Juan Violá was an outfielder, third baseman, and first baseman in the Cuban League and Negro leagues. He played from 1902 to 1915 with several ballclubs, including Almendares and the Habana club. However, since he was a white Cuban, Violá was also able to play in the white minor leagues, breaking in during the 1904 season with the Class C Jacksonville Jays of the South Atlantic League. Violá played with the Jays each season from 1904 through 1909, when he switched over to play with the Augusta Tourists of the same league until the end of 1910.

Violá played for the Class A Nashville Volunteers of the Southern Association in the first half of 1911 before going back to Jacksonville with the Jays to finish the year. From 1913 through 1915, Violá played for Long Branch, a Class D team in the New York-New Jersey/Atlantic League whose team name was coincidentally the Cubans. Violá passed away in 1919 at the age of 36. In 1953, Violá was inducted into the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame, an exclusive club which has only 78 members.

The Punch Cigarros issue is among the most rare and desirable of all Cuban card sets, with very few surviving examples known. Many of the most advanced prewar and Negro League collections are without a Punch Cigarros card, simply due to their extreme rarity. Since the cards were issued in conjunction with a visit to Cuba by the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Athletics between November 10 and December 5, 1910, the set consists of players from those two teams as well as the Almendares and Havana ball clubs. The current known checklist is considered incomplete, with only one or two surviving examples of many of the known subjects. Complete sets of the cards could be exchanged for an album; it is speculated that this contributed to the rarity of the set today.

The cards were produced on photographic paper glued to a cardboard backing measuring approximately 1 1/4" x 1 7/8". Of the surviving cards, only a half dozen or so have been found with the backing, the remaining examples - such as this - are all graded AUTHENTIC as a result. The card has not been trimmed. As is the case with all Cuban issues, the Punch Cigarros cards are extremely condition-sensitive; this example presents very well, with square corners and a very clean surface.

While the right and bottom borders are cut imperfectly, the scarcity of this issue far outweighs any cosmetic flaws. Between SGC - which has given this example a grade of Authentic - and PSA, this card from the famed Richard Merkin Collection is one of only four known examples of this Juan Violá 1910 Punch Cigarros issue in the registries. All have received grades of Authentic.

Major League Baseball's 2020 announcement that it would recognize seven Negro Leagues as major leagues and adopt their statistics into the official record has had a profound impact on baseball fans; as curiosity and interest in Negro League stars begins to pique, its elite players are beginning to establish their place in the hobby. Many sales records for Negro League cards have been set in the last year, including the most expensive sale of a complete set ($370,000), as well as the most expensive individual card ($140,000). As the Negro Leagues' greatest players begin to become household names, hobbyists and investors are becoming aware of the extreme rarity and historical significance of those players' collectibles. Demand has never been higher.