This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/1/2008
While catalogs have forever described Cracker Jack cards as "colorized photos," I've always thought of them more as etchings, masterful works of pop-art from some modern-day Rembrandt with an affinity for the ballpark, a sentiment most strongly promoted by an enthusiastic appreciation of a fresh Honus Wagner specimen, such as the offered PSA 8.5 NM/MT+ example from the 1915 issue. Approaching the end of his career, Wagner was nearly 40 years old at the time of the Cracker Jack issue's production, and his palpable veteran status, his age, is remarkably captured by the Cracker Jack image, both in the finely etched lines of his face and in the far-off expression of his shadow-darkened eyes. These incredibly sharp image qualities are further accented on the offered example by a bold and truly immaculate red backdrop as well as four utterly MINT corners and four sensationally sharp edges. The centering shows a minor tilt in favor of the northeast corner but appears more than sufficient for the grade, and the often unruly red print of the background has managed to steer clear of the clean white if not mildly creamy borders. To be frank, excepting the self-evident centering, I can't really discern a single feature that favors a NM/MT or NM/MT+ grade over MINT, and I certainly can't image this card ever resided in a PSA 8 NM/MT holder. Presenting at the extreme upper limit of the opined evaluation, with a single competitor in its class and just 2 superior MINT examples on record at PSA, offered is one of the finest 1915 Cracker Jack Honus Wagners in the world.