Spring 2011 - Item detail
1910 T209 Contentnea Cigarettes Photo Series Near-Complete Set (210/224)
- Sold For:
- $44,063
- Year:
- 1910
- Auction:
- 2011 Spring
- Lot #:
- 396
- Category:
- Prewar Baseball - T Tobacco Cards
Near-complete set of 210 different (209 of the 223 in set as checklisted in The Standard Catalog plus one not checklisted) 1910 T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" Tobacco cards. One card (Steinbach) included is not listed in the 2011 Standard Catalog checklist but is known by advanced collectors. Missing just fourteen cards for completion of all subjects listed in The Standard Catalog (Armstrong/Wilson, Bowen, Crockett, Doak/Wilmington, Dobard, Fulton, Guiheen, Hyames, Irving, Munsen, Schrader, Swindell, Wolf, and Wright). 11% grade Vg-Ex (includes a couple Ex), 42% range from Gd to Vg, and 47% are in slightly lesser grade. Images of all are featured online. To the best of our knowledge, this is an unprecedented offering, at least in modern times! We have never before seen a set or near-set of T209 "Photo Series" presented for sale or auction, and large collections or near-sets of this rare issue are virtually unheard of. (In fact, to the best of our knowledge, no one has ever completed the T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" Tobacco set. With 210 of the 224 cards, of course, this collection is very close.) The 210 cards presented here represent more T209 "Photo Series" tobacco cards in total than we have handled in the past forty years, our entire history in the hobby. This is an incredible offering! This set (minus fourteen cards) was assembled over a period of over thirty years, and interestingly (and perhaps not surprisingly) were collected in precisely the area in which these rare tobacco cards were issued (Virginia).
The T209 "Photo Series" set is comprised of 224 different players from the Virginia League, Carolina Association, and Eastern League. T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" are one of the rarest and (in large part because of their rarity) most overlooked of all tobacco-card issues. Although there are no Hall of Famers in this set, there are numerous extreme rarities, almost all of which are included here. (Additional note regarding the number of cards in the set: It appears that some cards currently checklisted have not been confirmed and may not exist; this collection may therefore actually be closer to completion than even suggested by the current Standard Catalog checklist.) This lot consists of the following: Abercrombie, Andrada, Armstrong (Norfolk), Averitt, Baker, Banner, Bausewein, Beatty, Bentley, Beusse, Biel, Bigbie (Raleigh), Bigbie (Richmond), Blackstone, Bonner, Bourquin, Boyle, Brandon, Brazell, Brent, Brown, Busch, Bussey, Byrd, Cefalu, Callahan, Chandler, Clapp, Clarke, Clemens, Clunk, Cooper, Corbett, Cote, Coutts, Cowen, Cowell, Cregan, Cross, Dailey, C. Derrick, F. Derrick, Doak (Greensboro), Dobson, Doyle, Drumm, Duvie, Ebinger, Elridge, Evans, Fairbanks, Farmer, Ferrell, Fisher, Flowers, Fogarty, Foltz, Foreman, Forque, Francis, Galvin, Gardin, Garman, Gastmeyer, Gaston, Gates, Gehring, Gillespie, Gorham, Griffin (Danville), Griffin (Lynchburg), Gunderson, Hale, Halland, Hamilton, Hammersley, Handiboe, Hannifan, Hargrave, Harrington, Harris, Hart, Hartley, Hawkins, Hearn, Hicks, Hobbs, Hoffman, Hooker, Howard, Howedell, Hudson, Humphrey, Irvine, Jackson (Greensboro), Jackson (Spartanburg), Jenkins (Greenville), Jenkins (Roanoke), Jobson, Johnson, Keating, Kelley, Kelly (Anderson), Kelly (Goldsboro), "King" Kelly, King, Kite, Kunkie, Landgraff, Lane, Lathrop, Lavoia, Levy, Lloyd, Loval, Lucia, Luyster, MacConachie, Malcolm, Martin, Mayberry, A. McCarthy, J. McCarthy, McCormick, McFarland, McFarlin, C. McGeehan, D. McGeehan, McHugh, McKevitt, Merchant, Midkiff, Miller, Missitt, Morgan, Morrisey, Mullaney, Mullinix, Mundell, Murdoch, Newton, Noojin, Novak, Ochs, Painter, Peloguin, Phelan, Phoenix, Powell, Pressley & Pritchard, Priest, Prim, Pritchard, Rawe, Redfearn, Reggy, Richardson, Rickard, Rickert, Ridgway, Roth, Salve, Schmidt, Schumaker, Sexton, Shaughnessy, Sharp, Shaw, Simmons, A. Smith, D. Smith, Smith (Portsmouth), Spratt, Springs, Steinbach (unchecklisted), Stewart, Stoehr, Stouch, Sullivan, Taxis, Templin, Thompson, B. E. Thompson (dressed as Uncle Sam), Tiedeman, Titman, Toner, Turner, Tydeman, Vail, Verbout, Vickery, Walker (Norfolk), Walker (Spartanburg), Wallace, Walsh, Walters, Waters, Waymack, Webb, Wehrell, Weldon, Welsher, Westlake, Williams, Willis, Wingo, Wood, Wollums, Workman, and Wynne.
