FYI....this so-called strip is blank-backed.
Upon magnification, you will find that the vertical lines between the cards are actually seams.
Regarding your...." nobody cared much about these cards in 1909, so why, in 1909, would anyone bother
to attach them to a sheet with the precision of an accomplished card doctor? "
This is a very naive comment, there is tons of documentation that tells us how popular these cards were
when they were initially available in 1909. Especially, the major stars of that era (Cobb, Johnson, Lajoie,
Matty, Wagner, CYoung, etc).
And, to the 2nd part of your comment....It didn't require a "card doctor" to craft this strip. The employees
at American Lithograph were high quality craftsman.
It is rumored that this 5-card strip was specifically crafted as a sample piece given to Wagner prior to the
T206 market launch.
Anyhow, I will be traveling down to Citizens Bank Park to catch a Phillies game and get a close up look at
this piece.
TED Z
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