SCP Auctions November 2010 Internet Auction

The consignor of this Brooklyn relic first called our offices during the early part of the year to inform us that he had a cap that was once worn by the great Jackie Robinson. He came by the cap decades ago from an old friend who had owned the treasured keepsake since he obtained it himself in the seats behind the Dodgers dugout at Ebbets Field upon Jackie Robinson removing it from his head and casting it into the crowd. The cap was later bestowed upon our consignor, with this verbal history, as a means to settle a debt incurred by his friend. As with many such stories, they must be taken with a grain of salt, however, when the cap arrived at our offices we were taken aback by its compelling physical traits. The professional model cap, unquestionably manufactured for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the late 1940’s, features its original Rawlings tag at the back of the well-worn leather interior band. A number “42” is written in black marker under the bill, which has turned brittle and cracked substantially. The caps most distinguishing feature is two “half moon” shaped hard shell inserts at the temples. The inserts are sewn in with blue satin fabric and buffered by small circular pads that can be felt inside. It is well documented in photographs (incl. one shown here) that Jackie Robinson wore custom caps with these protective inserts during his tumultuous early seasons as major league baseball’s first African American player. One specific example with such inserts originated from Jackie’s widow Rachel Robinson, who sold the cap to a prominent private collector. Other players were known to wear such protective inserts as well during the era, but this feature narrows the probability to a significant degree. The cap is well worn and remains in original, unaltered condition. A letter of provenance is included from our consignor recounting the aforementioned story that attributes this cap to Jackie Robinson.