This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/27/2010
Most would agree that one of the most popular TV commercial phrases ever utilized was “when E.F. Hutton talks, people listen”, with every individual in the commercial instantaneously freezing the moment these iconic words are spoken. In the baseball card collecting community, synonymous with that phrase is the mere mention of baseball’s first official baseball card, the 1869 Peck & Synder Cincinnati Red Stockings artifact, with its availability immediately capturing the attention of virtually every elite enthusiast. True, you don’t require a stratospheric IQ to understand that the most celebrated card is the T206 Wagner, the unequivocal “Holy Grail” that every collector can only dream of acquiring due to the six figure+ price tag affixed to any such example in VG+ condition. Yet, almost incomprehensible is that only a quarter century ago the supreme existing example sold for only $25,000, and since that landmark sale the same card has achieved a $2.8 million price tag! Furthermore, and just as bewildering, is that while approximately 60 – 70 examples are known, even “fair/poor” issues are now exceeding the $300,000 plateau! Simply put, this is the end result of the card collecting hobby “hype” that has been directed towards the T206 Wagner. Did Honus have the card pulled because he didn’t advocate tobacco products or was it for monitory purposes? Regardless of an accurate resolution, it is the myth alone that has stimulated the elevated desirability and value of the T206 Wagner to an unsurpassed level. Bearing that in mind, over the past several years the 1869 Peck & Synder Red Stockings issue has slowly made its way towards the top of the chart as one of the most heralded baseball cards in existence, and why not? This card holds the unique distinction of establishing the precedent for defining our National Pastime, and laying the groundwork for an unparalleled hobby. Furthermore, while one example managed to fetch over $70,000, it certainly appears that now is the time to buy this sanctified 1869 gem before it eventually makes its way to the six-figure category.
Presented here is a rarely seen opportunity to seize the renowned 1869 Peck & Synder baseball card, with the more obscure CDV “small version” example now offered in a superb aesthetically pleasing PSA “Authentic” holder. Typically, CDVs (Carte-de-Visites) from that by-gone era included an approximate 2-1/8” x 3-1/4” albumen print affixed to a slightly larger and thick cardboard mount, with this historic style of mounting eventually evolving to larger sized cabinets. Interestingly enough, there are two versions of the 1869 Peck & Synder card, a large format version and the much scarcer CDV or mini-cabinet version offered here. Substantiating that notion is the PSA population report, indicating only 3 “small version” copies as opposed to 6 “large version” examples with PSA grading all 9 copies “Authentic” (PSA grades all 1869 Peck & Synder cards “Authentic”). In 1869, the New York Peck & Synder wholesale equipment dealer issued these cards as advertisement for their Baseball Sportsman Emporium, paving the way for a colossal hobby such that its awe-inspiring origin just might one day place it alongside the immortal T206 Wagner as the most exalted card in the hobby! Use your imagination regarding the future collecting stature of this card for it is truly baseball’s consummate collectible, the ONLY cardboard artifact providing a direct link from 21st century baseball to the foundation of the card collecting industry. To clearly understand its evolution requires some general knowledge of the history of baseball. While not perfectly clear, it is assumed that the first baseball team ever assembled was the New York Knickerbockers back in the fall of 1845. All of their games were played for leisure (without pay, therefore unprofessional) and via intra-squad games until June 19, 1846 when the Knickerbockers played the New York Baseball Club at Hoboken, N.J.’s Elysian Fields and lost 23-1, baseball’s first recorded inter-squad game. Alexander Joy Cartwright, the true inventor of the baseball field dimensions and many of its rules (incl. 3 strikes per at bat, 3 outs per inning, 90 foot bases, etc.), umpired that game, and went on to establish many baseball precedents relating to the game’s basic structure. For the next 23 years, while many other teams were established, the game continued to be played for non-profit purposes. Then in 1869, Harry Wright, considered the “true Father of Professional Baseball”, changed that philosophy forever when he began charging people a nominal fee to watch baseball games, and with those proceeds paid each player a salary. His team was based out of Cincinnati and called the Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first professional baseball team ever assembled. Two Hall of Famers were included on the Red Stockings including Harry and his brother George Wright who was a standout shortstop and the highest paid player on the team (his $1,400 annual salary actually bested Harry by $200!). The Red Stockings went on to claim 92 consecutive wins without a loss over two seasons. They WERE baseball, their professional existence and dominance a bright spot for a nation that just stumbled through a horrific Civil War as well as losing its beloved president, Abraham Lincoln. Jumping on board to the Red Stockings' popularity was New York’s Peck & Synder Co. who used their team picture on the front side of a CDV-style card to advertise their sports equipment, thus establishing our Nation’s first baseball card!
Don’t let the “Authentic” technical assessment fool you one bit, for the classic sepia-toned Red Stockings team photo is absolutely magnificent. True, the right and lower edges as well as the upper left corner have been clearly compromised, but that does not distract from the incredible contrast and clarity of this esteemed and historic photo that includes pioneer Hall of Famers Harry and George Wright. The names of the Red Stocking players are affixed to the reverse of the card (as opposed to the large version including player names on the front team picture side) in a bold plum purple print along with Peck & Synder’s distinguished advertisement. While expected soiling exists along the borders and mild creasing is evident, neither of these flaws even approach an obtrusive nature, with the overall central image eye appeal of this 141 year old spine-tingling offering defying “father time” and consistent with a mid-grade offering. What more can we say about a card that from a baseball historical perspective is unparalleled in the card collecting circuit? Regarding desirability, legends such as Ruth, Joe Jackson, Cobb and Wagner certainly dominate the pre-WWI market, and rightly so since their achievements have set a path for generations of stars to follow. However, consider that without Harry Wright’s innovative idea to create a professional baseball team, the legends to follow would probably not exist along with their related cards. Peck & Synder initiated the concept of using baseball players to advertise their product, and thousands of manufacturers have followed in their footsteps in the form of various tobacco/cigarette, candy and bubble gum brands. Who knows how the card industry would have evolved without a pioneer such as Peck & Synder? NO card could ever be more significant than the first of its kind which is why we strongly feel its potential upswing in desirability and value is unlimited. Cards such as this prestigious offering are the unquestionable cornerstone of our illustrious hobby, transcending time to our National Pastime’s birth, and with a mere 3 encapsulated PSA “CDV” examples (and only a handful of SGC copies), this issue represents a fraction of the T206 Wagner’s existing population. To reiterate our opening message, there was a time when the T206 Wagner could be obtained for five figures, and those advanced collectors who procrastinated have been left with the daunting task of relinquishing approximately $300,000 for low- end specimens. It is an ultra strong possibility that this iconic offering will continue generating gargantuan electricity throughout the hobby, possibly manifesting itself as one of the hobby’s next “Holy Grails”. With that in mind, before the value of the 1869 Peck & Synder Red Stockings CDV marvel escalates to a stratospheric level, we strongly advise you to seize this landmark museum-worthy keepsake that currently resides as the irrefutable pioneer baseball card issue!