This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/2/2021
Aside from his pitching achievements, he was the greatest all-around hero of the Deadball Era, a handsome, college-educated man who lifted the rowdy world of baseball to gentlemanliness. Matty was the basis, many say, for the idealized athlete Frank Merriwell, an inspiration to many authors over the years, and the motivation for an Off-Broadway play based on his life and writings. “He gripped the imagination of a country that held a hundred million people and held this grip with a firmer hold than any man of his day or time,” wrote sportswriter Grantland Rice. Offered is without question one of if not the finest of all Baseball themed advertising pieces, the famed circa 1910 Tuxedo Tobacco Trolly car sign featuring the Christian gentleman, Christy Mathewson. Mathewson's likeness appeared on tobacco cards and advertisements on a frequent basis during his heyday. None of these items were more spectacular than this dramatic and colorful Tuxedo Tobacco trolley car sign, produced circa 1910. The offered collectible hails as one of the most visually appealing images of the period and measures a substantial 21" x 11" and astounds at a grade level of EX+ to EX/MT with no known restoration which is a commonly accepted practice on advertising items from this time period. Of the handful of remaining examples of this treasured piece the featured keepsake is amongst the very finest copies extant.