(BASEBALL DEAD BALL ERA) Patten William; and J Walker McSpa

Sale 2174 - Lot 53

Price Realized: $ 960

?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price

Estimate: $ 600 - $ 900

(BASEBALL--DEAD BALL ERA.) Patten, William; and J. Walker McSpadden; editors. The Book of Baseball: The National Game from the Earliest Days to the Present Season. Illustrated with hundreds of photographs and drawings. Folio, cloth-backed pictorial boards, minor soiling and wear; 1-mm tear on margin of frontispiece is the most significant interior flaw. New York, 1911

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A lavishly illustrated early history of baseball. The frontispiece is from an original drawing by illustrator Charles Dana Gibson, depicting one of his famous "Gibson Girls" at a ballgame with her family. Many of the illustrations are rarely seen elsewhere, including an 1866 print of an Atlantic-Athletic game in progress, one of the earliest photographs of Joe Jackson in uniform, and many more. The history is well-written and thoughtful, beginning with an account of the sport''s origins which dismisses Abner Doubleday. In addition to the expected chronological survey, it includes a detailed preview of the 1911 major and minor league season, playing tips from dozens of star players, and insightful long articles on "Making a Championship Club," "The Troubles of an Umpire," and life on the road. A must-have for any serious enthusiast of the Dead Ball Era. Grobani 6-10.