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.

This example featuring Pittsburgh's Ed Abbaticchio in blue sleeves. Centering is just slightly south on the canvas, with the bottom edge unfortunately cutting off the lower portion of the card's text. This is the major explanation for the card's grade, as the corners, edges, and coloring on the front all present much nicer. The extremely tough Tolstoi back exhibits some surface abrasions and paper loss, but the print that remains is dark and legible. Luckily, the majority of TOLSTOI has remained in tact. Regardless of any condition concerns, the scarcity of this issue far outweighs any cosmetic flaws on this example.

SGC has only ever graded 9 total examples of this T206 with a Tolstoi back, with only four receiving a higher grade than the Fair 1 offered here of Pittsburgh's Ed Abbaticchio in blue sleeve.