,000+, reserve $10,000); Mickey Mantle's game-used cap (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000+); a Christy Mathewson studio portrait photograph signed by Mathewson to legendary baseball photographer Louis Van Oeyen, originating from his estate (reserve $10,000, est. $20,000+); and an extraordinary original photograph of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig together, taken on July 4, 1939, the day of Lou Gehrig's famous farewell speech, signed by both Ruth and Gehrig. This is one of baseball's most famous photographs, and one of only two signed examples known to exist (reserve $10,000; est. $20,000+).
Also included are: a collection of five 1911 M110 Sporting Life Cabinets, including Honus Wagner (Reserve $5,000); a 1912 H813 Boston Garter Bob Bescher, one of card collecting's rarest sample (reserve $2,500; est $5,000/$10,000); cards from rare sets such as 1911 T217 Mono Cigarettes, 1886 Lone Jack Cigarettes, 1915 T214 Victory Tobacco, and 1894 Alpha Photo-Engraving. Other cards include: an extremely rare 1889 M-UNC Police Gazette Cabinet of Billy "Adonis" Terry (reserve $1,000); 1955 Topps Double Headers set (reserve $1,000; est. $2,000/$4000); and numerous key cards from all eras such as 1939 Play Ball #92 Ted Williams SGC NM/MT+ 92 (reserve $1,500; est. $3,000/$5,000); 1914 E145 Cracker Jack #88 Christy Mathewson SGC FR 20 (reserve $2,000; est. $4,000/$6,000); 1941 Play Ball #71 Joe DiMaggio SGC NM/MT 88 (reserve $2,500; est. $4,000/$8,000); 1933 R319 Goudey #181 Babe Ruth SGC NM/MT 88 (reserve $5,000; est $10,000/$15,000); and 1915 E145 Cracker Jack #30 Ty Cobb SGC NM/MT 88 (reserve $5,000; est. $10,000/$20,000).
Additional items of special note include: the #1 PSA Registry complete set of 1936 Gum, Inc. "G-Men & Heroes of the Law" (reserve $2,500, est. $5,000/$7,500); an extraordinary example of the 1933 Goudey #106 Nap Lajoie, one of the most celebrated of all baseball card rarities, graded PSA NM 7 (est. $20,000/30,000, reserve $10,000); a 1952 Mickey Mantle PSA EX-MT 6 (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000/$15,000); a large selection of high-grade low population report cards from key sets such as 1933 Goudey and T206 (including examples from the Harris Collection); a completely PSA-graded 1933 DeLong Gum set; a 1955 Topps complete set of 206 cards with every card PSA graded NM 7; one of only two known examples of the 14 x 36-inch 1927 Babe Comes Home Movie Poster Insert (reserve $5,000); a complete set of 1933 Goudey "Big League" bubble-gum cards; 1914 WG4 Polo Grounds game cards of Ty Cobb and Joe Jackson – both graded PSA GEM MINT 10 (reserve $2,000 and $3,000, respectively), 1949 Bowman PCL Complete PSA-Graded Set; one of the largest collections ever assembled of the rare 1898 Cameo Pepsin Gum baseball pins (59 different); single-signed baseballs of Babe Ruth, Roberto Clemente, Jackie Robinson, and Ty Cobb; famous 1939 Hall of Fame Induction photograph signed by all including Ruth, Wagner, Johnson, and Young, one of only several known signed examples (reserve $5,000); a 1934 Tour of Japan presentation album signed by all players including Ruth and Gehrig (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000/$15,000); a 1911 Boston Red Sox jersey; the earliest known Yankee jersey dating from 1915; 1911 M116 Sporting Life Walter Johnson PSA MINT 9 (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000+), an extraordinary selection of 1934 R304 Al Demaree Die-Cuts issued by Dietz Gum Company, Brooks Robinson's 1962 game-used Baltimore Orioles home jersey (reserve $1,000, est. $4,000+); items originating from the estates of Alexander Cartwright, Henry Chadwick, Tim Murnane, George Wright, Paul Krichell (the Yankee scout who discovered Lou Gehrig); material relating to Boston's legendary "3rd Base" tavern-owner Michael "Nuf Ced" McGreevey and the legendary Royal Rooters, and the first ball ever thrown out at Fenway Park in 1912 (reserve $85,000).
