Early 1900s color lithograph baseball cards, like the T206s,
T205s and E101s, used a more advanced form of printing than in
the 1800s. However, the lithography was still old fashioned and
the player pictures still often resemble little paintings or
color sketches.
As with 1800s color lithograph baseball cards, beyond the
printing technicalities the lithographic printing on these cards
simply do not resemble modern half tone printing under the microscope.
If you take your microscope and compare the player picture on
a T206 and a modern card you will the drastic difference.
The half-tone process proved popular with photoengraving printing
(see next chapter), with photo-realistic black and white images
appearing regularly in early 1900s newspapers, magazines and
those black and white cards. However, it took much longer for
the half-tone process to catch on with colo lithography. This
was partially due to the early lithographic ink. The ink used
for lithography was thinner and unstable, which was not conducive
to creating the rigid dot structure necessary for a detailed
half-tone print.
Many early 1900s color lithograph cards used the half-tone
process, but in a limited and primitive way. Under the microscope
a T206 or E95 looks much like the printing on an Allen &
Ginter and nothing like a Topps. There may be some areas of dots,
but there is no rigid pattern or shape. In some areas the dots
may be rigid, but in others they're irregular and strange shaped.
As with the 1800s chromolithography, the ink on the early
1900s color lithograph cards is thin and looks like watercolor.
The ink often has the distinct irregular dark rim around the
edge of the ink. This typical irregular dark rim will also appear
on much of the black borders and text below the player's picture.
As the back of the card usually has a rough texture, there is
usually no detectable rim there. It's best to examine the printing
on the smooth front.
Off registration as a sign of authenticity
A common problem in the printing of early 1900s color lithograph
cards was registration. The printers had a tough time lining
up the colors during the printing process. It is not uncommon
for a T206 card to have the colors at the border or edge of the
player's body or head to overlap. Sometimes the overlapping is
obvious in an online picture.
If the overlapping ink is solid, that's a strong sign that
your card is genuine. In a cheap home computer reprint, where
someone prints out a digital scan of card, it will have a half-tone
reproduction of the registration. From afar it may appear like
genuine overlapping colors. However, upon close examination you
will see the tell tale multi-color dot pattern.
Circa 1910 chromolithograph. You won't mistake this for a 1980s
Topps.
1910: These half-tone dots are hardly uniform and some have the
irregular rim.
A different part on the same 1910 card. This could easily be
mistaken for a Victorian lithograph.
Typeset lettering on front of T206. Notice the dark rim around
the letter. This type of rim is a sure sign that the card is
vintage.
This 1914 T216 People's Tobacco card shows the typical registration
problems with period color half-tone prints. It is noticeable
in the top and bottom borders of the image and on his backside,
lower leg and hand.
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