The 10th ranked 1952 Topps baseball card on the PSA Set Registry, sold in individual lots that totaled $382,741 in Mile High Card Company’s August auction.
The 1952 set was led, of course, by a PSA 7 Mickey Mantle that sold for $166,944. Other big-ticket cards in the auction included the #407 Eddie Mathews rookie card, also rated PSA 7, which hauled in $38,129, a #1 Andy Pafko PSA 7 netting $12,140 and the Jackie Robinson PSA 7 which closed at $9,833. MHCC also offered three other ’52 Mantle cards in this auction, with a PSA 6 EX/MT selling for $64,828, an SGC 70 EX+ 5.5 bringing $49,394 and a PSA 4 VG/EX that closed out at $25,194.
“While the totals on the 1952 Topps cards were impressive, they weren’t as surprising as many other items. We expected this to be a particularly strong event and our expectations were greatly exceeded,” said MHCC President and CEO Brian Drent.
One of those items was a Larry Bird rookie year complete uniform which sold for $60,125, almost triple the price it sold for at auction just two years ago. A Joe Montana San Francisco 49ers game worn jersey from early in the Hall of Famer quarterback’s career, rated MEARS A10, fetched $24,947, a 1969-70 Reggie Jackson Oakland A’s vest-style flannel jersey graded MEARS A 8.5 collected $14,242 while a 1959 Tony Kubek New York Yankees gamer sold for $6,991.
One item that crossed both sports and Americana was a Franklin D. Roosevelt Single-Signed 
OAL (Harridge) ball Inscribed to Clark Griffith and attributed to Opening Day 1937. Featured on the auction catalog cover, the ball reeled in $37,257. A Babe Ruth Single-Signed OAL (Harridge) Ball changed hands to the tune of $33,792 and a 1938 New York Yankees Team-Signed OAL (Harridge) Ball with 21 signatures including Gehrig and DiMaggio reached the sum of $5,960.
A 1952 Bowman #101 Mickey Mantle Autographed card rated PSA/DNA 9 sold for $7,786, a century-old Ty Cobb Type I Original Photo sold for $2,194 and a 1950s Ted Williams Type I photo collectors would recognize from his 1954, 55 and 56 Topps cards sold for $1,359.
Elite post-war rookie and star cards dominated the auction, however. Among the highlights were a 1954 Topps #128 Hank Aaron SGC 96 MINT 9 that tipped the scales at an uncanny $127,873, a 1948 Bowman #6 Yogi Berra PSA 8.5 NM/MT+ at $13,745, well more than double the previous record price, a 1951 Bowman #253 Mickey Mantle PSA 6 EX/MT sold for $20,015, a 1954 Topps #201 Al Kaline PSA 9 soared to $41,000, a 1955 Topps #164 Roberto Clemente rookie graded PSA 8 closed at $56,000, a 1959 Topps #514 Bob Gibson PSA 9 brought in $34,582, a 1968 Topps #177 Nolan Ryan PSA 9 realized $45,289 and a PSA 8 1965 Topps Joe Namath rookie card hit $37,869.
Other high-profile offerings include a 1909-11 T206 Piedmont 150 Walter Johnson Portrait PSA 8 NM/MT that brought in $46,033, double the previous record set last year, a 1933 Goudey #149 Babe Ruth PSA 9(OC) MINT that sold for $38,728 and a 1953 Topps #1 Jackie Robinson NM/MT+ 8.5 that broke the previous record with a sale of $10,150. A 1953 Topps #82 Mickey Mantle PSA 8 netted $52,428.
Bidding for a 1986 Fleer basketball box authenticated by BBCE was intense before the winner hammered it down for a price of $60,694.
MHCC’s next auction will be in October. Consignments are being accepted at (303) 840-2784 and you can also contact them via their website.
Related Stories:
1952 Topps Case is Baseball Card History
Retiree Talks of Seven-Figure Collection With 5 1952 Topps Mantle Cards
1916 Ruth Rookie Card Soars to New Heights in $10.9 Million REA Auction
Newly Graded Aaron RC, Complete 1984-85 Star Set in New Mile High Auction
Prices for Mantle Cards Get Wall Street Journal’s Attention
Talking Wagner, Mantle on Fox Business as Prices Climb
Mile High “Extra Innings” Auction Features PSA 6 1952 Mantle
MHCC: Auction Opening Day Set Record
Mile High to Give Away 1952 Topps Mantle at NSCC
Movin’ On Up? Strong Interest as PSA 8 1952 Topps Mantle Hits Auction
