This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/7/2009
Proudly offered and very sincerely recommended is 1 of just 4 examples of Hank Aaron's monumental 1954 Topps rookie on record in the unsurpassed MINT 9 category at the increasingly popular east coast grading firm based out of Parsippany, New Jersey. Collectors often remark how SGC seems to have such a tremendous amount of high-grade, pre-war material in its holders, but there's a very obvious reason for this. In short, the vast majority of pre-war pasteboard hails from the northeast, so why bother sending it thousands of miles across the country when you can drive it up the parkway in less time than it takes to stand in line at the Post Office? Another and more pertinent comment we increasingly hear from the hobby's biggest dealers and collectors around the country, however, is that SGC continues to consistently award more accurate grades than its west coast competition, so infamous for frustrating collectors, and so seemingly oblivious to the reality that so many of us know so well, that there still actually exists undiscovered and ungraded material in forgotten attics and warehouses across the country. Trust me! At Mile High, we see it almost every day. Taking all this into account, it should therefore come as no surprise that the offered Hank Aaron rookie epitomizes the MINT grade with a pleasing mix of exceptionally high-grade qualities that leave absolutely nothing whatsoever to be desired. The centering, while not pristine, is certainly accurate enough for the grade. The corners and edges, while not GEM MINT, are indeed MINT, with no real advanced traces of chipping around its infamously susceptible green-printed reverse. The surface, finally, is nearly as perfect and pristine as they come, boasting a precision of image par excellence with just a microscopic peppering of faint print around the word "Henry" on its otherwise immaculate and unusually bold orange backdrop. Funny enough, in the wake of more and more steroids accusations among modern baseball's greatest sluggers, I'd planned to discuss the increasing magnificence of Aaron's accomplishments in this description, but the card itself is just too nice to gloss over with the needless argument that he remains the undisputed all-time homerun king! A fitting tribute to the legendary American icon, offered here is one of the finest "Bad Henry" rookies in the hobby. And by "bad," of course, we mean the greatest natural home run hitter who ever lived!