Here’s another cool uncut sheet from the hobby library archives, a 1973 Topps Test Candy Lid Uncut Sheet. This one was offered as lot 389 in Christie’s East Sports Memorabilia Auction in October 1992.
The sheet includes stars like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Pete Rose, Carlton Fisk, and Nolan Ryan. It was described as being in near mint condition and carried and had an estimated value of $700-800.
The Standard Catalog described the set as “a bit out of the ordinary, the Topps Candy Lids were the top of a product called ‘Baseball Stars Bubble Gum.’ The bottom (inside) of the lids carry a color photo of a player with a ribbon containing the name, position and team. The lids are 1-7/8” in diameter. A total of 55 different lids were made featuring most of the stars of the day.”
Here are a few examples.
There are also several slabbed and unslabbed proofs on the market, so I wonder if someone cut up the sheet.
Let me know what you think in the comments and don’t forget to check out more uncut sheets on the archive. Happy collecting!
FYI this sheet is the second version of what has mistakenly been labeled “1972 Topps Candy Lid Proof Sheet” – the one with the hockey team photos and other detritus behind larger versions of the photo used on the lids. These – and the “1972s” – are both from 1973. Look closely and you’ll see they’re the same player photos. Topps only made two “lids” sets, in 1970 (has team logos) and 1973 (all logos blacked out).
Ah, yes indeed, same player layouts. I’ll update the other post. I appreciate the clarification 🙂