My Mother-In-Law has always been great to me, when she finds something at yard sales, antique shops or at Walmart that she thinks I would enjoy, she will buy it.
She has picked me up boxes of cards, baseballs she thought were signed, stuffed animals featuring my teams, and even lunch a few times. Whoever turns down a hoagie?
Her latest buy though has me scratching my head a little as I am wondering how badly she overpaid for it.
Two weeks ago, my Mother-In-Law went to an older gentleman's yard sale and was looking around when she found a picture that was hidden behind a stack of books that stood out to her. She thought I would enjoy the picture as it featured two Yankee legends, so she asked the man how much and he said $50 as it's a rare piece. He also told her they were no longer printing anymore of this photo from the negative so it could only go up over time.
She then purchased the item and called me to make sure I was home as she found something amazing for me.
I immediately jumped to some big card purchase, so I rushed home as I was out running errands at the time. Who needs groceries with today's prices anyways!!
I was at home well before she arrived, so I waited like a dog by the door whose owner was coming home soon.
Upon her arrival, I peeked out the window and saw no box of cards and only a photo she carried in.
That's when she handed me this photo and told me the story behind it. The photo features Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth in a photo I hadn't seen before. It looks pretty cool, but for $50?. Not sure that cool.
The item was created by The Bearly Collection Of Rare Negatives.
It's not a company I had ever heard of either. Of course I don't buy a lot of photos anymore as I store all of that stuff in totes since I currently don't have the space to display it. Maybe someday.
She then wanted me to do some research on the photo and find out if she overpaid for it and I did, except I couldn't find any information or another photo like it on eBay at least.
That's where you guys come in. Let me hear your thoughts. Did she overpay? Get a deal?
And also let me know if you have you seen another like this? Own a Bearly Collection photo yourself?
Hit me up in comments below!
I've seen pictures considered original copies of the Babe from that time period sell for thousands. This was printed from the original negative which helps its value. If there aren't a bunch of these floating around then $50 might be a steal. Heck ssp's of Babe Ruth from topps flagship probably go for double that and they're probably less scarce than your photo. Either way it's a cool piece. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteOver the years I collected nothing but older baseball cards and other interesting trinkets. I recall one of the auction houses selling these photos but if I remember correctly it was with the glass negatives and I do remember the same photo with the glass negative in auction but my memory is not what it once was. This would be a great item for the Antiques Roadshow, Good Luck!!
ReplyDelete1 big unknown answer/question. No way to know how many prints/photos they made from each negative, no matter it is a cool original photo. price/value depends on what it means to the owner....you.
ReplyDeleteI'm not familiar with this stuff at all, but a check of eBay suggests that what she paid was pretty in line with the asking prices there. Of course, whether those asking prices are being met is another story, but at least it's not like there are a bunch of these available cheaper. https://www.ebay.ca/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313&_nkw=brearley+photo+baseball&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_odkw=brearley+photo+collection
ReplyDeleteNot a photo expert, so I won't comment on value. I do like this photo though, because they're wearing their Yankees gear. I'm used to seeing the photo of Ruth and Gehrig in their barnstorming uniforms. My friend had that photo in a frame when we were kids and I thought it was the coolest.
ReplyDeleteIt's the thought that counts!
ReplyDelete