1996 Leaf Signature - COMPLETE SET Series 1+2 (150 cards)

Gateway Stamp Company has provided collectors well over 1 MILLION authenticated certified autographs over the last 30 years.
Silk Cachets from Gateway Stamp Company
Even though a "stamp company", Gateway rarely dealt in stamps, going down a new and creative road becoming one of the world's most unique secrets in autograph collecting combining the best in art, color photographs, history and autographs with their full-color silk cachet envelopes. Gateway's first client was Cardinals Hall of Famer Lou Brock with hundreds to follow.

WHAT ARE FULL-COLOR SILK CACHETS?
A "cachet" is a message or design on an envelope marking a postal event. "Full-color silk" refers to the delicate material into which the original art and photography are printed. After which each silk is applied to the envelope, signed by the player and then officially post-marked by the U.S. Post Office IN THE CITY OF THE EVENT !!!

WHY POSTMARKS?
The key to EVERY Gateway cachet is the postmark.The best way to mark a date in history is with a postmark. The rules governing the granting of postmarks GUARANTEE that NO Gateway issue can EVER be re-issued protecting the value of the autographed, postmarked cachets !!!

1955 Topps was the first of 2 years of horizontal card designs. As with 1952, 1953 & 1954, cards were again a tad larger than today's standard. A nice feature, facsimile autographs, again appeared on the cards. The set came in 2 series, #1-160 and scarcer "High Numbers" #161-210.

Due to the contract battles between Topps & Bowman, Cards #175,186,203 & 209 were never issued. Topps eventually won the war, buying Bowman making 1955 the last year for Bowman cards. But the damage was done as Topps had to leave out many stars including Mickey Mantle & Stan Musial.

There were a total of (15) Hall of Famers in the 1955 set !!!
Top ROOKIEs: Roberto Clemente, Sandy Koufax & Harmon Killebrew
Top Stars: Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, Al Kaline, Ernie Banks, Warren Spahn, Jackie Robinson, Eddie Mathews, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra & Duke Snider.

"The Golden Greek" Harry Agganis, a popular 1955 Topps card, is a tragic story, Agganis, a rising young star, died after his first card was issued. A football star at Boston U., he turned down an offer from the Cleveland Browns and became the starting first baseman. Shortly after he came down with pneumonia and died of a Pulmonary Embolism.

There is one card for each NFL team in the 1976 Popsicle football card set PLUS a variation of the New York Giants. The Giants changed logos in 1976, but Popsicle didn't know so one card shows team's 1975 helmet and the corrected shows the 1976 helmet.

The cards are like thin plastic credit cards and held up well as apparently they came one per box of Popsicles.