t206-evaluation

name	t206-evaluation
description	Use when evaluating any T206 (1909-1911 American Tobacco) cigarette card. T206 is the foundation of vintage card collecting.

T206 Evaluation

T206 set has ~525 cards across 4 print runs over 1909-1911. Honus Wagner T206 is the most famous card in the hobby.

T206 print runs and back ads

T206 cards have 16 back ad variations. Back ad determines value:

• Piedmont (most common, ~50% of cards)
• Sweet Caporal (next, ~30%)
• American Beauty, Old Mill, Polar Bear (scarcer, 1.5-3× Piedmont)
• Lenox, Drum, Carolina Brights, Cycle (ultra-scarce, 5-30× Piedmont)
• Hindu Brown (rarest back, $20K+ even on commons)

Identify back ad first — it sets the floor.

Common defects

T206 cards are 110+ years old. Common defects:

• Paper toning (light brown patina, NOT penalized severely)
• Wax stains (factory wrapper bleed, lenient on grade)
• Soft corners (era-typical, vintage tolerances apply)
• Stains and ink dots
• Trimming (heavily penalized, common in restoration era 1980s-1990s)

Grading approach

SGC dominates T206 grading. PSA secondary. Avoid BGS/CGC for T206 — sub-grade calibration too modern. Submit to SGC unless customer specifically wants PSA cross.

Where this fits in the X3 empire

Used in vintage Concierge for any pre-war cigarette card submission.