(LOT 108)
1912 L1 Leather #131 Helmar Premium - Tris Speaker
GRAY EAGLE RARITY!!! One of the rarest Tris Speaker mementos is this incredibly scarce 1912 L1 Leather #131 Helmar Premium. These L1 Leathers were issued in 1912 by the Helmar Tobacco Co. and are considered among the scarcest artifacts extant. Horsehide shaped leathers measuring approximately 9-7/8" x 11-1/2" and portraying black sketched baseball images were issued as a premium with the company's Turkish Trophies cigarette brand. The available players numbered 25, with the images exactly the same as the poses utilized on the popular T3 Turkey Reds and S81 silks. The revered Tris Speaker batting image, also evident on his T3 Turkey Red, has miraculously retained a majority of its original jet-black ink. Ably assisting the sketching's superb condition is this Leather once residing in a scrapbook, justified by the verso's six areas of tape residue. Modest stains, general surface wear and light wrinkles not compromising the critical central image are the notable flaws, with the imposing "SPEAKER Boston AMER." caption and #131 checklist number the final significant attributes!

MIN BID $1,000
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