October Legends
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/2/2013
There are quite a few thoughts on when these generic player paper doll cards were issued. Some 19th century experts believe these “cards” were part of a 19th Century baseball game, as the 1892 McLoughlin baseball game used very similar style die cuts. Some people believe these were paper dolls made in strips for children. These paper dolls were very popular back in the late 1800s, but there is no mention of these baseball items in the usual sales catalogs. Are they actual “die cuts” or did parents dutifully help their young children carefully cut these from a much larger sheet? Whatever story people believe is true, there is no avoiding the extreme rarity these cards project. A few are seen here and there, but usually as singles and most often they are affixed to some type of backing. During a 2007 show, one dealer has a group of Detroit players at his table, but all were adhered to solid wooden blocks. This offered strip contains eight subjects in separate fielding poses, plus one batter and one pitcher for a total of ten players. Many of the fielding poses appear similar, but there are subtle differences indicating these comprise a complete “team.” For the most part they are still all together, but there are several areas which appear these fragile items could be separated, most notable along the right side near the field. Also, the batters hitting stick has a tear, and does his head plus another head (far right). This strip measures 4-5/8” at its highest point (the batter) and 19-3/8” across, and is framed to a dimension of 24-1/2” x 10-7/8.” Our research indicates this type of strip is almost never seen, and certainly has not come up for auction. This is a tremendous opportunity to obtain a rarely seen 19th Century baseball card group, in its almost never witnessed original form.