The Venezuelan Topps baseball card sets are among the more scarce and interesting sets in the postwar hobby. In 1966 the first 370 cards of Topps" set were reprinted for the Venezuelan market. Identified by the card backs notably darker than their American counterparts the Venezuelan issues are notoriously scarce and difficult to obtain (as there are not many ways for American collectors to obtain them) and are extremely condition sensitive. Venezuelan Topps cards are typically beaters with significant surface corner and edge wear along with paper loss from scrapbook removal being the primary condition issues. These condition issues are common; for illustrative purposes consider that just over 5% of all 1966 Venezuelan Topps cards graded by PSA have received a grade of 7 or better and none have graded 10. Compare this with the American 1966 issue for which nearly 80% of those cards graded by PSA have graded 7 or better. The bulk of this disparity can be attributed to the fact that 1966 Topps American cards are plentiful therefore graded card collectors are unlikely to submit mid grade examples for grading while the Venezuelan cards are extraordinarily scarce and collectors are happy to preserve cards in any condition in plastic holders.Such is the case with this example of the set"s first card of Hall of Fame outfielder Willie Mays. Graded VG by PSA this card exhibits all the attributes one would expect of a VG card however as a Venezuelan issue condition is virtually irrelevant. Case in point: just four copies of this card have ever received a grade higher than 4 and the highest-graded example is a mere 7.5. What"s more this card exhibits a clean image area and copy; aside from general surface wear the bulk of the condition issues with this card are limited to edges and borders; despite the set"s many condition issues this particular card is crease-free and clean on the face. Back damage common to the issue is minor - a few small spots of paper loss from scraping (not from scrapbook removal) is all you will find.Population Data:PSA Population: 23 total graded 1 at this level 9 higher