Cuban "Polar" Cards

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Posted By: Rob

Yet here is where the buyer had taken the trouble to have the cards viewed by experts on old paper & printing who say they are from that era. This makes for a convincing case they were made in that era. If the seller was out to scam someone, then he didn't make a lot of money for his efforts. It's most unlikely the seller'd anticipate someone taking the trouble to having them examined in a manner where as much or more was spent verifying the authenticity of the card than what the cards sold for. I was made to believe it's probable that these are vintage prototypes, given the political events in Cuba in 1959, that the "Polar" was done in different ways on the card fronts, the eclectic selection of subjects is consistent with earlier Cuban issues as to suggest authenticity.

Now, having said all of that, perhaps the buyer posting on this board is working in collusion with the seller, that there is a long line off BS about the cards origins, paper tested ect. Then I would agree with Ryan here as to motive, they are hoping to make the big money from deep pocketed vintage baseball card buyers later. It's hard to tell the card thickness from the scans, but the card appears to be on a thinner stock. I would expect a thicker cardboard used in the late 1950's era. The font of the printing on the back suggests pre WWII, a mistake someone trying to concote an elaborate fake would make. These are the reasons I did not bid on the cards, I focused on the card appearance, not the rationale used by Ryan. If this is a scam, then it's a scam being played at a level far above the jokers baking Dover reprints being sold to suckers on Ebay.

Now, if I had those cards and was convinced they were real, heres the route I would take: I would compile a checklist and get them included in the SCD catalog, have a press release about "Newly Discovered" cards in hobby publications, exhibiting the cards at major card shows, and do other things to build the value of the cards. Then I would consign to an auction house were the final price comes from the last bid, not a designated time as with Ebay, unacceptable as a seller of something that rarity (although quite nice for the sniping bidder).