I just purchased a large lot of Topps Venezuelan cards. Scans included... Opinions appreciated

SleepyDave

Hi, I just purchased a large lot of Topps Venezuelan cards, mostly 1962 and 1964, along with some other vintage Topps Baseball.

Many of the 1962 cards have paper stuck to the back and I heard that this is actually from the wrapper as they had production issues with these packs. On some of them you can clearly see part of a Bazooka logo. I think they issued albums in 1964 and many cards from this year are found with paper loss after being glued into these albums, but I think the 1962's are different.

If anybody has any information on this, I would greatly appreciate if you could share it with me.

Thank you,

Dave

Allen

I thought the paper loss was because many collectors there glued them into scrapbooks. I read somewhere that was the common practice in that region kind of like the Panini sticker books in Europe. I am not 100% on this and I am curious to learn if the back damage was actually caused by something else.

miwlvrn

I'm pretty sure the common damage on Venezuelan cards is from scrapbooks.

I do have one 1962 in a PSA 7 though, so it is possible but not easy to find them in decent shape sometimes too.

bishop

SleepyDave

I just found this quote from a Topps Archives blog.

"You can see the background color of the stats area is much pinker on the Venezuelan card. That little blob of paper is common on '62 Venezuelans by the way; it is from the wrapper and production problems during sealing led to the back card in each pack of four having some leftover residue come along for the ride. Fronts can also display this streak."

SleepyDave

From a Robert Edwards auction in 2008.

"Extremely rare 1962 Topps Venezuelan complete set of 198 cards. The Topps Venezuelan issues are among the most fascinating sets of the 1960s. The first 198 cards of Topps’ 1962 baseball set (#1-198) were reprinted on a darker cardboard stock for sale exclusively in the Venezuelan market. The fronts are identical in design to the regular-issue Topps’ cards. The backs, however, are printed in Spanish (with the exception of the League Leaders cards #51-60). Cards #197 (Spencer) and 198 (Keane) were replaced with two local Major Leaguers, #199 Elio Chacon and 200 Luis Aparicio, which were printed exclusively for the Venezuelan set. Also included is the elusive #192 Checklist card, of which, to the best of our consignor's knowledge, only one other example is known. The 1962 set is the first Topps Venezuelan issue. This set is far from Mint condition, but is far above average for this unusual issue. The condition ranges from Poor to Vg (includes a few Vg-Ex). For many sets, that might not sound special, but for this rare issue, it is in fact very respectable, and would not be an easy task to duplicate. This set has been carefully assembled with great effort by a dedicated collector who has long had a special fascination for the rare Topps Venezuelan issues. It is standard for Venezuelan Topps cards to have light paper loss and scrapbook remnants on the reverse, since these cards were intended to be glued into an album produced for that purpose. This very attractive set is a rare (we believe unique) exception to this rule; virtually every back is clean and intact with no paper loss. Keys: #1 Maris (Gd), 5 Koufax (Vg), 10 Clemente (Pr), 18 Manager's Dream (Fr-Gd), 25 Banks (Gd), 30 Mathews (Vg), 45 B. Robinson (Vg-Ex), 50 Musial (Fr-Gd), 52 NL Batting LDRS (Ex), 53 AL HR LDRS (Gd), 56 NL ERA LDRS (GAI EX 5), 100 Spahn (Pr-Fr), 139 Babe Hits 60 (Vg/Vg-Ex), 140 Gehrig/Ruth (miscut to a smaller size), 150 Kaline (Vg), 192 Checklist (checked, Pr-Fr), and 200 Aparicio (PSA GOOD 2). Though they receive little attention because they are rarely found in high grade, Topps Venezuelan cards are among the most unusual and rare baseball card sets of the decade, and are virtually never seen in complete-set form. In REA's 2007 auction we sold a 1966 set from the same collection . This is only the second complete Topps Venezuelan set of any year that we have ever seen or offered. Total 198 cards. Reserve $500. Estimate $1,000/$2,000. SOLD FOR $7,050.00"

This is getting very interesting as card #192 was included in the lot, although it is in the worst condition of all the cards.

