1956 Topps FLAGS of the World #24 Austria

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The 1953 Topps set is a collection of gorgeous portraits drawn by the leading sports artists of the day. Key cards in the 1953 Topps set include: Jackie Robinson, Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays & Satchel Paige. Satchel Paige had his name spelled incorrectly (2 'L') on the card front.

As with all Topps sets from the 1950's & 1960's, 1953 Topps was issued in series, (#1-85, #86-165, #166-220 & #221-280) with the final series "High Numbers" the least produced, least available and thus the most costly. Topps and Bowman still at war likely accounts for the 6 missing #'s from the High Number series.

In 1969, Ajman & Manama made baseball card collector's happy with their official government issued baseball "Champions of Sports" stamps with 6 of the greatest stars ever: Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Ty Cobb, Stan Musial, Honus Wagner & George Sisler. Manama and Ajman stamps are neqarly the same except for color and country. The pictured notice from the Ajman post office stated stamp sheets & sets were limited with & w/o perforations. For an incredible website on Ajman sports stamps visit golowesstamps.com.

Official authentic vintage UPI/AP Wirephotos/Laserphotos are very limited, normally only 1 sent to subscribing newspapers. Photos were black & white printed on electro-static printers, usually sent in 3 stages, Cyan, Magenta & Yellow, then combined into a color photograph. Photos are work products and VG to NEAR MINT. As a bonus, some have editor's blue-line cropping marks.

Scarce, interesting and snapshots of history, wire photos of major subjects and moments make for great collectibles. Wirephotos and laserphotos are no longer transmitted in this manner (stopping around the early 90's). Images are now transmitted from computer to computer with no need for hardcopies.
old UPI wirephotos old AP wirephotos Wirephotos images taken with low res camera so images do not do then justice. The wirephotos are nicer than in the image. Most wirephotos from San Diego Union Tribune archives and make nice additions to your collection.

Baseball card collecting terms (part G)

Grade/Condition Centering, corner wear, photo clarity, edges, creases, print flaws ... all combine to determine a card's condition or grade. Along with rarity/scarcity it is the major factor in a card's value.

Graded Card As values increased the condition of cards and the determination of fakes and alterations became increasingly more important. Various companies became "graders" of your cards. For a fee they would grade your card (usually on a 1 to 10 scale) and then placed in a sealed plastic holder with labelling of the vital information.

From past experiences, most people are NOT HAPPY with the grades they receive. To keep values up, graders can be extremely picky. Things you don't see, they do so don't be surprized when the NEAR MINT card you send in ends up with an EX or EX/MINT grade.

There are TOO many grading companies - if you do, do choose carefully. PSA / SGC / GAI / BGS are some of the many companies. It is good to know that getting a card graded by a company that people do not recognize or respect will usually just cost you time and money and not help you in any way.

1956 Topps FLAGS of the World #24 Austria

1953 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1969 Ajman & Manama
Official Postage Stamps

Vintage Baseball Wire Photos

UPI/AP Wirephotos

1956 Topps FLAGS of the World #24 Austria

1953 Topps Baseball Cards Checklist & Values

1969 Ajman & Manama Official Postage Stamps

Vintage Baseball Wire Photos

UPI/AP Wirephotos

1953 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1969 Ajman & Manama
Official Postage Stamps