Incredible Auction History – A Lot For Mickey Mantle’s 1967 Topps Stand-Ups Regular and Proof Cards

The 1967 Topps Stand-Ups are one of the scarcest Topps test issues, though Topps likely intended them as a 1968 release. Anyway, I ran across a December 2004 auction that featured both the Mickey Mantle proof and die-cut versions!

First, here’s what The Standard Catalog has to say about the set:

Never actually issued, no more than a handful of each of these rare test issues have made their way into the hobby market. Designed so that the color photo of the player’s head could be popped out of the black background and placed into a punch-out base to create a stand-up display, examples of these 3-1/8” x 5-1/4” cards can be found either on thick stock, die-cut around the portrait and with a die-cut stand, or as thin-stock proofs without the die-cutting. Blank-backed, there are 24 cards in the set, numbered on the front at bottom left.

In 2010, they priced the thick stock, die-cut set at $75k, and the thin stock, proof set at $60k. As for the dating, SABR has a great article explaining the likely intended release of 1968. Mantle is the set’s key player, followed by Clemente, Mays, and Aaron.

I’ve only found one other sale of a Mantle Stand-Up card when, in April 2005, Memory Lane Inc. sold the following GAI-8.5 graded die-cut example for just under $10k.

For SA, PSA has a single example of each Mantle variation in their Pop Report.

And since I run The Unopened Archive, here’s the lone wrapper example: Lelands sold it for $3k in November 2008.

TCDB includes this photo of what’s likely the only display box; the same one, I believe is shared in the article Standing Tall on The Topps Archives who shared a few more unopened items from the set in a piece called Yaz Sir!

1967 Topps Baseball 3rd Series Wax Box

Legit, who knows?! But Masto offered this 1967 Topps Baseball 3rd-Series 24-Count Wax Box for sale in August 2003 with a minimum bid of $1500.

Hank Aaron and Ernie Banks are in the third series, but interestingly, PSA hasn’t designated any of their 77 graded wax pack examples as being from the third series; 22 are undesignated, and then are the 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th series packs. FWIW, all the graded 4th-series packs I ran across offered the “All Star Pin-Up Inside.” REA sold this one for $3960 in their Spring 2024 auction.

I asked some folks on the Facebook Vintage Wax and Packs group how Mastro could say the packs were the third series. They surmised Mastro pressed some packs to see the cards and determine the series. I had been wondering if the insert or wrapper color 1967 prevented that technique. I think Topps only used that specific wax box design (advertising the pin-ups) after the first few series were released; if you have more info about this, please leave a comment. Here’s an example from Heritage Auctions of a box without the pin-up ad.

Masto described the box as being in Ex-Mt condition, with a few of the packs showing minor faults or tears but the majority in near-mint condition.