Brockelman & Luckey Fall 2012 Auction

This is a rare 19th Century belt worn by one of the members of the Excelsior Baseball Club. It dates from the infancy of our National pastime, probably the 1850s to 1860s. This is one of the more colorful belts of it's type we have seen. It has adjustable straps in the back of it so it could be adjusted in size. In the early days of baseball the teams would sometimes be formed from Fireman's social clubs and they would use firefighters uniforms and belts to play ball in. Often times the fireman and baseball uniforms were almost indistinguishable from each other. This belt might very well have started out as a fireman's belt. It is quite ornate, and brightly colored compared to some others known and measures approximately 38" by 3" in length. It looks like it might have been painted over originally and then the ornate leather work was laid around the belt itself. The word Excelsior being in white with a nice red painted background behind it really makes this a superior display item. There is minor chipping and creasing as can be expected for a 150 yr old belt. Overall we would consider it to be very good condition. At least one with lesser eye appeal sold for over $1500 in a public auction a few years ago.