(LOT 297)
1952 Topps #311 Mickey Mantle PSA 1.5 FR
'52 TOPPS MANTLE!!! Presented here is a super-eye-pleasing PSA 1.5 FR 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, portraying aesthetics superior to the technical assessment. Aside from some stray horizontal creases that are barely visible to the naked eye as well as even corner wear consistent with any Good to VG example, there are no obtrusive flaws. Yet, as is the case with most cards, it is the critical eye appeal that stands as the driving force for a subject's true value. The record-setting $12.6 million sale for an SGC 9.5 example in August 2022 certainly gave a serious boost to a myriad of '52 Topps Mantle subjects, regardless of the grade. Just a few months ago, in May 2023, a PSA Authentic sold for a staggering $82K, with an SGC Authentic fetching $40K in December 2022. Not to be outdone, a PSA 1 PR example stunned the hobby via its $48K auction price in January 2023. These extraordinary reference points substantiate the unequivocal reality of how low-grade '52 Topps Mantles are rocking the hobby, with several 1.5 FR specimens realizing between $40K-$50K the past several years.

As previously stated, this exponential pricing has stretched across all '52 Topps Mantle grade levels, and the $306K sale of an SGC 5 EX marvel in August 2022 continues to reside as one of the most remarkable prices for any subject, regardless of its assessment. The manner in which the Mickey Mantle 1952 Topps subject achieved its current mystique may never achieve full resolution, but it is surely here to stay, with only the T206 Honus Wagner surpassing the stature of the Mick's inaugural '52 Topps #311 high-number issue. Its sudden rise to stardom in the late '80s and early '90s ably assisted the sports card market, with its incredible pricing points redefining one's perspective on utilizing cardboard heirlooms as viable investment options. For quite some time and prior to 2013, price tags for the 1952 Topps Mantle subject had remained relatively flat. Typical with any market commodity, the investment values of valuable baseball cards likewise run in cycles, and the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card, dubbed the post-WWII "Holy Grail", continues experiencing an amazing pricing surge for all grade levels that have rewritten its value.

Synonymous with a rampaging tsunami, since mid-2013, the Topps Mantle Rookie value has risen to an unprecedented level, with low to mid-grade specimens now realizing 300%-500% pricing upticks over the past decade! Historically speaking, had it not been for truckloads of 1952 Topps high-number vending cases being dumped into the Atlantic's murky waters off of the coast of New Jersey, the incredible mystique of the '52 Topps Mantle might have never been born. Yet, the reality of this card standing tall as our hobby's pinnacle post-WWII cardboard memento shines forth as a beacon of light, with its uncontested popularity being the main driver of its redefined value. A breathtaking Mantle portrait pose is uncompromised by any obtrusive flaws, and the vibrant aquamarine background has retained nearly all of its pack-fresh hue, with these key ingredients bolstering this offering's outstanding visual appeal.

Like most subjects, the iconic image is somewhat skewed between four relatively clean borders, in this case favoring the lower right edges. Accounting for the grade are the aforementioned wrinkles and even corner wear, with the light horizontal creases affixed across the card's lower region running through the Mickey Mantle text box. Additionally, a faint, somewhat horizontal, bend revealing mild surface snow is situated directly above Mantle's hands and extends to the right edge. A clean verso is the final stamp of approval for a card that truly emanates aesthetics beyond its technical assessment; a quintessential low-grade example that would gladly fill the painstaking void in any serious vintage collection!

MIN BID $10,000
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