Further, to previous posts on net 54 re: Mr Wharton Tigar and his collection:
http://www.net54baseball.com/showthr...=wharton+tigar
I will not delve into his background here other than to say it was bequeathed to the British Museum in London. Yesterday I was able to view and hold (kind of) the Honus Wagner t206 from his extensive collection of cigaratte/tobacco cards and thought it would be good to share.
The card is located in the Plans and Drawings Section but is held in a room with private access. You need to phone through to the Study Room area to arrange an appointment to view the card (and many other wondrous works of art).
The card is kept in a small cardboard box. It is wrapped in tissue paper and been inserted in a plastic sleeve with a piece of cardboard behind it. Note from the pictures the sleeve is not sealed. You are not able to remove the card from the sleeve thus, the back is not visible. Please see photos (excuses for their size):
Fortunately, I and my girlfriend were able to photograph the card and me holding the card. The department curator seemed to pick up on my enthusiasm for the card, its historical context and the link to the wider Mr Wharton Tigar collection. One of her assistants informed me I was incredibly lucky as it is not normal practice to allow photographing in the study room
Some of the researchers in the room seemed bemused by my interest in a small piece of cardboard!
The remaining two million plus cards in the Tigar Wharton collection are held off site. I requested information re: access to the Old Judges and other baseball cards in the collection. The curator provided details of the location and informed me they are accessible every second Tuesday between 10am-1pm. The next ‘open’ date is 17th September but I’m going to arrange a visit on 1st October instead.
To the Old Judge collectors – is there anything you want me to look for? This is not a set I have much kniowledge of but am happy to try and provide any information regarding his collection as possible.
Martin