(LOT 70)
1952 Topps #311 Mickey Mantle PSA 4 VG-EX with Excellent Centering!
WELL-CENTERED ‘52 TOPPS MICK!!! Locating a well-centered 1952 Topps #311 Mantle subject may be a more excruciating task than finding a needle in a haystack, with most of the existing examples offering unsightly skewed images. That said, this outstanding PSA 4 VG-EX '52 Topps Commerce Comet marvel just happens to proudly boast near-perfect centering, with The Mick's hallowed high-number image only ever-so-slightly favoring the lower left edges. A momentous six-figure keepsake, you simply don't find this subject depicting near-flawless alignment. The past several years have seen an abundance of six-figure+ sales for other PSA 4 examples, including a remarkable $147K in September 2022. Further justifying the immense desirability of any mid-grade offering was an SGC 5 fetching an extraordinary $306K in the summer of 2022, with no end seemingly in sight for this exponential pricing uptick.

The unparalleled hyperbole associated with the record-setting $12.6 million public sale of an SGC 9.5 GEM MINT '52 Topps Mantle in late August 2022 certainly added to the ‘52 Topps Mantle frenzy, with this issue the cornerstone of the post-WWII market. Only the T206 Wagner's unparalleled prestige can surpass the celebrated mystique associated with any 1952 Topps Mantle subject. Its sudden rise to stardom in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s literally jumpstarted the sports card market, with its incredible pricing points redefining one's perspective on utilizing cardboard heirlooms as viable investment options. Indeed, along with the previously mentioned price tags, a PSA 9 MINT copy fetched in the neighborhood of $13 million in a private January 2023 transaction, as well as a stunning PSA 8 specimen achieving $2.1 million in Memory Lane's July 2021 auction. 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 to experience an amazing pricing surge for all grade levels that have rewritten its overall value.

The Mick's unmatchable power obviously contributed to his immense hobby stature, with The Mick blasting an unfathomable ten plus documented 500 ft.+ round-trippers throughout his spectacular 18-year career. His mammoth blast off of Senators hurler Chuck Stobbs in 1953 at Griffith Stadium ricocheted off of the scoreboard into a neighboring backyard across the street, traveling a record 565 feet from home plate! The Oklahoma Kid twice crushed horsehide spheres off of Yankee Stadium's right-field façade, and no player will ever hit more tape-measure home runs than Mantle. No wonder his regal 1952 Topps card is widely regarded as the king of the post-WWII baseball cards, and this super eye-pleasing PSA 4 heirloom has retained a vast number of its original redeeming qualities. You can literally feel Mickey's curious nature as he gazes into an unknown future, unaware that he would soon be embarking on a majestic career leading to his immortal Yankee standing. Fine image quality for the iconic Mantle pose and the rich aqua-marine background can make any collector's heart skip a beat.

Of course, the previously mentioned superior image positioning is the esteemed highlight, and any collector would concede that finding a well-centered example is a truly painstaking chore. The relatively clean surfaces do not exhibit any glaring surface blemishes/creases, and the blue setting has eluded the unsightly "surface snow" typically plaguing this issue. Preventing a higher grade is faint border toning, even corner wear, and a microscopic stain barely visible to the naked eye along the lower left edge. Most significantly, nearly all of the visually striking attributes substantiate the hallowed stature of this world-class offering. To reiterate, the pricing points for most ‘52 Topps Mantles continue to forge ahead tantamount to an uncontrollable brush fire, especially for aesthetically pleasing examples such as this Cooperstown-worthy masterpiece that has achieved momentous bragging rights via its outstanding centering!

MIN BID $25,000
_