This was an eBay purchase that arrived in the first few days of 2022.
Card Number 911: Allen & Ginter framed mini-relic, 2021; #MFR-TG
The mini card could be popped out of the frame if one so wished to do that. The swatch is a dark blue that could be a Padres uniform from the latter end of Tony's career. The photo is an interesting choice because it isn't the photo used on the Allen & Ginter base card or mini in 2021. Here's a reminder of what that card looked like.
The relic card looks like it has been rendered off the photo used by Topps for the Stadium Club Chrome card in 2020.
The back looks nicer than the average Allen & Ginter card. The card acts as a guarantee of the genuineness of the cloth swatch, except...
Topps have produced relic cards for Tony for the last few years and I'm beginning to wonder how they are doing this. Surely at some point, they will run out of articles of clothing that Tony touched. This is beginning to feel like the trade in religious relics in Europe in the Middle Ages, when there were enough venerated bits of wood, all supposedly from the cross that Jesus was crucified on, to build a large structure. All those holy relics, ranging from bits of bone from long-dead saints to items touched or blessed by Jesus himself or his mother, often had very vague provenance. Topps seem to be following a similar path in terms of guaranteeing the genuineness of a relic while issuing a subtle disclaimer.
Total: 911 cards
I've complained about card manufacturers being vague about the COA's before in regards to memorabilia cards. It sucks, because they have the capability of giving us very detailed information:
ReplyDeletehttps://sanjosefuji.blogspot.com/2017/02/deja-vu.html
These days I just take each memorabilia card's authenticity with a grain of salt. That being said... the framed relic you have is still very, very cool. If I can find one at an affordable price, I'd grab it.
Once upon a time a game worn relic card meant something. It was the pride of a collection. Now they have become so common that it is easier to obtain a game worn relic then a short print card of the same player. Needless to say I would bot cry if companies quit making them.
ReplyDeletePanini, UD, Topps...they all stretch the meaning of "game-used" nowadays.
ReplyDeleteWell it seems we all share similar opinions about relic vagueness!
ReplyDelete