Is 1956 Topps Mantle the most overpriced card in the hobby?

packs · #1 08-09-2024, 09:53 AM

The 56 Mantle has a lot going for it. People tend to like horizontal cards as it is, but it also has a great portrait image and a great action shot from a pivotal year in his career.

I don't know if it's overvalued because people do tend to like aesthetically pleasing cards or cards with interesting images. I'm thinking of cards like the 53 Bowman Reese, the 52 Topps Zernial, the Art Whitney with Dog OJ, etc.

BillyCoxDodgers3B · #2 08-09-2024, 09:58 AM

Zernial was such a great guy. He once wrote me what on earth the story was behind the card. As to the pink undershirt, "It was washed with some red ones and came out pink"!

packs · #3 08-09-2024, 10:12 AM

Personally I find Mantle's 1957 Topps card his absolute worst. For a guy who had a ton of personality, his 57 Topps looks like it was taken at a morgue.

jchcollins · #4 08-09-2024, 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by packs

Personally I find Mantle's 1957 Topps card his absolute worst. For a guy who had a ton of personality, his 57 Topps looks like it was taken at a morgue.

To me his '57 is iconic, if for no other reason than when I first got interested in vintage cards in the 1980's - that image was everywhere. It seemed to be featured in many issues of Baseball Cards magazine and BBCM, etc.

I will agree the picture and production quality isn't fantastic. The card is overly dark, which leads to a lot of the print snow crap problems on the image itself, and in reality as with many other '57 Topps it's hard to find anywhere within shouting distance of centered. Adding to the problem with the dark image, many of them have what I call the "green / brown" vibe, which I don't think is attractive. However, some '57 Mantles instead of the green / brown present more in blue / green - and IMO these cards when centered decently look great.

I had been in search of a '57 Mantle with the qualities I was looking for forever, and finally found it earlier this year. I got a centered SGC 2, with some small creasing at the bottom that is not super noticeable and was tolerable to me. While it's not as "blue / green" on the image as I would like - it's more like that than green / brown and the image focus is sharp enough for me, so I bought it.

D. Bergin · #5 08-09-2024, 10:54 AM

In regards to 1955 Bowman's. I think it's the best of both worlds. Both, one of the ugliest mainstream sets of the modern-ish era, and also one of the most interesting and neat looking sets.

I love the clean look of the 1953 Bowman's and 1957 Topps, but also love the garish border designs on the 1955 Bowman and 1972 and 1975 Topps sets for some reason.

As for the 1956 Mantle, it serves as a return to Topps from Mantle, and while I'm not as big a fan of the design as others...it is still an objectively pretty awesome looking card.

MantleMarisFordBerra · #6 08-09-2024, 11:49 AM

That's my favorite card. I personally think the 56T set is the most beautiful of that era. Love the bright colors, the action shot combined with the portrait & printed autograph. And as others have pointed out it's his first Topps card in a couple years and it comes from his best season. Lot to like about that card and I anticipate it'll always be in high demand.

And I do love the 55 Bowman set as well! The Color TV concept is such a time capsule of that era.

Peter_Spaeth · #7 08-09-2024, 12:10 PM

Outstanding card in every way.

chaddgar · #8 08-09-2024, 12:12 PM

Something about the '56 Mantle just screams "1950s" to me. The smile, the action shot, and knowing it was his Triple Crown year make it very special. How many kids proudly showed mom and dad that Mantle card that year?

I picked one up a PSA 2 for $200 in 2016. Crazy now that it's $900-$1000, but I'm not selling anytime soon. It's one of my favorite cards.

jchcollins · #9 08-09-2024, 10:18 AM

I like sets that to me are true to their times / what was going on in pop culture when they were released - 1959 and 1972 Topps come to mind, so to me in that regard 1955 Bowman is fantastic and really fits the bill. I'm guessing most people if they had a TV at all in 1955 didn't have a color one, but the design is slick and clever nonetheless.

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