T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" Tobacco cards are among a small selection of elite sets that have long captured the imagination of many of the most legendary collectors, from the earliest days of serious collecting, perhaps more so in years past than even in recent times. The reason many great early collectors prized these cards so highly is twofold: 1) These cards could not (and cannot) simply be purchased in set form. They are rare! They have to be collected. They are a challenge. 2) Ultimately, cards are about the players that are featured. Many of the players in T209 "Photo Series" are featured in few or no other sets. These characteristics make the real-photo T209 Contentnea set especially significant to the game of baseball and to the world of baseball cards, and especially appealing to the most sophisticated collectors. T209 cards also have a very distinctive design with striking player poses unique to this set. This set (minus fourteen cards) has been locked away in the collection of one of the hobby's great pioneer collectors (who passed away in 2009) for decades. It has always been one of the most prized of the extraordinary and rare sets in his collection and is being offered by his family. Total: 210 cards. Reserve $10,000. Estimate (open). SOLD FOR $44,063
The T209 "Photo Series" set is comprised of 224 different players from the Virginia League, Carolina Association, and Eastern League. T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" are one of the rarest and (in large part because of their rarity) most overlooked of all tobacco-card issues. Although there are no Hall of Famers in this set, there are numerous extreme rarities, almost all of which are included here. (Additional note regarding the number of cards in the set: It appears that some cards currently checklisted have not been confirmed and may not exist; this collection may therefore actually be closer to completion than even suggested by the current Standard Catalog checklist.) This lot consists of the following: Abercrombie, Andrada, Armstrong (Norfolk), Averitt, Baker, Banner, Bausewein, Beatty, Bentley, Beusse, Biel, Bigbie (Raleigh), Bigbie (Richmond), Blackstone, Bonner, Bourquin, Boyle, Brandon, Brazell, Brent, Brown, Busch, Bussey, Byrd, Cefalu, Callahan, Chandler, Clapp, Clarke, Clemens, Clunk, Cooper, Corbett, Cote, Coutts, Cowen, Cowell, Cregan, Cross, Dailey, C. Derrick, F. Derrick, Doak (Greensboro), Dobson, Doyle, Drumm, Duvie, Ebinger, Elridge, Evans, Fairbanks, Farmer, Ferrell, Fisher, Flowers, Fogarty, Foltz, Foreman, Forque, Francis, Galvin, Gardin, Garman, Gastmeyer, Gaston, Gates, Gehring, Gillespie, Gorham, Griffin (Danville), Griffin (Lynchburg), Gunderson, Hale, Halland, Hamilton, Hammersley, Handiboe, Hannifan, Hargrave, Harrington, Harris, Hart, Hartley, Hawkins, Hearn, Hicks, Hobbs, Hoffman, Hooker, Howard, Howedell, Hudson, Humphrey, Irvine, Jackson (Greensboro), Jackson (Spartanburg), Jenkins (Greenville), Jenkins (Roanoke), Jobson, Johnson, Keating, Kelley, Kelly (Anderson), Kelly (Goldsboro), "King" Kelly, King, Kite, Kunkie, Landgraff, Lane, Lathrop, Lavoia, Levy, Lloyd, Loval, Lucia, Luyster, MacConachie, Malcolm, Martin, Mayberry, A. McCarthy, J. McCarthy, McCormick, McFarland, McFarlin, C. McGeehan, D. McGeehan, McHugh, McKevitt, Merchant, Midkiff, Miller, Missitt, Morgan, Morrisey, Mullaney, Mullinix, Mundell, Murdoch, Newton, Noojin, Novak, Ochs, Painter, Peloguin, Phelan, Phoenix, Powell, Pressley & Pritchard, Priest, Prim, Pritchard, Rawe, Redfearn, Reggy, Richardson, Rickard, Rickert, Ridgway, Roth, Salve, Schmidt, Schumaker, Sexton, Shaughnessy, Sharp, Shaw, Simmons, A. Smith, D. Smith, Smith (Portsmouth), Spratt, Springs, Steinbach (unchecklisted), Stewart, Stoehr, Stouch, Sullivan, Taxis, Templin, Thompson, B. E. Thompson (dressed as Uncle Sam), Tiedeman, Titman, Toner, Turner, Tydeman, Vail, Verbout, Vickery, Walker (Norfolk), Walker (Spartanburg), Wallace, Walsh, Walters, Waters, Waymack, Webb, Wehrell, Weldon, Welsher, Westlake, Williams, Willis, Wingo, Wood, Wollums, Workman, and Wynne.
T209 Contentnea "Photo Series" Tobacco cards are among a small selection of elite sets that have long captured the imagination of many of the most legendary collectors, from the earliest days of serious collecting, perhaps more so in years past than even in recent times. The reason many great early collectors prized these cards so highly is twofold: 1) These cards could not (and cannot) simply be purchased in set form. They are rare! They have to be collected. They are a challenge. 2) Ultimately, cards are about the players that are featured. Many of the players in T209 "Photo Series" are featured in few or no other sets. These characteristics make the real-photo T209 Contentnea set especially significant to the game of baseball and to the world of baseball cards, and especially appealing to the most sophisticated collectors. T209 cards also have a very distinctive design with striking player poses unique to this set. This set (minus fourteen cards) has been locked away in the collection of one of the hobby's great pioneer collectors (who passed away in 2009) for decades. It has always been one of the most prized of the extraordinary and rare sets in his collection and is being offered by his family. Total: 210 cards. Reserve $10,000. Estimate (open). SOLD FOR $44,063