Sports other than baseball are also represented by a small selection of extremely high quality items, including Michael Jordan's 1984-85 Rookie Uniform (graded MEARS A10, reserve $10,000); and 1992 Michael Jordan Signed Game-Used Olympic "Dream Team" Jersey (graded MEARS A10, reserve $5,000). These jerseys represent two of only three Michael Jordan jerseys to ever be awarded the highest grade of A10 for authenticity by MEARS.
The auction also includes an incredible selection of very high quality Comic, Pop Culture, and Americana related items. In addition to thousands of nonsport cards dating from the 1880s to the 1960s, the Americana section is highlighted by The National Biscuit Collection, representing an extraordinary collection of items from the company's archives, including the original 1900 painting of the Uneeda Biscuit Boy, the corporate symbol of the company and at one time the single most famous advertising icon in the world; the largest collection of original artworks by Charles Addams to ever come to auction (21 original artworks, including many published in the New Yorker); and two original Peanuts comic strip artworks by Charles Schulz including an extraordinary Baseball Sunday comic strip (reserve $5,000, est. $10,000).
For over 30 years Robert Edward Auctions has specialized in all areas of historic baseball collectibles, as well other sport, non-sport, and Americana collectibles including political and campaign memorabilia, autographs and manuscripts, and original illustration art. Robert Edward Auctions has been responsible for many of the most important baseball memorabilia sales including overseeing the sale of the $26-million Barry Halper baseball collection, universally recognized as the best and largest in the world; the legendary "Gretzky-McNail" T206 Honus Wagner card, $1.3-million; the uniform Yankee legend Lou Gehrig was wearing in 1939 when he gave his famous farewell speech, saying "Today, I consider myself to be the luckiest man on the face of the earth", $306,000; and the 1854 Knickerbocker Trophy baseball, now on permanent exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame, Cooperstown, New York, at a then-record $72,000.
Copies of the 600-page full-color premium catalog (shipping April 7) are available free. To review the catalog on-line, to learn more about Robert Edward Auctions, or to receive a complimentary copy of the catalog, visit www.RobertEdwardAuctions.com. Robert Edward Auctions is currently assembling their next sale. For further information contact: Robert Edward Auctions, PO Box 7256, Watchung, NJ or call (908)-226-9900.
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Robert Edward Auctions, LLC is a one of the world's leading specialty auction houses, devoted exclusively to the sale of rare baseball cards, memorabilia, and Americana.
Robert Edward Auctions has released many important formal announcements over the years, including many communications sent directly by email to the thousands of collectors on our mailing lists, but perhaps no REA release had quite the impact of the public service announcement sent by email to thousands of REA customers on October 25, 2006. Though we have been pounding the drums about these and other equally important industry issues for many years, the timing and the issues covered seemed to strike a chord with collectors in a way that we had never before seen.
The following is the complete text of the October 25, 2006 REA Public Service Announcement:
REA Public Service Announcement: October 25, 2006
Dear Collectors,
Every once in while (OK, more than once in a while), REA likes to communicate about issues that we think deserve attention but for some reason are receiving little or no attention. There are several topics that we would like to bring to the attention of buyers today, in the hopes of educating buyers and maybe saving someone money.
