:On the same day the 71st Heisman Trophy award winner was elected,
Sotheby's and SCP Auctions sold the original plaster cast of the
Heisman Trophy sculpture, cast in 1935, that was used as the
model for the most famous individual award in college football.
The original plaster trophy sold for $271,360 in an auction of
Important Sports Memorabilia and Cards.
Voted on by more than 1,000 sportswriters and announced every
December in New York City, the Heisman Trophy has been awarded
annually for 70 years. The winner of the 71st Heisman Trophy,
announced December 11 shortly after the auction, was USC's Reggie
Bush. The cast was consigned directly from the family of the
artist, Frank Eliscu, who completed it at the age of 23.
Lee Dunbar, director of Sotheby's collectibles department, said,
"This is the first time there will be two Heisman winners in one
day. The Heisman is the most recognizable trophy in sports and I
think the spirited bidding reflected the esteem in which this
trophy is held."
David Kohler, president of SCP Auctions, added, "We were proud to
have offered this important sports sculpture the same day that
the 2005 Heisman Trophy was announced."
Members of the Downtown Athletic Club originally conceived the
idea of an annual award to honor the most outstanding college
football player. Artist Frank Eliscu, a then 23-year-old New York
native, was commissioned for the work. Ed Smith, a leading player
on the 1934 New York University football team, assisted Eliscu as
his model. After preliminary sketches of the statue, the DAC
suggested that the artist move the outstretched arm to the side,
as it would be more natural in how a runner would push away a
tackler. Eliscu's finished product was used to create the mold
for the bronze trophy that is handed out each year. He was paid
$200 for his work.
The trophy is now an icon in the world of sports. The first award
of the DAC Trophy was made on December 9, 1935, to Jay Berwanger
of Chicago. Following the first DAC director John W. Heisman's
death in 1936, the DAC Trophy was renamed the Heisman Memorial
Trophy. Heisman is credited with effecting more change in the
game's development than anyone else, including the advent of the
forward pass.
In addition to the Heisman Trophy sculpture, Eliscu, who died in
1990, compiled a prominent list of works throughout his career,
including the creation of President Gerald Ford's inaugural medal
and a state gift for the late Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. His
"Cascade of Books" is mounted on the front of the James Madison
Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.
There were several other highlights of the December 10 auction,
including some rare baseball card "finds." Recently discover was
a group of eight autographed 1871-72 Boston Red Stocking Cabinet
Cards from Warren Studios including Al Spalding and Harry Wright,
from the very beginnings of baseball. The group sold for
$144,000, twice its high estimate, to a West Coast collector over
the telephone. Another collection of 48 early autographed Hall of
Fame postcards, which had laid dormant in a safe deposit box for
the almost 65 years since they were signed, brought $86,400.
Within a cache of circa 1903-04 E-107 Breisch Williams cards was
a Type-1 Honus Wagner SGC 40, which commanded $111,200, many
times over its high estimate, selling to a bidder in the room.
Nearly tossed into a trash can in recent months, this group is
another remarkable "find." Also from this series was a Type-1
Group of 25 (SGC 40), which sold for $57,600 to an Internet
bidder.
A number of the game used bats commanded strong prices as well:
Babe Ruth's H&B Model 125 "Dash-Dot-Dash" Bat, circa
1917-1921, which sold for $122,400, and Mickey Mantle's H&B
Bat, circa 1966, which brought $57,600.
All prices quoted include the buyer's premium of 20 percent.
For information, www.sothebys.com or www.scpauctions.com.
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