I saw this item listed and considered buying it but after some thought I decided to pass. This is a beautiful piece and rare without a doubt.
I passed for a few reasons .
1. The price seemed too good to be true for an item this rare. In looking on EBay where this item was listed I saw several other Cobb items priced higher than this; especially notes and some letters and even some checks. Also this same seller has a TLS from 1928 listed for $15,000 that comes with the envelope and a 1910 card and on Cobb's letterhead. Why such a low price for something this rare and stunning? Certainly the lack of Cobb' s letterhead would not make this much difference.
2. In referencing Cobb letters sold at auction I could not find any this cheap comparably. Some checks and a few notes, but no letters.
3. Mike Gutierrez ,it is true has had some authentication problems, but who hasn't; but on his COA there is no reference made to this item other than in general terms, and no photo reference on his COA also of this piece. I could also get no help in determining if this is the piece he authenticated and issued the certificate for.
Additionally the COA states 1917, but again I see no reference made in the letter to 1917, so I am curious as to how he dated the letter to 1917. It would be great if the original auction listing were included with the item for comparison or even the mailing envelope , at least .I know that there are samples of Cobb's handwriting thru the years available but how could this sample be dated specific to 1917 and the COA issued as such.
These were some of my thoughts on this item and why I didn't buy it, and I try to use the same logic with all rare purchases I consider making.
I would definitely remove this item and get it looked at by somebody knowledgable, even possibly reaching Mike to see if he has old catalogs available for comparison, and then if it is good get it reframed in a better frame with good archival glass.
I did not mean to ramble......I truly hope this item is as great as it seems and the buyer got one tremendous deal, because it is in my opinion a treasure if real.
I hope the buyer will let us know what he does with it.
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