The Allan Schwartz Collection
In 1948, Allan Schwartz spent a penny and opened his first pack of Bowman’s baseball cards. Delighted to find the Yankees’ Yogi Berra smiling back at him, at that instant a love for collecting was ignited. That passion would lead him on a decades-long journey to flea markets, antique shops, trade shows, and into countless attics and basements in search of sports cards. Starting with his well-preserved childhood baseball card sets, the majority of Allan’s collection was built at a time when most people had little regard for what he coveted. Allan established longtime relationships with pioneering sports dealers and fellow collectors that enriched his life as much as the cards and memorabilia did themselves. No greater bond was enjoyed in Allan’s hobby than the one he shared with his son Matthew. Matthew not only shared his father’s passion for sports antiquities, but he also helped guide the duo’s collecting pursuits through the hobby’s evolving modernizations. And, without the support of a loving and understating wife and mother, the Schwartz Collection would never be possible.
Offered throughout the June 5, 2007 catalogue are select items from the Allan Schwartz collection. The majority of the collection will be offered in the summer and winter sales later this year. Most pieces have never been offered publicly before and prior to the consignment of his collection with us, no card within the Schwartz collection had been previously graded.