Lot 219. Magnificent Silver Gelatin Baseball Prints (7) from the National Sports Gallery. These previously unpublished baseball images were part of a special display at the National Sports Gallery at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C., in 2000. The gallery closed in 2004. Each print is about 16” x 20” professionally matted and framed to 22 ½” x 26” or 24” x 27”. Subjects of the photos are: 1. An 1800s Kansas City, MO, team consisting of African-American players and representing barnstorming ballplayers. 2. A pick-up game, with boys choosing sides in the 1920s in front of the Washington Monument. 3. A Sunday picnic game in Wisconsin in 1885. The sepia photo shows men and women playing baseball. 4. The Harvard Baseball Club of 1867, one of the top teams in the country. 5. Alma “Gabby” Ziegler, captain of the Grand Rapids Professional Women’s Baseball Team, 1940s action photo. 6. An integrated rural Pennsylvania team in 1886. 7. The Flandreau Santee Ball Club, a 19th century Native America team that played in the Dakotas. These photos are remarkable. They belong in an art gallery. Displaying dramatically, they will become a center of conversation in a game room, family room or sports bar.
Winning Bid $572.
Lot 225. UPDATE: Quality, Rare ORIGINAL Pirates 1925 N.L. Champs Poster from the Pittsburgh Gazette Times. These Pirates went on to become World Champions as well. We’ve seen only three of these 19” x 28” posters in more than 30 years, and this is the finest of the three – by far! The paper remains white to slightly off-white, and the red and black colors used in printing the poster are bold and bright. Close up, the poster shows some creases at the top and bottom and some light foxing toward the bottom. The central image area is free of any noticeable defects even at close range. The poster is matted and framed to about 24 ½” x 33 ½”. Pittsburgh defeated Washington in a seven-game World Series. The poster, which was distributed to news stands, encourages readers to follow the Series in the Gazette Times, with special reports from Damon Runyon, Ring Lardner, Max Carey, the Pirates’ captain, John McGraw, Muddy Ruel and others. Near the center of the poster, Barney Dreyfuss, the Pirates’ president, is pictured with Carey and Bill McKechnie, the manager. Twenty-five other Pirates are pictured, including Pie Traynor and Kiki Cuyler. Carey was the series batting star, and this poster is likely to become a star of the winning bidder’s collection. A NOTE ABOUT AUTHENTICITY: We have had a couple of calls from customers pointing out that this poster was re-printed, apparently about 1980. This example, which was sold some years ago by Hunt Auctions, is printed on early coated paper stock. The re-prints are on paper stock similar to stock used for cards, and they are somewhat smaller than this original. Furthermore, this example is accompanied by the original GAZETTE TIMES mailing tube, which we failed to mention in our description earlier.
Winning Bid $433.
Lot 231. Joe DiMaggio in a 1943 Army Panoramic Photo. On Feb. 17, 1943, DiMaggio enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces. This 10” x 30 ½” photo shows him a month later, on March 16, 1943, as part of a squadron at Santa Ana Army Air Base in California. DiMaggio is clearly visible in the top or back row, sixth from the left. The sepia photo shows excellent contrast and displays well. Up close, it shows a series of vertical creases about every 1 ¼” that extend from the bottom as much as about 5” into the photo. The creases, apparently created when the photo was rolled, are not evident from several feet away, and they are well away from DiMaggio’s image. The photo is in a vintage frame that shows its age. Unusual collectible featuring the Yankee Clipper.
Winning Bid $110.
Lot 247. 1948 Leaf Boxing Partial Uncut Sheet of 15 Cards with Johnson, Louis, Robinson. The cards of #17 Jack Johnson, 48 Joe Louis and 64 Sugar Ray Robinson are three of the four most popular cards in this set, and all three are on the 10” x 12 ¾” partial sheet, which is printed front and back. The other complete cards on the sheet are #13 Jack, 15 Zale, 18 Fields, 20 Greb, 25 Attell, 36 Bettina, 38 Sharkey, 42 Cerdan, 44 Montgomery, 47 Conn, 65 Hostak and 77 Canzoneri. Parts of other cards also show. The sheet has a chip out of the Bettini card, a tear on the Johnson card and heavy creases on the three other cards. The next row has a heavy crease on Sharkey, relatively light creases on the other cards and a border tear. In the final row, there is a light to moderate stain on the Montgomery card, light creases on Attell, Canzoneri and Fields and a border tear. The Louis card has a crease that is evident only on the back. Overall, the sheet displays very nicely, especially the second and third rows and the Robinson and Cerdan cards. It will serve as an attractive addition to a boxing collection.
Winning Bid $180.
Lot 261. Early, Impressive Michael Jordan Library Placard Sponsored by Coca-Cola. A very young Jordan encourages students to “Stay in School” in this 18” x 23 ¾” “No Brain No Gain” poster that is laminated to 3/8” board. Ex with minor corner creases and some corner wear on the board.
Minimum Bid $75.
