A very interesting type of 1910-era collectible are the die-cut sepia-toned souvenir fans that feature images of the 16 captains of their various teams. These fans printed on heavy paper also included blank scorecards and were affixed by staple to a wooden handle. The fans that were used commercially also contained printed advertisements on the reverse typically for local businesses. The fan contains images of the team captains some of the most popular players of the day including Germany Schaeffer Bobby Wallace (HOF) Billy Sullivan Hal Chase George Moriarty Harry Lord Harry Davis Nap Lajoie (HOF) Mickey Doolin (misspelled) Calvin Griffith (HOF) Bill Dahlen Bill Sweeney Frank Chance (HOF) Art Devlin Fred Clarke (HOF misspelled) and Roger Bresnahan (HOF).This particular piece has never been used no wooden handle has ever been stapled to it and local advertising has never been "crash printed" on the reverse (thus the reverse is simply blank). It gives us a window into how these pieces were produced - it is not likely a proof since it has been die cut already and clearly was intended for use. However this particular piece never got that far as it was never circulated. We have seen pieces with single business advertised on the reverse and also with multiple businesses - clearly local teams were able to sell space on the reverse of the fans which would then be distributed to people as they entered the ballpark. We have seen these printed in color without the scorecard in the center and also scored with dates as late as 1914. Clearly these were printed in quantity and used over an extended period.This particular example is unused unscored with no advertising printed on the reverse and no handle. Obviously used as a sample at some point in the production process it has been preserved in outstanding condition with very little wear. Rarely will you see a piece as remarkably well-preserved as this. The surface is outstanding with virtually no wear. The edges exhibit very mild fading to the color and only very mild wear to the edges themselves. All the die cuts are intact with no chipping or missing pieces that are common with die-cut fans like this. The reverse is clean and unprinted with light toning consistent with its age.