The first series of cards in the T206 set were issued beginning in
1909 in cigarette and loose tobacco packs through 16 different brands
owned by the American Tobacco Company. It is a landmark set in the
history of baseball card collecting due to its size and rarity, with
cards of over 500 major and minor-league players issued in the set
through 1911. It is known informally as the "White Border" set due to
the
distinctive white borders surrounding the quality color lithographs on
each card.
Hall of Famer Fred Clarke is the subject of this portrait with a deep
red background which contrasts nicely with his image. Centering is very nice on this one, which helps the grade. Soft, rounded corners and some light wear on the edges are present, but not as bad as the grade suggests. A registration error caused some of the printing to bleed out to the left of the black box border within the canvas, but the real issue seems to be a couple double strokes of both the red layer and the gray layer, which have bled through slightly to the back of the card.
The reverse shows faint patterns of red and gray paint, precisely where those layers appear on the front. While this doesn't completely cover the Piedmont back, it is certainly noticeable and surely affected the grade. Nevertheless, the front presents much nicer than a card of this grade, and for a Hall of Famer, this might be a nice pick up.