HARRISBURG, PENN. – A 1921 Babe Ruth baseball card issued by the American Caramel Company was the top lot at Cordier Auctions’ August 15 sale when it sold for $51,600. The black and white card was from the American Caramel Baseball Players E121 series and was PSA graded 7.

Cordier Auctions’ catalog specialist Melanie Hartman said this was the highest card of this version graded that high. The card was also notable in that it had a defect.

At least four bidders clamored for the card with more online.

The card came from the estate of Lee B. Noblet of Halifax, Penn., who had been collecting since the 1930s. He passed away in the 1990s and the collection had been sitting in storage since.

“We knew it was going to be good,” Hartman told us. “The market’s a little strange right now, it’s unpredictable. We thought it might go as high as $20,000 and we were pleasantly surprised with the result.”

The card featured Ruth in his throw follow-through during his time with the New York Yankees, written on the card as the “New York Americans” as all teams in the American League were dubbed at the time. There were 80 cards issued in the E121 series and two featured Ruth, along with others including Ty Cobb and Johnny Evers.

For additional information, www.cordierauction.com or 717-731-8662.