W519 Cravath question

[Archive]

Posted By: Alan Elefson

Hi-
I recently picked up a small group of strip cards and I found a variation that I could not find listed in my 2003 SCD Big Book. It is #3 Gabby Cravath. I know this is an error (I searched old posts before posting this and I found out a great deal about Cravath including his "original" baseball nickname, Gavy, as opposed to Gavvy or Gabby as it is indicated on the card in this set. I also discovered how good of a hitter he was.), however my card has the name spelled Bobby Cravath. Below is a scan of both cards for comparison. The two Cravaths were found in a small grouping of baseball and boxing strip cards I found at an antique show a few days ago, so I am fairly cetain it is real (who would want to fake a card like this anyway?). I cannot determine if it is from W515 Numbered or Unnumbered as the cut is very poor. My question is, is this a known or catalogued error (if so, I apologize for wasting the board's time and I need to get a newer catalog)? Please also note the background color difference (did every card come with every color?) and the reversed image. I know these were printed cheaply, but I am surprised they would have issued a Cravath (whichever came first) and then issue another with his name spelled incorrectly once more (not to mention the reversed image thing). Any thoughts on the questions/musings on this post would be greatly appreciated.
One other question/observation concerning this set. Please see the scan of the four strip cards below (ignore the top two). There is a Joe Murphy numbered and unnumbered version. The image is reversed on this as well. Was this common between the two sets? Any idea which is correct?
Thanks in advance for all of your help,
Alan Elefson