1964 Meadow Gold Dairy Milk Carton with Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays, and Bill Mazeroski Cards on Side Panel - Extremely Rare Green Variation

Sold For:

$9,900

Year:

1964

Auction:

2019 Fall

Lot #:

1631

Category:

Postwar Baseball - 1960s Cards

Over the years ballplayers have endorsed just about every product imaginable. Offered is an exceedingly rare 1964 Meadow Gold Dairy milk carton (extremely rare green variation) featuring Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays, and Bill Mazeroski. This is, to the best of our knowledge, the only green variation of this rare milk carton to ever be offered at public auction. This half-gallon milk carton, produced by the Meadow Gold Dairies, pictures Mantle, Koufax, Mays, and Mazeroski on a side panel, above which appears the slogan "Learn From The Stars..." and below their images reads "The Greatest Names in the Game Tell You Their Secrets - Batting - Fielding - Pitching - Throwing - Base Running - And Many Many More." The opposite panel features a mail-in premium offer for the 1964 Auravision Records series. The panel pictures a sample record of Banks and the checklist for the set. This is only the third example (the first green variation) of this rare package design that we have ever offered and is without a doubt one of the rarest of all player endorsement items. (The first appeared as lot #1599 in REA's Spring 2018 auction, where it realized $5,400.) From time to time, we encounter cards cut from this carton, but finding a complete carton is almost impossible! Its rarity is certainly understandable given the nature of the product. The unassembled carton (7.5 x 12.75 inches) shows general wear and a few light stains (mentioned for accuracy). In Excellent condition overall. The panel with the players' photos is in Vg-Ex condition overall and retains all of its original visual appeal. This is an outstanding example of this exceptional rarity that would be a significant addition to any advanced player-endorsement collection. Reserve $1,000. Estimate (open).