Presented without comment...thoughts on this auction?

[Eric72]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-11-H-O-F-1939-FDC-BABE-RUTH-COBB-WALTER-JOHNSON-HONUS-WAGNER-PSA-DNA-9-/170890164434?_trksid=p5197.m1992&_trkparms=aid%3D111000%26algo%3DREC.CURRENT%26ao%3 D1%26asc%3D14133%26meid%3D5439266435664439039%26pi d%3D100015%26prg%3D1085%26rk%3D1%26sd%3D1708901644 34%26

I am not the seller, nor do I know the seller.

[Fred]

Wow - I wish I had some serious cash to spend on something like that...

[Eric72]

Fred,

Does the asking price seem reasonable?

Just curious.

Best,

Eric

[ullmandds]

Amazing piece...the sigs are so bold!?!? I dont do autographs but id surmise its overpriced by a few multiples!!!

[Jlighter]

I see this whenever I look up Walter Johnson on eBay. I don't like it though, the autos are too jumbled together, it's a cool piece, but for that money I would want something else. Like maybe a Wagner.

[Eric72]

Amazing piece...the sigs are so bold!?!? I dont do autographs but id surmise its overpriced by a few multiples!!!
Peter,

I agree that this piece might be slightly overpriced...not that I am an autograph expert.

Something else caught my eye, though.

Best,

Eric

[Eric72]

I see this whenever I look up Walter Johnson on eBay. I don't like it though, the autos are too jumbled together, it's a cool piece, but for that money I would want something else. Like maybe a Wagner.
Jake,

Agreed...the autos are jumbled, and Cy Young appears to have signed twice.

BTW - for the money involved, I would definitely take the Wagner.

Best,

Eric

[alanu]

The person who addressed the card had incredible penmanship. I have no opinion on the autographs.

[DaveW]

He's been getting (and declining) offers since August, so others must think its way over priced. It's a neat item, but I wouldn't pay anywhere near that. Any guesses on who the unidentified signer is? Say, it couldn't be Joe Jackson .....

[Eric72]

The person who addressed the card had incredible penmanship. I have no opinion on the autographs.

Alan,

I agree...impeccible penmanship from the person who mailed this back in '39.

Any thoughts on the auction?

Best,

Eric

[novakjr]

Something else caught my eye, though.

Best,

Eric

What? That Cy's on there twice? Or is it, how it appears as though the Wagner is following that stain, almost as if the stain were already present when it was signed? Somehow the Ruth, Wagner, and Cobb are the only three that don't seem to directly make contact with any other signature, and that there almost appears to be too much thought put into the placement of one or all 3 of them?

The one thing that I love about this is the handwriting in the address. It's absolutely mesmerizing..

[Eric72]

Dave,

Your opinion is solid regarding the piece being overpriced, in my humble opinion.

As for the Joe Jackson reference, I am not an autograph expert, and have no opinion on this.

Best,

Eric

He's been getting (and declining) offers since August, so others must think its way over priced. It's a neat item, but I wouldn't pay anywhere near that. Any guesses on who the unidentified signer is? Say, it couldn't be Joe Jackson .....

[Eric72]

What? That Cy's on there twice? Or is it, how it appears as though the Wagner is following that stain, almost as if the stain were already present when it was signed? Somehow the Ruth, Wagner, and Cobb are the only three that don't seem to directly make contact with any other signature, and that there almost appears to be too much thought put into the placement of one or all of them?

The one thing that I love about this is the handwriting in the address. It's absolutely mesmerizing..
Candidly, the seller's feedback history is the thing that caught my eye. It looks as if this seller changed gears in a not-so-insignificant-way.

Again, I would appreciate feedback here.

Best,

Eric

[frankbmd]

Miss Wunder (her friends called her Do) was a pioneer in through the mail (TTM) autographs. Her major contribution to this portion of the hobby was thrift. She was the first known collector to use the same postcard over and over and over again. This item is a tribute to Miss Wunder's contribution to the hobby and should not be judged on the quality of the autographs. Unfortunately once one of these cards had been signed by a number of famous stars, someone at the post office ultimately failed to deliver it to Miss Wunder. I suspect the lister of this item is a postal employee. Miss Wunder always underestimated the return rate on her autograph requests for this reason, but kept trying to build her collection. Her friends would say "Just Do It", every time she threatened to quit.

[Fred]

I wouldn't pay that much for the piece but I sure wouldn't mind owning it.

I could put together a nice collection of the individual autographs for a lot less than what that one piece is going for, but you have to admit, that's a pretty cool piece.

[Jlighter]

Miss Wunder (her friends called her Do) was a pioneer in through the mail (TTM) autographs. Her major contribution to this portion of the hobby was thrift. She was the first known collector to use the same postcard over and over and over again. This item is a tribute to Miss Wunder's contribution to the hobby and should not be judged on the quality of the autographs. Unfortunately once one of these cards had been signed by a number of famous stars, someone at the post office ultimately failed to deliver it to Miss Wunder. I suspect the lister of this item is a postal employee. Miss Wunder always underestimated the return rate on her autograph requests for this reason, but kept trying to build her collection. Her friends would say "Just Do It", every time she threatened to quit.

I think you need more hobbies, baseball cards isn't taking up enough of your time.:). I hear good things about birdhouse building.

[DaveW]

Dave,

Your opinion is solid regarding the piece being overpriced, in my humble opinion.

As for the Joe Jackson reference, I am not an autograph expert, and have no opinion on this.

Best,

Eric

Of course, I was just joking about Joe Jackson (see numerous other threads where he is always the unidentified guy in a picture). Actually, I really am interested in who the other signer is. It looks like he has the initials M.B. and what does " P.M." mean? As for price, I would guess 10k to 20k would be reasonable at the high end, with the HOF connection.

