Tag: Gibson

The T206 George Gibson with Ghost Image That Sold Last Weekend

This little gem was sold last weekend via PWCC Auctions.  The auction boasted an impressive array of T206s, and this one was kind of buried among the offerings.  It was listed as “Ghost Image” due to the dark rectangle that appears over the front of the bottom 90% of the card.  When I first saw it, I was pretty sure I knew what the faint lighter image on the on the ghost overprint was, but I needed to verify.  I am not particularly good with Photo Shop, but I thought it might be fun to show the process I used to figure out who the ghost was anyway

I thought it looked like the ghost overprint was upside down, so first I turned the image upside down:

In this particular case, I had a hunch of who the ghost might be right when I first saw the card.  However, there have been plenty of times when I haven’t been so sure when looking at a T206 with a ghost image.  In those cases, the first step in the sleuthing process is to identify any distinguishing marks (or in this case, the spots on the ghost overprint which are lighter than the rest of the ghost).

Once you’ve found some spots to look for, you need to go through other cards that were printed in the same series.  In this case, Gibson is a 150-350 subject and this card has a Piedmont 150 back.  So, if the ghost overprint features another T206 pose, it will be one of the other 155 poses from the Piedmont 150 checklist.  When I am searching for a possible match, I like to use the checklists at T206resource.com and click on the scan links at the right side of the page.  You can scroll through the entire 150-350 Series checklist on this page.

Like I mentioned earlier, I had a hunch right away.  I pulled up this pose, and found an immediate match:

I wish I had the Photo Shop skills of Chris Browne or Erick Summers, but unfortunately this is the best I can do.  If you look closely, you can see that the previously identified lighter spots on Gibson line up perfectly with Eddie Cicotte’s right arm and the creases in his pants.  How this card might have come to exist is a mystery to me.  I suppose the lighter ghost print could have come first, with the printer’s realizing that the sheet was placed upside down and then turning it around and printing the entire card again.  This fun error card sold for $249.83.  I imagine most bidders were not sure what they were looking at, but the winner most likely knew that the ghost was Cicotte.

T206 Back Run 101

 

gibson-wide

Back runs are a fun way to collect tobacco cards and early caramel cards.  Because there are so many different front/back combinations in T206, it’s a set that really lends itself to a back run (or two).  Working on back runs is a good way to learn about the set in a hands-on way.  It can also add some variety if your collection mostly consists of common backs.  When your goal is to get one of each card, regardless of back, the main constraint is money.  If you had enough money, you could collect the entire set in a month (Wagner and Plank would be tough, but there is a Plank on ebay as I write this) just by buying cards from ebay.  Looking for certain front/back combos can take a lot more time that you might expect.  A common back like Sweet Caporal 150 factory 25 can take forever to show up with the player you are looking for.  This isn’t just a random example.  I am currently working on a Dode Criss back run, and that particular back is giving me fits.  Back runs teach you patience, which is a very good trait to have as a tobacco card collector.

So, if you wanted to give back runs a try, where should you start?  Great question.  More than any other collecting focus, choosing a back run is dependent on your budget.  The most difficult subjects to complete a back run with are players from the 460 series.  The reason is that the rarest and most valuable backs were printed at the end of the T206 print run in 1911.  Subjects from the 350 series who were printed with a Drum back are also very tough to complete, and very expensive.  If you can afford a Broad Leaf 460, Uzit, and Lenox back, then working on a back run of a 460 series subject could be an extremely fun project for you.

If your budget won’t allow for all of those backs, it doesn’t mean you can’t collect a back run.  Players from the 150-350 series are a good choice because they consist of common to semi-tough backs.  The Sovereign 150, EPDG, Hindu, and Old Mill backs for your run may take some searching to track down, but with some patience you can acquire them all.  A player from the 350 series who was not printed with a Drum or Broad Leaf 350 back (Gray and Groom to name a couple) could also be a good choice.

The largest back run of a 150-350 series subject will consist of 12 front/back combos (Walter Johnson portrait and Clark Griffith portrait are a couple of examples).  The smallest in term of front/back combos is Carl Lundgren Chicago.  He was only printed with Piedmont 150, Piedmont 350, and El Principe de Gales.  Lundgren may have the fewest cards to track down, but is by no means the easiest.  The Piedmont 350 is tough to find, and expensive when you do.

 

Most other 150-350 subjects have between 9 and 11 possible combos.  The reason for the disparity comes down to the Hindu, EPDG, and Old Mill backs.  Some subjects like Frank Chance red portrait were printed with all three.  Others were printed with just two of the three, or even just one.  The Criss back run I mentioned earlier consists of 9 different backs.  The reason it is 9 rather than 11 is that Criss was not printed with a Hindu or EPDG back.  If you want to start with a simple project, choose a player from the 150-350 series with only 9 possible backs.  Or, if you want to pick the easiest back run, choose the player that I will highlight in my next post.