E-Unc. Ty Cobb slabbed by GAI.

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Posted By: warshawlaw

But my post was unclear. First, let's deal with the overarching issue of whether the item is a card. I said "it does look like the collecting community is accepting these items as cards", so I don't see a contradiction, since I think they are cards and based on the pieces of the card backs I think they are uncatalogued E cards. What got me was your designation of the card as a "caramel" card in the auction title and twice in the auction description, which is what I took issue with and is not what the slab says (it says E card advertisement). I did a lousy job of specifying that.

What I wrote in the book was "The subject matter appears to be candy or confections so I suspect it was part of a promotional device for a candy and ice cream store or manufacturer." I said that because the words "cream" and "fruit flavors" are on the card back of the Jeffries card I saw. That is different from saying it is a caramel issue. The back of your card similarly does not mention caramel, but does mention chocolate and jellys. How you get to caramel from there is unclear to me, but since "Caramel" implies that the item was issued by one of the caramel manufacturers that issued the very valuable classic E cards, in using the term "caramel" in the title of the auction and twice in its body I assume that caramel collectors are the market you were trying to tap. I'd really like to see a full sheet of them with the ad back intact before saying more than "candy and ice cream" since we still don't know who issued them. GAI designated the card as an uncatalogued E advertisement, accurately IMHO. They don't mention caramel either.

Changing gears entirely, my philosophical question relative to the decision to slab this particular card was not meant to dig at your card but was meant as an effort to use your card as a rhetorical device for discussing the decision to slab or not slab other cut items. I think that issue very much needs revisiting (like the album items, magazine ads and Harpers wood cuts I mentioned) and I would like to hear some views on it.

If my views have now been accepted by Mike Baker, all I can say is "Cool" and "Don't I get a royalty?". Since I now wield influence, all I can say to everyone else is "Send my your cards, send them now, send them all."