The original painting used to create Willie Mays' 1953 Topps baseball card turned out to be the biggest draw in Lelands' Summer Classic Auction. The 3 1/2 x 5" painting commissioned by Topps early in Mays' career sold for $246,968. Originally sold in 1989 at the Topps Archives auction by Marriott for $88,000 ($210,000 in today's dollars). Marriott used the art for … [Read more...] about Original Art for Willie Mays’ 1953 Topps Card Tops Lelands Auction
1968 Topps 3-D
Big O’s Collection, 1970s Cards Among Top 10 Sellers at Lelands in 2018
Oscar Robertson attended this year's National Sports Collectors Convention in Cleveland and while he was there to sign autographs, he also stopped by to check on his collection. The Basketball Hall of Famer consigned 51 items, including his championship rings, to Lelands as part of the company's Summer Invitational Auction. Three of them made the list of Lelands' top ten … [Read more...] about Big O’s Collection, 1970s Cards Among Top 10 Sellers at Lelands in 2018
REA Spring 2018 Auction to Feature Rare and Definitive Post-War Collection
The spring catalog from Robert Edward Auctions (REA) is always a highlight for collectors. Each year as winter turns to spring they eagerly await its arrival. For years the catalog has been a treasure trove of rare and eclectic items and 2018 looks to be no exception. This year's auction will feature a recent jaw-dropping consignment of post-War cards so large and … [Read more...] about REA Spring 2018 Auction to Feature Rare and Definitive Post-War Collection
2017 Topps Heritage Baseball Checklist Released
Collectors will flip their clocks back to burlap border time when 2017 Topps Heritage Baseball arrives on March 1. Due out one month after the release of 2017 Series One Baseball, Heritage will continue the ongoing annual salute to baseball card sets of the past, with 1968 Topps next on the agenda. The 2017 Heritage set will again include 24 packs per box with … [Read more...] about 2017 Topps Heritage Baseball Checklist Released
5 Brooks Robinson Cards Capture Career of the ‘Human Vacuum Cleaner’
When I attended junior high school in early 1971, one of the sports magazines I read contained a clever poem that paid tribute to the 1970 sports season. One verse summed up the defensive skills of Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson. "Pity the poor Big Red Machine, Brooksie stripped its motor clean." The poem might have come from Sport magazine, but I am not 100 percent … [Read more...] about 5 Brooks Robinson Cards Capture Career of the ‘Human Vacuum Cleaner’
Sale of Rare Clemente Card Jump-Starts Memory Lane Event
Memory Lane’s fall ‘I Own it Now’ catalog sale began with a bang Wednesday with the $57,500 sale of a 1968 Topps 3-D Test card of Roberto Clemente PSA 10. One of just six of its kind residing in PSA 10 holders, the Clemente is part of a rare 12-card set issued only briefly in an area near the Topps offices that summer. Rarely offered for sale, the high-end Clemente cards … [Read more...] about Sale of Rare Clemente Card Jump-Starts Memory Lane Event
Clemente Still Revered By Fans and Collectors
Roberto Clemente was a great baseball player, but his throwing arm was extraordinary. I know. I saw it happen. And Joe Morgan was the victim. On July 21, 1970, at the Astrodome, Clemente’s Pirates were facing Houston. Jesus Alou was on first base in the bottom of the first when Morgan sent a stinging line drive single to right field. Alou went to third on the play, and … [Read more...] about Clemente Still Revered By Fans and Collectors
Uncut 1968 Topps 3-D Sheet, Holsum Ruth at Auction
Goodwin and Company’s latest auction includes an uncut sheet of 1968 Topps 3-D cards, the ultra-rare test issue that never saw national distribution. Among the 12 cards on the sheet are two that never made it into the precious few packs that were distributed for a very brief time 47 years ago: Tommy Davis and John O’Donoghue. Roberto Clemente is also on the sheet. Only a … [Read more...] about Uncut 1968 Topps 3-D Sheet, Holsum Ruth at Auction
The Whitest of Whales: 1968 Topps 3-D Baseball
Almost the only thing known for sure about the rare and revered 1968 Topps 3-D baseball cards is that they are unbelievably expensive and many of us will likely never own one. The hobby's late 60s Sasquatch, legend has it that the cards were spotted for only a brief time at a few Brooklyn candy stores that summer. There are also accounts that indicate most of the cards on … [Read more...] about The Whitest of Whales: 1968 Topps 3-D Baseball