1914 Christy Mathewson Signed Large Photograph. On Independence Day of this year, the great Christy Mathewson shut out the ...

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1914 Christy Mathewson Signed Large Photograph. On Independence Day of this year, the great Christy Mathewson shut out the Phillies in the bottom half of a Polo Grounds doubleheader to notch his 350th career victory. With Babe Ruth nothing more than a promising prospect at the close of the year 1914, and Ty Cobb a brilliant but unloveable star, it was Mr. Mathewson that held the collective hearts of baseball fans nationwide at the time he inked this remarkable photograph to a fraternity brother. It ended up being Matty's final winning season, a brilliant twenty-four and thirteen campaign that should have earned the Giants a fifth pennant under his reign if not for the improbable Miracle Braves.

Those with any knowledge of the baseball autograph market need no explanation of the rarity and desirability of such a piece. Mathewson's tremendous fame and Hall of Fame relevance, paired with his early death in 1925 from tuberculosis brought on by World War I chemical warfare lung damage, directs supply and demand in extreme opposite directions. Collectors scramble for any slip of paper blessed by Matty's hand, well aware that the final few remaining examples are finding permanent homes and one day these opportunities will be gone. This is no mere slip of paper however. It's not even your typical Mathewson signed photo, if there were such a thing.

Presented here is one of the finest Mathewson signed artifacts ever to be offered for public sale, a thrilling oversized studio portrait of Christy in uniform with a conservative 8/10 fountain pen inscription to a Bucknell fraternity brother. The photo measures a regal 10.5x13.75" in size and shows only light age toning, with a complete absence of creasing, tearing or foxing so typically seen with photographs of this vintage. The inscription reads, "Best regards to Brother Gus From Christy Mathewson, Dec. 1914." This amazing specimen has never before been seen in the hobby, yet another example of the fresh and fantastic material that Heritage strives to bring to our bidding clientele every auction. LOA from PSA/DNA.