MICKEY MANTLE AUTHENTIC EXEMPLARS... READ ALL ABOUT IT!

I just wanted to post these here to see what Fudd the Lowly Mantle Collector can do to help stop the flood of forgeries into the market place. The goal is that we can all start educating ourselves before we buy. To see what a beautiful signature the Mick had, and to learn to distinguish it from the obvious forgeries at first glance. Something TTA, STAT, DREW MAX, GAI GLOBAL (Baker certs) My Favorite Players Reborn (Tony Podsada) & Christopher Morales can't seem to do....at all? You will almost never see a signature in this photo album collection that would match or come close to anything that has been certed by any of those guys. Maybe you'll find 1 in a 1000 if you're lucky. To tell the difference between what an original hand signed Photo by the Mick looks like vs. an obvious Fake at first glance is easy. Give it a try. It's Fun!

As has been told many times, The Mick made more in one signing than his dad did in 1 year. He felt obligated to his fans to give them a "work of art". He did this by signing on just the right spot for the particular photograph he was presented. The size of his signature was determined by how big the sweet spot was. He knew EXACTLY how to fit his signature in so it looked perfect. A thing of beauty really. Please note that these are not all the same signature over and over, but merely a sample from my collection. What I do know is that these are consistent with the WAY Mantle signed and structured his Autograph as we know it. Good luck! FUDD

AUTHENTIC EXEMPLARS-PHOTOS

http://s1342.beta.photobucket.com/user/fuddjcal/library/Mickey%20Ma...

AUTHENTIC EXEMPLARS-BALLS

http://s1342.beta.photobucket.com/user/fuddjcal/library/Mickey%20Ma...

Tags: forgeries, genuine, mickey mantle

10 members like this

Comment by Steve Zarelli on May 21, 2011 at 9:26am: If you look at the large image, you can see the flow and speed -- it was signed loosely and quickly. The letter formation is perfect when compared to known authentic exemplars.

Secondly, it was purchased many years ago before the forgery contagion hit epic proportions. Also, at that time, books were a very unlikely medium for forgeries.

I suspect that even to this day, forgeries in books are at a much lower proportion than with balls and photos.

Comment by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on May 21, 2011 at 11:14am: Mr. Zip, what did you pay for your signed photo if I may ask?

Comment by Steve Zarelli on May 21, 2011 at 2:47pm: $150 with no third party authentication. I am 100% comfortable with it and feel no need for a second opinion. The seller claims to have obtained it in-person at a Long Island card show. All of his material looked good and passed the sniff test.

Around $150 is the going rate for real Mantle 8x10 with no TPA. With PSA or JSA, you are looking at $250 and up.

As was documented here a few months ago, I got burned with some fake Mantles. My fakes were a cut above the STAT/Burczyk junk, but they were fakes none the less. Since then I have dived in and taken a crash course in the Mick. You look at enough good ones and talk to other collectors for tips... eventually it "clicks" and you can really see the difference between real and fake.

Comment by Steve Zarelli on June 8, 2011 at 6:22pm: Here is another addition to my collection. With FUDD's approval, I think we can add this as an authentic exemplar to add to the group. A nice over and under. :-)

Comment by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on June 8, 2011 at 7:34pm: Mr. Zip,

How about a close-up scan of the autograph so we can add it to our comparisons?

Thanks

Comment by Steve Zarelli on June 9, 2011 at 4:56am

Comment by Fuddjcal on June 9, 2011 at 8:51am: not that you need my approval, but Fudd DOES LIKE this signature and wishes it was in my collection instead of yours. Has every "tell" I'm looking for as a "Lowly Mantle Collector"!