Lot # 284: Rare 1892 Westervelt Studio Los Angeles Seraphs Team Composite Imperial Cabinet Photo

Category: 19th Century

Starting Bid: $5,000.00

Bids: 0 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed


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Item was in Auction "Fall, 2023 Premier Auction",
which ran from 11/5/2023 12:00 AM to
11/25/2023 9:00 PM



Extraordinary 7" x 10" imperial cabinet featuring a composite image of the 1892 Los Angeles Seraphs.  The 1892 Seraphs were new entrants into the original California League, a professional league established in the late 1800s.  In their first season, they captured the pennant, winning 101 games with a roster filled with eventual major league talent.  In 1893 the Seraphs changed their name to the Angels (A "seraph" is an "angelic being"), and on July 2, 1893, played in the first-ever night game (though Major League Baseball did not play its first night game until 1935).  At the end of the 1893 season, the California League dissolved, and sadly, so did the Seraphs. Their nickname, however, continued on.  

 

The cabinet itself is exceedingly rare, one of only two we have ever seen.  The composite image includes 14 subjects, including team president G.A. Vanderbeck, secretary W.F. Kennedy and player/manager and captain Bob Glenlavin.  Also pictured are the following (major leaguers in boldface): Kid Baldwin, Louis Balsz, Billy Hulen, Dad Lytle (spelled "Lytele" on the cabinet), Al McCauleyPeter McNabbJohn RoachJames Stafford, William Strong, George Treadway, and Rasty Wright.  Of those players, Baldwin, Roach, and Treadway can be found on Old Judge cards.

 

The piece displays some minor soiling and foxing, most visible within the composite photo area.  The gold leaf edges are bright and clean, the images each strong with excellent contrast.  Produced by the Westervelt Studio of Los Angeles, promotional text indicates the piece was offered by Siegel the Hatter, a Los Angeles department store owned by Myer Siegel.  A truly rare imperial cabinet, picturing the first pro baseball team from Los Angeles.

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