This a a huge find for me as I already have the 1962 master set including all the variations and green tints. I am now looking to complete the Venezuelan set as well since I am well on my way with the purchase of this large lot.

LarkinCollector

<< <i>The 1962 set is the first Topps Venezuelan issue. >>


I thought 59 & 60 had Venezuelan issues as well?

miwlvrn

<< <i>

<< <i>The 1962 set is the first Topps Venezuelan issue. >>


I thought 59 & 60 had Venezuelan issues as well? >>



+1

I've got a couple 1960 ones but none from 1959 personally.

divecchia

The first Topps Venezuela set started in 1959.

Link to the 1959 set.

Donato

DanBessette

bishop are you sure the Perry is a Venezuelan? Nothing is in Spanish.

SleepyDave

<< <i>

<< <i>The 1962 set is the first Topps Venezuelan issue. >>


I thought 59 & 60 had Venezuelan issues as well? >>



I think you are correct, but the 1962 set was the first set with Spanish descriptions on the back I believe.

miwlvrn

The Perry is definitely a Venezuelan. The Venezuela cards from 1964 didn't have Spanish text on the back but they were on a black background as opposed to the North American orange ones.

DanBessette

<< <i>The Perry is definitely a Venezuelan. The Venezuela cards from 1964 didn't have Spanish text on the back but they were on a black background as opposed to the North American orange ones. >>



Ah. Thanks for the info!

SleepyDave

<< <i>bishop are you sure the Perry is a Venezuelan? Nothing is in Spanish. >>



They went back to the English backs in 1964, but the colour on the back of the cards is black for the Venezuelans vs. orange for the US ones.

I just saw this was answered above, I guess I type too slow....

bishop

Text

LarkinCollector

<< <i>

<< <i>The Perry is definitely a Venezuelan. The Venezuela cards from 1964 didn't have Spanish text on the back but they were on a black background as opposed to the North American orange ones. >>



Ah. Thanks for the info! >>


Normal 64 Topps Back - Perry

bobbyw8469

Venezuelans are hard to find in decent shape. A PSA 4-5 is actually considered a high grade for those cards. I have noticed the commons bring nothing to brag about, but the stars go for some serious coin.

LarkinCollector

<< <i>Venezuelans are hard to find in decent shape. A PSA 4-5 is actually considered a high grade for those cards. I have noticed the commons bring nothing to brag about, but the stars go for some serious coin. >>


+1, a lot of player collector interest, but next to no one tries to build a set of them.

SleepyDave

I'm going to try this Photobucket think and see if I can paste some scans.

SleepyDave

A few more.







I think when reviewing the scan you can see that the damage is not from removing the cards from a scrapbook, but from the actual wrappers themselves. You'll notice the excess paper is always in the same spot on the cards in a line. I also assume there was some type of Bazooka advertisement on the package.

ReggieCleveland

I suppose it's possible that the packs got wet and the wrappers were stuck to the back where they are sealed once they dried off. Humidity might do that as well. I've opened some packs that had gotten the sauna treatment at some point and it was impossible to separate the wrapper from the top card.

SleepyDave

A few more scans of a few of the cards I picked up.

bobbyw8469

These are some I recently sold. I thought they were mounted in scrapbooks as well. When you find them, the backs are usually garbage....

A761506

Nice grouping of cards you picked up.

It is unfortunate about the wrapper damage on the 62's, but it is quite common for the issue, 25% of the cards have this issue.=

I personally love these cards, but they are like a mystery to most collectors that they don't really care to delve into, which is why there is almost no market for them for values that aligns even close with their rarity.

bishop

A761, aka Josh, is the guy to go to for info on the Topps Venezuelans

lostdart58

That paper residual can be soaked off.....

A761506

The paper won't come off clean on 62's - it leaves a stain. 62's are also flimsy as ever, they are very difficult to work with and have a tendency to warp in the process of drying.