Spring 2020 - Item detail
Newly Discovered 1921 E121 American Caramel (Series of 80) George (Babe) Ruth SGC VG/EX+ 4.5 - Highest Graded!
- Sold For:
- $32,400
- Year:
- 1921
- Auction:
- 2020 Spring
- Lot #:
- 729
- Category:
- Prewar Baseball - 1910s and 1920s Cards
Graded VG/EX+ 4.5 by SGC (submitted by REA). This is the ONLY example graded at this level by SGC with none higher! Presented is a superb E121 American Caramel card of Babe Ruth. This is one of the premier early Ruth cards and one of the very few dating from the early 1920s. This card is part of an exciting, fresh-to-the-hobby find of caramel cards, including twenty-one Lou Gertenrich cards, a 1914 Cracker Jack Mathewson, and a second E121 American Caramel Babe Ruth card, saved by the family of the original owner who lived in the Midwest, all consigned to this auction. Bright and crisp, with light wear to the four corners and centering toward the right with a subtle tilt to the image. The reverse is boldly printed and clean. The card is downgraded due to a light crease near the lower left corner (more noticeable from the reverse). One of several different cards of Ruth in the E121 set, this is one of the all-time classic Babe Ruth cards of the 1920s. Referred to on checklists as the Babe Ruth "George" variation, this popular card features Ruth in a full-length throwing pose. It is interesting to note that the young, but already very celebrated, Ruth is pictured on this card in a Boston uniform, though he is appropriately identified below as a member of the New York Americans. "Boston" (mostly covered by Ruth's throwing arm) can be clearly seen across Ruth's chest upon close examination. In fact, this photograph of Ruth is the very same image which was used on Ruth's 1917 E135 Collins-McCarthy candy card. Apparently, the American Caramel Company was going to print and did not have the time to pursue an updated image of Ruth with his new team. This is an outstanding example of this classic Babe Ruth card worthy of any advanced Babe Ruth or prewar-card collection. Reserve $10,000. Estimate $20,000+.