Lot # 3095: 1909-1910 T51 Murad "College Series" Near-Complete Set (120/150) Plus 30 Duplicates and Nine Variations

Presented is a substantial collection of T51 Murad Cigarettes "College Series" consisting of a near-complete set of 120 different cards (out of 150 in the set) plus thirty duplicates and nine variations. Missing the following thirty cards for completion: Columbia, Fordham, Harvard, Michigan, Princeton, Rochester, State College, Williams, Bowdoin, Indiana, Northwestern, S.U.K., Tufts, W.V.U., Colgate, Purdue, University of South Carolina, Illinois, Millsaps College, Ohio State, Buchtel, Haverford, Lombard, Luther, Albright, Antioch, Bethany, Hiram, K.W.C., and Xavier. The T51 cards measure 2-1/16 x 2-11/16 inches and are very colorfully illustrated, most with an athletic image and the seal and pennant of the college depicted (ten have only the seal and pennant). The designs are shared between the T51 series and the larger (5 x 8 inches) T6 Murad premiums issue. The Murad "College Series" sets feature a variety of sports but are especially noted for the inclusion of baseball and football as well as some of the earliest basketball and hockey cards produced. The first fifty cards (Series 1-25 and Series 26-50) in the T51 set can be found with or without a "2nd Edition" notation. Included are both variations of the following nine cards: Bucknell, Cincinnati, Minnesota, St. Lawrence, Colorado, Vanderbilt, Vermont, Washington & Lee, and Wisconsin. Includes the following thirty duplicates: Series 1-25 (5 cards): Missouri, N.Y.U., Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington & Jefferson. Series 26-50 (4 cards): Two Bucknell, Chicago, and Washington & Lee. Series 51-75 (11 cards): Armour, Berea, George Washington, Georgetown, Grove City, Holy Cross, Iowa, Juniata, Lehigh, L.U., Mount Union College, and MIT. Series 76-100 (2 cards): Canisius and Stanford. Series 101-125 (6 cards): Amity, Furman, Greer, Hastings, and Loyola. Series 126-150 (2 cards): Cotner and Geneva. The condition of the collection is 19% Vg-Ex to Ex (mostly Vg-Ex), 43% Gd to Vg, and 38% Pr to Fr (including one trimmed). Approximately half of the cards have factory packing stamps on the backs, which is very common to this issue. This is a scarce and extremely popular 1910-era series appealing to sport and nonsport collectors alike. Total: 159 cards (near set of 120, 30 duplicates, and 9 variations).