(LOT 31)
Scarce 1910-'12 Plow Boy Cabinet – Frank Chance (SGC "Auth") - One of Only 4 Professionally Graded Examples on ALL "Pop" Charts!
Seldom offered to the public, Plow Boy cabinets are among the most elusive and desirable pre-WWI cardboard collectibles. To maintain their market share and dominance in Chicago's windy city, from 1910 thru 1912, the Spaulding & Merrick Co. makers of Plow Boy tobacco decided to release a monumental Chicago-only set of 49 cabinet cards featuring the ultra-popular Cubs and White Sox teams of the day. At a time when cigarette smoking was on the rise and pipe smoking and chewing tobacco's were declining in comparison, Plow Boy's once mighty sales were slipping. The declining sales and hefty premium required for these amazing cabinets resulted in very few of the baseball images ever reaching the public.

Presented here is the ultra-obscure Frank Chance Plow Boy Cabinet in an SGC "Auth" holder. Amazingly, it stands as one of only four professionally graded Frank Chance examples on ALL "pop" charts, with all four being encapsulated by SGC! Nicknamed the "Peerless Leader", Frank Chance will eternally be remembered as the final link in the immortal "Tinker to Evers to Chance" double play combination. The "one of a kind" Chance sepia pose not seen on any other cardboard issue portrays the Chicago 1st sacker carrying his bat, ball and glove ion a leisurely moment before game-time. Depicting strong resolution and crystal clear focus, the timeless image is somewhat compromised by an area of paper loss near the mid-point of his stoic frame.

A classic baseball field backdrop includes some stray building beyond the field's perimeter, and the illustration is well-centered between four somewhat clean off-white borders that reveal four faint pinholes near each corner quadrant. The verso's highly coveted "PLOW BOY TOBACCO" advertisement is extremely bold and vivid, and includes the following additional text: "SMOKE OR CHEW – SAVE THE PIPE COUPONS". While, the "Auth" grade is due to moderately compromised upper and side edges as well as four microscopic-like pinholes near each of the four corners, the simple "right to own a copy" would make any elite enthusiast jump at the opportunity to capture this ultra-elusive Chance marvel!

MIN BID $300

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