1890 N172 Old Judge Cap Anson, Chicagos (NL) - Portrait - Extremely Rare Variation

Sold For:

$3,600

Year:

1890

Auction:

2015 Spring

Lot #:

50

Category:

Pre-1900 Baseball Cards (1830-1899)

Graded VG 3 by PSA. While Cap Anson is always, of course, a very desirable Old Judge Hall of Famer, this is a far rarer and more significant example than is apparent at a glance. The "NL" designation following "Chicagos," which is so unusual and rarely seen, identifies this card as being one of the much scarcer Old Judges issued in 1890. All 1890 Old Judges are rare, and all suffer from very poor contrast. The contrast on this example, while not strong compared to many N172s from earlier years, is actually fairly strong compared to most 1890 Old Judges. The card has even wear to the corners, a single crease to the left of Anson's face, and a couple very light spots of toning on the reverse. This is an extremely rare style of one of the most important cards in the Old Judge series.  Reserve $1,000. Estimate $2,000+.