T206 Honus Wagner Card to be Auctioned Off in November

This past August I wrote an article about a 1909 Honus Wagner card that sold at auction for more than $1.62 million. The card, which is known at T206 and at the time was sold by Mastro Auctions in Chicago, apparently has a twin. Philip Weiss Auctions of Oceanside, New York will sell another T206 Honus Wagner Baseball card as part of a huge auction slated for November 22 & 23, 2008. This card, which the auction house says is being sold by its original owner however is graded a 3 by SGC standards and therefore may not bring in the millions that its twin did in August. Philip Weiss is has been quoted in news reports as saying that the card is expected to bring in between $500,000 and $800,000.

This auction, which will feature more than 1000 lots in the two day period, will also include other sports memorabilia including other T205 and T206 baseball trading cards. Between 1909 and 1911, the American Tobacco Company inserted baseball cards into cigarette packs as a promotion. However, only about 200 of the Honus Wagner cards made it into general circulation because the athlete was a non-smoker and refused to be associated with the cigarette promotion. Born Johannes Peter Wagner in 1874, Honus was one of nine children. He played shortstop from 1897 to 1917 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936.

Shea Stadium & RCA Dome Memorabilia to be Auctioned & Sold

Recently I wrote an article about the City of Buffalo announcing that they are seeking an auction company to sell off Buffalo Memorial Auditorium memorabilia. I said it would be sad to see the old place go. Many other fans will feel the same way this week with the announcement of the Shea Stadium memorabilia auction and the upcoming RCA Dome memorabilia auction. Shea Stadium in New York is where the Major League Baseball New York Mets play. The RCA Dome is where the Payton Manning threw many of his touchdown passes in the National Football League. In an era of better stadiums to make players and owners richer, both of those venues are being torn down.

The sale of Shea Stadium memorabilia began today and continues throughout the weekend. Everything at the stadium is being offered for sale including seats, banners, signs, dugout and even the escalators. The kicker here is that in order to bid or buy any of these items you must first join the club. MeiGray Group who is running the sale of memorabilia is first selling, for $2,500 - $10,000 Premiere Club memberships that will allow you a chance at first dibs on the merchandise. They have three levels Platinum, Gold and Silver. The money you pay is being called a minimum purchase deposit and although non-refundable, will be used towards any purchases you make.

On September 24, 2008, the roof of the RCA Dome, which was built in 1984, in Indianapolis, Indiana, will be deflated. After it is completely deflated, the roof will be cut into small pieces and sold as memorabilia along with other memorabilia that is being salvaged within the stadium walls. For about $60 you can obtain a piece of the RCA Dome roof on a plaque from the Colts Pro Shop. Apparently they are also auctioning off items although when I checked out the site recently, there was nothing listed on their auction page. After the roof is gone and everything else is stripped and dismantled, the upper level is going to be imploded. And another great venue in the history of sports and will be gone forever.

Honus Wagner Near Record Baseball Card Auction

A Honus Wagner baseball card from 1909 sold at auction in Chicago yesterday for a near record of $1.62 million. The card was one of the earliest collectible baseball cards known to exist and came with cigarettes made by the American Tobacco Company. Another Honus Wagner card holds the record for price; it was sold in 2007 for $2.8 million. The card, known as a T206, was purchased at a sports memorabilia auction by John Rogers of North Little Rock, Arkansas and was probably first issued between 1909 and 1913.

Born Johannes Peter Wagner in 1874, Honus was one of nine children. He played shortstop from 1897 to 1917 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. Many in the baseball world consider Honus Wagner one of the best all around baseball players that ever lived and certainly the best shortstop ever. When he retired in 1917, Wagner did so with more hits, runs, RBI’s, doubles, triples and steals than any other player. According to officials at Mastro Auctions, there are fewer than 100 Honus Wagner Cards known to exist and only 10 in mint condition.