Fantastic collection of 1938 Gum Inc. Horrors of War trading cards, comprising 142 PSA graded cards plus six rare ungraded ’premiums,’ each measuring 2 1/2″ by 3 1/8″. In all, this lot represents about half of the 288-card set, which was created to ‘teach peace by exposing the horrors of war’—following descriptive captions of each scene, text on the reverse of each card reads, “To know the HORRORS OF WAR is to want PEACE.” The cards depict true horrors of war in graphic detail, focusing on scenes involving contemporary worldwide conflicts: the Japanese invasion of China, the Spanish Civil War, the Italian invasion of Ethiopia, the Russian and Japanese conflict in Manchuria, and Germany's annexation of the Sudentenland from Czechoslovakia.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt found the initial 240-card series useful in explaining the atrocities that afflicted war-ravished countries, drawing ire from some United States senators who criticized him for employing ‘bubblegum diplomacy.’ Gum Inc. released a second series of 48 high-numbered cards in the late summer and fall of 1938, perceptively chronicling Hitler’s emergence as a threat to world peace.
Highlights in this lot include #232 “Loyalists Attack Hillside Trenches in Rain” graded PSA 9, seven cards graded PSA 8 (#26 “Shells Splinter Deck of Tender with U.S. Refugees,” #32 “Shelling the ‘Lost Battalion’ at Close Range,” #102 “Chinese Guerillas Wreck a Supply Train,” #179 “Wrecked Highway Brings Disaster to Foe,” #205 “The Changing Tides of Battle,” #207 “Loyalists Cross Garonne to Safety,” and #228 “Japs Rain Death in Canton Ignoring Protests”), and two Hitler cards (#283 “Hitler Threatens Force to Free Sudetens” (PSA 4), and #286 “Chamberlain Meets Hitler in Peace Effort” (PSA 3.5)).
The six ungraded premiums included are rare examples: four of them have the “You Can Get 240 Pictures” overprint offering cash prizes to children, which were issued at schools; and two have ink stamps on the reverse, “You’re Lucky! You get a package of cards free.” These cards are duplicates from the collection of Ronnie Paloger, whose 1938 Horrors of War set was inducted into the PSA Set Registry Hall of Fame in 2009. A lengthy interview with him on the subject was published as the cover story of the January 2010 issue of SMR (Sports Market Report), a copy of which is included.
Below is complete list of grades and card numbers:
One (1) card graded PSA 9 (Mint): 232
Seven (7) cards graded PSA 8 (NM-MT): 26, 32, 102, 179, 205, 207, 228
Thirty (30) cards graded PSA 7 (NM): 34, 45, 79, 87, 88, 95, 98, 102, 113, 114, 126, 133, 142, 147, 181, 183, 185, 186, 198, 202, 219, 226, 228, 229, 238, 250, 253, 256, 268, 272
Five (5) cards graded PSA 6.5 (EX-MT+): 51, 75, 158, 191, 232
Fifty-four (54) cards graded PSA 6 (EX-MT) or equivalent: 7, 18, 24, 26, 27, 45, 61, 76, 78, 80 (PSA 8 (OC)), 82, 83, 84, 87, 90, 93, 94, 97, 99, 102, 104, 105, 112, 114, 118, 119, 125, 126, 130, 145, 147, 159, 160, 165, 172, 173, 176, 177, 178, 180, 182, 183, 185, 188, 190, 191, 192, 210, 215, 219, 225, 227, 231, 275
Six (6) cards graded PSA 5.5 (EX+): 69, 136, 137, 141, 148, 191
Thirty-two (32) cards graded PSA 5 (EX) or equivalent: 18, 20, 26, 29, 30, 31, 34, 49, 50, 67 (PSA 7 (OC)), 74, 77, 78 (PSA 7 (OC)), 84, 86, 92, 98, 106, 113, 118, 120, 122, 125, 148, 159, 160, 195, 208, 210, 214, 232 (PSA 7 (OC)), 273
Five (5) cards graded PSA 4.5 (VG-EX+): 11, 60, 120, 134, 165
One (1) card graded PSA 4 (VG-EX): 283
One (1) card graded PSA 3.5 (VG+): 286
Six (6) ungraded rare premium cards, including four with “You Can Get 240 Pictures” overprint on the reverse (numbers 72, 97, 110, 111) and two with the “You’re Lucky!” stamp on the reverse (70, 74).
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