What is a Premium anyway?
 

The thread about the Gehrig premium got me to thinking "what is a premium"?

To me it is a very loose term (so I can collect a lot of stuff) but it usually doesn't include reprints of original items. And I forgot who said it but I think it referred to porn :).....
"I am not sure I know how to define a premium but I know one when I see one!!"

Here is one on thin paper I still call a premium....

http://luckeycards.com/phunc1910scriger.jpg

Generally speaking a premium would be an item offered by a company as an advertising product/incentive which could be obtained by sending in either coupons, proof of purchase, money, etc.

It was an advertising tool used to spur sales by many companies. The word "premium" was used to indicate that is was not commercially offered for sale but was to be obtained by redemption via product loyalty.

MANY items offered as "premiums" do not meet this general criteria and are often trade cards, team photos, etc

Today's history lesson:

Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart in a 1964 case:

I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description ["hard-core pornography"], and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it, and the motion picture involved in this case is not that.

Thanks. I think what is shown above is really just an ad that someone kept. I use loose definitions as stated :). But your definition is obviously correct. Here is a true premium....the recently spoken about Pathe Ruth...I have to think these might have jumped in value due to other recent Ruth spikes. I am biased of course...

http://luckeycards.com/phunc1921pathefreresruth.jpg

Leon,

As for your Babe Ruth premium, being issued during the latter stages of his astounding breakout season of 1920, and with a swell photo of a trim Mr. Ruth, its significance cannot be underestimated. The eye appeal of the piece is off the charts.

Just my five cents worth. ---Brian Powell

Couldn't the term "premium" also refer to a card that almost always trades above SMR guidelines?

Mickey Mantle Armour Franks - Premium
Jerry Sage

I'm glad you posted this definition. I've wondered about the difference between a premium and a supplement for a while. Mainly because collectors and auction houses seem to mis-label a lot of supplements as premiums. Obviously if is says "supplement" on the item it is called a supplement, but everything else seems to be fair game regardless of its origin.

Leon- You may know this, but that is the back cover of a paper book/pamphlet. I can send you some copies of a complete one.

A premium is something you send away for for a price (whether monetary payment, box topic, coupons, other), while a supplement is something extra included with the main item. Collectors sent away with payment for the Baseball Magazine premiums, while the Police Gazette Supplements were included in the magazine. When you don't know how a print was distributed/obtained you won't know whether it was a premium or a supplement-- and there are numerous cases in the hobby of this.

Baseball cards is an interesting area in that how an item was distributed is an essential part to the item's identity. By standard definition, a baseball card has to have been distributed commercially in some way or form to the general public, and cards are categorized and often valuated by how they were distributed (premiums, supplements, inserts, trade cards, other). That's why baseball card collectors spend so much time pondering and discussing how items were distributed.

Isn't Criger on the cover of the booklet as well? I used to have one with him on the front, but not sure if it is this one.

The one I have has a hunting scene with Teddy Roosevelt on the front.

Edited to add: This one is almost identical to the booklet I have, but I have a different "theme" on the front:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1910-LOUIS-C...item5661781e40

Here is mine...

I am not sure I had seen the booklets before, or more than likely just forgot. I didn't pay much for my Criger cover so not a big deal. Interesting how different companies gave them away. I love that kind of stuff. (different stamps/names from companies on similar items) :)

'Dr. Miles' Anti-Pain Pills'....yessiree - bet they worked like magic. They probably worked better on passed kidney stones than passed balls. yuk-yuk

I agree with Leon's "loose" definition. If I'm collecting a player, my goal is to get one of every card and premium they have, not including modern issues. So if an item is "card-like" (a blotter, for example) or "premium-like," I feel like I would need it. For example, if I collected Criger, I would definitely need that booklet, or at least the back cover of it. Where it gets interesting is when the items start to get bigger, and sometimes it gets tougher to determine whether to consider something a premium or an advertising piece. As with everything in collecting, each collector has to come up with his own criteria.

-Ryan