DID YOU KNOW #3 - 1952 series Topps cards burried in Atlantic Ocean

The Mysterious Disposal of 1952 Topps Baseball Cards

In a surprising turn of events during the 1960s, a massive number of unsold cards from the 1952 Topps series were dumped into the Atlantic Ocean. Yep — you read that right!

1952 Topps Sealed Box

So who gave the order? That would be Sy Berger — the man often referred to as the father of modern baseball cards.

Sy Berger, the mastermind behind the set

Berger joined Topps in 1947 and, along with Woody Gelman, helped create the 1952 set. Despite its now-legendary status, the cards didn’t sell well at first. In fact, they were such a surplus that Berger made the now-infamous decision in 1960: dump over two million unsold cards into the ocean.

One of those cards? A now-priceless copy of Mickey Mantle’s legendary 1952 Topps card — regarded by many as the true Holy Grail of post-war baseball cards.

Topps 1952 Baseball Cards — now legendary

These days, that same Mickey Mantle card can sell for millions of dollars. One man's trash really did become another’s treasure.

Sources:

• Wikipedia: Sy Berger
• History Colorado: The Mickey Mantle Card Story