The 1953 Bowman color set is considered by many to be the most beautiful baseball card issue ever produced. It is known as "the pure card" in that each example is simply an image of a player. No text. No logos. Nothing to distract or interfere with the beauty of the photo. In the case of the 1953 Bowman Color set, those photos are in color.

1953 was the fifth in a string of seven consecutive All-Star seasons for Doby. This brilliant photo depicts the man who broke the American League's color barrier as a hero, with the gorgeous blue sky behind him. Sharp corners and sharper edges help achieve the high grade. Centering just slightly north and east with some light snow keep it from grading even higher.

SGC has only ever graded 168 total examples of the 1953 Bowman Color Doby, with only 9 receiving a higher grade than the NM 7 offered here.