(LOT 448)
1909 T206 Ty Cobb Red Portrait "Sovereign 350 Subjects" (PSA EX 5) - "1 of 3"; Highest Graded Example listed on the PSA "Pop" Chart!
One of the most prestigious pre-war baseball cards is the iconic T206 Red Portrait Ty Cobb subject, depicting Carl Horner's sanctified Cobb portrait pose! While there is certainly not a shortage of this "super print" card, there are several scant issues carrying extremely obscure reverse side cigarette ads. One such type rarity includes the seldom surfacing "Sovereign 350" ad-back and presented here is one of those scarce Cobb Red Portrait Sovereign 350 subjects in an outstanding PSA 5 holder. Any Sovereign T206 Cobb Red Portrait card is a much tougher find then the more common advertisement backs (such as Piedmont, Sweet Caporal, etc.). This is substantiated by PSA's census report that lists 1,900 encapsulated "Red Portrait" Cobb's for which only a mere 37 or 1.9% carry a Sovereign 150, 350 or 460 Subject designation.

Incredibly, only 6 of the 37 examples grade an "EX/5" with NONE graded higher, and of those 6 meager PSA 5's, only 3 are designated as 350 Subject specimens! Indeed, this highest graded offering has very little company at the top of the PSA "Pop" Charts, justifying its immense desirability among the hobby's most advanced T206 enthusiasts. Ty Cobb's elite status as one of baseball's greatest players ever has granted him premier status among the finest cardboard enthusiasts, substantiating why the new owner of this seldom offered Sovereign 350 highest graded scarcity will immediately earn bragging rights within the collecting community. This stellar example reveals a brilliant Cobb portrait pose that is set against a "fire engine-red" background, with the image relatively well centered between four moderately clean borders.

Modest/uniform corner wear account for the grade, and no obtrusive flaws are evident on either side. The critical reverse side "SOVEREGN CIGARETTES FIT FOR A KING 460 SUBJECTS" advertisement still portrays a majority of its original attributes and is well centered on a clean surface. Any T206 Red Cobb subjects is worthy of a secure place in the most esteemed hobby gatherings due to this card's unquestionable status as one of the hobby's "Top 10" cardboard subjects, let alone one that exhibits the obscure Sovereign 350 ad-back while reigning supreme as the finest of its kind!

MIN BID $2,500
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