A Rye native and RHS Class of 1980 graduate has made history by purchasing a scarce original 1951 photograph of Mickey Mantle for $3 million, the highest price ever paid for any non-signed or signed sports photograph. The image was utilized for the iconic 1952 Topps rookie card of Mantle, making it one of the most desirable in sports photography history.
Ron Firman, who grew up in Rye and is now a Miami-based investor, purchased the photograph in a private treaty sale with Hunt Auctions. Firman is a noted collector of rare vintage sports memorabilia.
“Mickey Mantle was a great player who was universally admired,” Firman said after his purchase. “Our love for sports and its heroes help bring us together in our communities and as a nation, and that’s very important. I really want to thank Dave Hunt of Hunt Auctions for his valued assistance in this process and expertise within the market.”
The $12.6 Million 1952 Topps rookie card of Mantle
In 2022, the 1952 Topps rookie card of Mantle was sold by Heritage Auctions to an unnamed buyer from Rye for $12.6 million. It is not clear if this was also Firman.
The $3 Million Mantle Photo
The price for the Mantle photo is more than double the previous record for an autographed sports photograph, eclipsing the Shoeless Joe Jackson signed image sold by Christie’s and Hunt Auctions in 2021 for $1,470,000.
“The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card remains to date one of the most recognizable American sports and popular culture items of the last 100 years,” said David Hunt, president of Hunt Auctions. “This astounding record-setting image further memorializes the elite status of the Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card within the history of American popular culture. We are honored to have facilitated this historic sale which undoubtedly has achieved a pricing standard of great significance.”
The image itself is notably rare largely due to the fact that it was originally issued regionally rather than through a larger national distribution. The photo was taken on March 5, 1951 in Phoenix, Arizona, before Mantle rose to superstardom.
“The record sale of $3 million is the highest price ever paid for any Type 1 photograph, including all public auctions, sales and recorded private sales,” remarked Henry Yee, principal authenticator for PSA Photo Authentication Services.
The demand for high-end original Type 1 photographs from new collectors and investors coming into the space is at an all-time high. The supply however for this material is extremely scarce. When an item of this caliber is offered for sale, often it is sold privately and does not even make it to public auction – such as in this case”.