[ksabet]

Candidly, the seller's feedback history is the thing that caught my eye. It looks as if this seller changed gears in a not-so-insignificant-way.

Again, I would appreciate feedback here.

Best,

Eric

I also noticed the feedback, until one year ago the seller sold nothing above $40 all of the sudden he has a quarter of a million in memorabilia.

[Jlighter]

This sold for 11,750 in 2008.

http://www.robertedwardauctions.com/auction/2008/904.html

I personally would like this one better.

[ctownboy]

Wasn't there an article (or blog post) or maybe even a thread on Net54 concerning a post card like this that was thought to be fake? I seem to remember something like this autographed post card being discussed within the last few years.

David

[Wite3]

My guess is the unidentified signature is the Post Master from Cooperstown. Bet if you looked it up and found info for the Post Master at that time who probably hand cancelled that post card, it would solve the mystery.

Just my opinion...

Joshua

[novakjr]

Wasn't there an article (or blog post) or maybe even a thread on Net54 concerning a post card like this that was thought to be fake? I seem to remember something like this autographed post card being discussed within the last few years.

David

I think it had something to do with a once completely faded Wagner that suddenly re-appeared...I could be wrong, but I don't think that this was the one..

I'd look for it, but the search function has been including everything under the sun when I search anymore.. So I can never find what I'm looking for..

[Michael B]

The illegible signature on the cover is the Postmaster (P.M.) of Cooperstown, N.Y. in 1939. It was common to have the local postmaster sign first day covers (FDC's) during the First Day ceremonies held in their town. This was especially true in the 1940's and 1950's. If you do a search for autographs in the U.S. Stamps listings on ebay you will see many older covers signed by postmasters.

[EvilKing00]

its a real shame they didnt use the other side to sign on as well, would of gave alot more room / space and not look so squezed in.

[36GoudeyMan]

I think that this piece should be evaluated less on the fact thst the signatures are squeezed not a single side, but that this single piece has so many high-end early baseball autographs on one item. When I see the occasional event program or dinner invitation, or other medium that has several superstars of that era on a single piece, as a single piece, my first thought isn't so much how well-placed the signatures may be, but how fascinating it is that this single piece has so many of baseball's major figures. It either represents a unique gathering of baseball's best, or an effort to obtain single signatures that required demonstrable considerable perseverance. If I had the money, I'd buy it ina heartbeat, and probably happily "overpay" for something that is likely one-of-akin in such a form, but that's just naive me....

[ctownboy]

novakjr,

I think you are right. I knew it had something to do with a post card, the 1939 HOF induction and autographs that may or may not be real.

David

[terjung]

Truly an incredible piece (presuming the autographs are all legit).

That price is also pretty astounding.

[Eric72]

That price is beyond astounding...breathtakingly optimistic, IMHO.

What has my curiosity piqued is that this seller went from items that consistently sold for less than $100 to items priced in the thousands...practically overnight...and then to this six-figure piece.

I haven't looked into eBay selling patterns too closely; however, something here seems a bit peculiar.

Am I off base (pun intended) or is this pattern unusual? More to the point, would anyone here look at it as a red flag? I only ask because...if it were me, with that selling history...I would have likely consigned to an auction house if looking to sell an item for $165,000.

[Michael B]

I think it had something to do with a once completely faded Wagner that suddenly re-appeared...I could be wrong, but I don't think that this was the one..

I'd look for it, but the search function has been including everything under the sun when I search anymore.. So I can never find what I'm looking for..

The item you are thinking of was written up on "Hauls of Shame". It was a similar cover where it was well documented that the item was sold without a signature in a spot and Spence certed it with a signature in that spot. I believe it was Eddie Collins. If you go back in the 'Hauls' archives you will find the article predates the Christy Matthewson signed baseball article. I looked at it last evening.

[novakjr]

The item you are thinking of was written up on "Hauls of Shame". It was a similar cover where it was well documented that the item was sold without a signature in a spot and Spence certed it with a signature in that spot. I believe it was Eddie Collins. If you go back in the 'Hauls' archives you will find the article predates the Christy Matthewson signed baseball article. I looked at it last evening.

Yeah, that's where it was. That's not the one I was thinking of though...This one was.. http://haulsofshame.com/blog/?p=11043 with the re-appearing Wagner..

[Wymers Auction]

That price is beyond astounding...breathtakingly optimistic, IMHO.

What has my curiosity piqued is that this seller went from items that consistently sold for less than $100 to items priced in the thousands...practically overnight...and then to this six-figure piece.

I haven't looked into eBay selling patterns too closely; however, something here seems a bit peculiar.

Am I off base (pun intended) or is this pattern unusual? More to the point, would anyone here look at it as a red flag? I only ask because...if it were me, with that selling history...I would have likely consigned to an auction house if looking to sell an item for $165,000.
I'll bet he does not own it.

[Fred]

If the article wasn't so damning, it'd be funny. It's just unreal that people can be so blinded by an LOA...

[Eric72]

If the article wasn't so damning, it'd be funny. It's just unreal that people can be so blinded by an LOA...
...or the slab; however, I am focused more on the seller than the item itself. This board constantly brings eBay auctions under the spotlight. Being a new member, I did tread carefully before doing so.

Having said that, it seems to me that something is amiss with this listing. James Wymer weighed in with a comment which was, in my opinion, valid.

Please know that I am not trying to undermine anyone here. I just see something that doesn't add up...and wanted to know what everyone thinks about this.

After all, at this asking price, we are approaching T206 Wagner levels...Cobb/Edwards, anyone?

Best Regards,

Eric