posted 02-15-2006 06:07 AM            

Growing up in Southern Cal with Silver Dealers for Uncles & Grandparents, we bonded and competed by means of Steve Garvey Home Runs, Rickey Henderson Stolen Bases & Nolan Ryan Strikeouts..

My Grandmother was a big Dodgers fan and could be found with her portable radio listening to Vin Scully while matching up someone's Salad Forks or Dinner Knives by combing through dealer lists..

Although there were no prizes given to the winner each year, the value of being named Champion drove everyone hard..

When the banter became too much for working conditions, my oldest Uncle would break up the fun by having one of us "bust up knives" in the back alley, or sort a new box of Sterling that just arrived..

Along the way we stumbled upon a Trophy and someone had a crude engraving done that reads MLB CHAMPION..

Every year the winner of the MLB League gets the honor of keeping the trophy..

It's not of any value, rarely sees polish & no-one has never bothered to research the marks..

Represented the one piece of Silver amongst us Baseball Fans that was not a commodity & turned out to have the most value of all..

Proud to say that I keep the Trophy this year!!

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I'd love to see other Trophies and their Stories..

Jason

posted 02-15-2006 08:36 AM            

Its not really our story but many years ago June and I got to know a trophy collector. She was most interested in golf, tennis, sailing and other country club type trophies. Since no one then (or now) really had an appreciation for old engraved trophies, she could fine them for very little money. Most often they were silver plate and occasionally sterling. In a very short period of time and for very little money she had put together a reasonable collection and then stopped buying.

A few years later, she came to New York City for a visit. She was staying at one of those private member clubs that has guest rooms for visiting members. She then invited us to dinner at yet another very private NYC club. During dinner we asked about her trophy collection she said it was gone. Then she went on to explain that her commendations and this diner wouldn’t have been possible were it not for the trophies. We didn’t understand.

She explained; when she stopped buying the trophies that was when the real work began. She began researching the country clubs and the members mentioned on the trophies. We immediately guessed that she had found an early trophy won by someone like JFK but she hadn’t. At least not on that level of nation celebrity.

What she had done was research the country clubs and then prioritized them by their “associations” with other prestigious clubs around the country. Next she would research the members names on the trophies. Often members were deceased distinguished legacy members of the country club community. She would then make contact with key club management, club members of the family and do historical interviews about the period/event mentioned on the trophy. She would put all this together into a presentation. Making sure the presentation materials (i.e. photos, newspaper clipping, etc) were mounted such that they could easily transition to a display case.

After wowing them with her presentation, she would offer to trade the trophies and materials for a life time membership. Apparently since she usually lived in another state and would hardly ever be around, it was an easy trade.

She does use her new memberships when traveling at “sister/brother” clubs to which her country clubs has visiting membership arrangements.

posted 02-15-2006 08:52 AM            

Here are some other links to threads about trophies:

• old trophies
  
• Cincinnati Art Museum - Tiffany Loving Cup

posted 02-15-2006 11:57 PM            

The most memorable one was a Tufts or Pairpoint Aesthetic Movement chicking sexing trophy won in the Midwest in the 1870's. I hated to see that one go.

There are many interesting and fascinating trophies out there.

posted 02-17-2006 03:17 PM            

The instructor did not remember who the trophy was for and I wish I could verify if this story is true.

posted 02-20-2006 07:57 PM            

"Second Best Bottom / Pageant of Beauty / San Francisco / 1928"

posted 04-08-2017 03:02 PM            

Tiffany & Co.
Loving Cup
Date: 1897
Place: New York/United States
Medium: silver, copper, niello, horn
Measurements: H. 14 7/8 in. (37.8 cm),
Diam. rim: 10 3/4 in. (27.3 cm),
Diam. base: 8 5/8 in. (21.9 cm);
gross weight: 219 oz
Accession No: 2001.16