1953 WORLD CHAMPION NEW YORK YANKEES PANORAMIC TEAM PHOTOGRAPH - PHIL RIZZUTO'S PERSONAL COPY

The New York Yankees 1953 World Series victory capped an amazing run of five consecutive World Championships for baseball's most storied franchise, breaking the record of their 1936-1939 predecessors. At the start of that historic 1953 season the entire Yankees team lined up on the field of an eerily empty Yankee Stadium and posed for this classic team panoramic photo. Featured in the line-up are Hall of Famers Stengel, Ford, Mickey Mantle (in just his third season), Yogi Berra, Phil Rizzuto, Johnny Mize, and Bill Dickey, along with Gene Woodling, Hank Bauer, Gil McDougald, and Billy Martin. The glossy, 7" x 32-1/2" panoramic photograph presents beautifully as apparent EX/MT with superb clarity and contrast. Close examination under a bright light reveals a few faint vertical creases so common on such panoramas (which were often rolled up in storage). A copyright mark for Brooklyn's Verna Photographers appears in the lower-left corner. The photo is preservation mounted (reversible) and shows no restoration of any kind.  The piece is impeccably matted and framed, including the highest caliber non-reflective museum glass for ultimate presentation and UV protection. Panoramic team photos such as this were produced in very limited quantities, presumably for players and team personnel and not for commercial distribution. That notion is supported by the fact that this example originates from the estate of Yankee legend Phil Rizzuto.  The last example of this photo we had the privilege to handle sold for over $20,000 in 2012 (with no known player provenance). This magnificent display is not only the ultimate photographic representation of one of the most important teams in Yankees history (who capped of an unprecedented run of five consecutive championships), it also carries the additional weight of originating from one of that team’s biggest stars.  Includes LOA from the Rizzuto family.