JULY 19TH AUCTION
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/20/2013
When Joe DiMaggio sat for this portrait in the early 1960’s, he could comfortably look back at a career that boasted a .325 average, 361 home runs and a staggering nine world championships. A career that left behind a book’s worth of records, one of which - his 56 game hitting streak - will most likely never be broken and had made him a household name, the idol of millions. Perhaps it is this thought that triggered the slight smile that has come to Joe’s lips as the photographer’s shutter clicked. The always dapper Yankee Clipper sits comfortably, his athletic frame leaning slightly forward, a slight glare reflecting off the gold and diamonds of the Yankees World Series Championship ring on his hand. The choice of photography studio was no accident that day - what better place for such a man such as this to take his portrait than New York City’s famous Bachrach Studios. Established at the dawn of photography, every President since Lincoln has sat for their cameras and many of the recognizable images of the world’s most powerful figures were the work of Bachrach Studio. DiMaggio, obviously pleased with Bachrach’s work, ordered 3 prints, one for himself, one he gifted to National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown and this one. The print measures 11” x 13 1/2”. “BACHRACH” is marked in gold in the lower right corner of the portrait and Joe has (reluctantly, as the story goes) signed the top left corner of the print in black ink. The entire piece has been beautifully mounted and framed to 16” wide by 20” high. Period Bachrach cardboard shipping box is included.