1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Baseball Card (#311)

This appears to be the iconic 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie-era baseball card (high number series). The card features a lithographic, hand-painted style image of Mantle in a New York Yankees cap with a yellow bat against a solid background (notably one blue and one with a yellow tint in this photo). The card displays a facsimile signature and the New York Yankees team logo in the upper corner. Physically, these cards are typically 2-5/8 by 3-3/4 inches, printed on thick cardboard stock. Notable conditions in this image include rounded corners reflecting significant age and handling, and visible surface wear along the white borders. The centering on the bottom card appears shifted slightly to the left. These cards originate from the famously scarce Topps Series 2 high-number run of 1952. While authentic versions are the most valuable sports cards in history, there are numerous reprints and counterfeits in circulation; a professional forensic authentication for paper stock, ink dots, and registration under magnification is required to confirm original 1950s production. The cards are shown housed in semi-rigid plastic top-loaders for preservation. The quality of the artwork is a hallmark of the 1952 Topps set, representing a shift toward the modern color sports card aesthetic.