1) Practically every day we are seeing fake items. Fake printed items. Posters that are actually reproductions of vintage posters. Stand-up cardboard counter displays that are not real. Babe Ruth Candy wrappers that are not real. Fans that picture baseball player portraits that are reproductions. Photographs that appear to be old but are not vintage. There is no limit to what can be made with computers, especially with printing equipment available today that is very economical and which years ago did not even exist. These items are being intentionally made to fool people into parting with their money for worthless items. These items are being made to cheat buyers. Many of these items are somehow reproduced from books and auction catalogs, often enlarged from small quality illustrations to their correct original size. With computers these days, it is possible for some criminals to produce very real-looking reproductions and also to produce "fantasy pieces" (defined as those items that are not actually reproductions, as there is no original, but are made to look old to fool buyers). This is a BIG problem. These items are offered to us practically every day, and they are being offered to us by collectors who themselves are victims. Most of the sophisticated fake items of this type that we have seen appear to have one thing in common: They were purchased by sellers in the state of Ohio. It is obvious to us that the individual(s) responsible for most or all of these imaginative quality fakes is located in the state of Ohio, though these items are now circulating throughout the country. It is easy for us to tell in almost all cases whether an item is real or not, often just from a scan. We understand from experience that not everyone can, including the numerous victims who have sent us these recently produced fake items which at a glance appear to be vintage items. If you think that you have purchased a fake item of this type and would like our opinion, we will be happy to be of assistance. Please write and/or send scans.
2) In recent weeks we have received a number of consignments of graded cards that has motivated us to adopt a formal policy regarding altered professionally graded cards that we have not previously seen a need to articulate. The altering of cards is so widespread, and "card doctors" so brazen, that REA has actually been receiving cards submitted for auction to us that are the very same cards that have been sold by REA previously - in some cases just months earlier - and which, since purchase, have been significantly altered, reholdered, and now grade higher according to the grading label. In some cases a given card has changed hands and the new consignor was not even aware it was a seriously altered card. It is our policy that when we are aware of such a problem, and we ARE looking, we will be happy to auction the card in question - but insist on providing all information describing the alterations which have occurred to the card of which we are certain. So far, the potential consignors of such cards have elected to have these cards returned rather than have a proper description provided by REA. Last week we returned a $10,000 card. The consignor couldn't believe it was the same card that we had just sold (in a lower grade and looking quite different) in a previous auction. Only after being provided with images of the card as it appeared when we previously sold it was the consignor finally convinced.
We're not guessing here. We are talking about cards that we know for a fact are problems. The fact that we have to address situations such as this at all suggests a greater underlying problem than is generally recognized. And while it is bad enough that the altering of cards is an epidemic, it is particularly disturbing that some of the most sophisticated "work" on cards (including the previously mentioned $10,000 card) has actually been executed by employees of auction houses that also deal in cards. We have to ask ourselves "What is going on here?" Turning a blind eye to this issue, in our opinion, has far greater and more significant negative potential consequences than our calling attention to it and promoting discussion. We all know that there is a subjectivity to grading and that sometimes there is an honest difference of opinion regarding a grade, or sometimes even an honest mistake. We're not talking about honest mistakes here. Active and sophisticated collectors, dealers, and auction houses know that this is a problem. They just don't talk about it, except among themselves. In the end, the collector loses. We want to be clear that we think the major grading services do a valiant job and we can't imagine what the landscape of the marketplace would look like without them. That doesn't mean there are no problems. At the end of the day, we have this advice: "Buy the card, not the holder."
3) REA highly recommends reading the just-released book "Operation Bullpen, The Inside Story of the Biggest Forgery Scam in American History". If you collect autographs, or have an interest in the field in any way, (or just like a great crime-related book), this book is required reading. This is a great book that we think every collector should read. You can order the book online at www.OperationBullpen.com or call Southampton Books at (707) 747-4705.
REA has never been shy about calling attention to what we think are significant problems and issues facing the field. It is our hope that openly communicating about issues which deserve attention, which are so important to so many people, will help us to come up with better ways to address these issues, and in the long run will have a positive impact. That's how progress is made. Your ideas and suggestions are always welcome.
Sincerely,
Robert Edward Auctions LLC
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Robert Edward Auctions, LLC is a one of the world's leading specialty auction houses, devoted exclusively to the sale of rare baseball cards, memorabilia, and Americana.