Judging the Authenticity of Early Baseball Cards

by David Rudd Cycleback

Chapter 11 : Using a Microscope, Intro

(c) cycleback 2003, 2005 all rights reserved

One of the best aids for authentication is the pocket microscope of 50x-100x power. With experience and the knowledge of what things look like, the collector can make good judgments about the age of the printing. Being able to correctly judge the age of printing on a baseball card is a rare and invaluable skill. Printing is as much a technology as computers, televisions and medicine. As with all technologies, printing has changed over the years. The printing used to make a 1910 card is different than used to make a 1990 card. Under the microscope, the differences are visible. The expert can look at a card at the microscopic level and determine if the printing is old or new. A knowledgeable collector can look at a 1916 Sporting News Jim Thorpe and say, "This is period printing. This card is genuine." Or she can look at a T206 Eddie Plank and say, "The multi-color dot pattern in the image proves that this card is a modern reprint." The power of this type of printing examination is that the collector can make sound judgments about a card he has never before seen in person. If you have not seen a 1913 National Game card before, you can look at one under the microscope and be certain it is vintage. Even if you don't wish to become a printing expert, you can learn a few simple rules that will help you identify many reprints. Just read the next chapter. The following chapters will look at the most common form of printing to make original early cards and the reprints and forgeries. The pictures shown are snapshots from a given card at a given spot. What you see on cards will naturally often vary in colors and form. A T206 with a red uniformed player will have more red than a T206 with a blue uniformed player. Looking at a variety of cards on your own is important. cycleback.com................cards main (c) david rudd cycleback, cyclback.com all rights reserved

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