April 2, 2015: Sports & Americana Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/2/2015
This is one of those important early artifacts from the earliest days of major league baseball, dated roughly between 1870-80 and picturing two individuals in the fashion of the period, an image imposed on a black-painted thin piece of sheet iron. For baseball historians, the 19th Century tintypes have proved to be an important tool in tracking the game’s origins before the turn of the century, offering important insights into uniforms and equipment of the era, though identifying individual players is often problematic. This tintype, 1 ¾-by-2 ½ inches, pictures two individuals and has the kind of imperfections that are common to the genre: some spotting, minor scratching and crinkling. The tintype is matted to overall dimensions of 3-by-3 ¾ inches, enhanced by a period-appropriate ornate oval mat that presents Very Good but has a slight bit of paper loss. Truly an important piece from the shadowy days at the birth of the game.
Rare 19th Century Baseball Tintype
Click above for larger image.