19522

1940 Presentational Wristwatch from Joe DiMaggio

Currency:USD Category:Sports - Cards & Fan Shop Start Price:500.00 USD Estimated At:2,000.00 - 3,000.00 USD
1940 Presentational Wristwatch from Joe DiMaggio
<B>1940 Presentational Wristwatch from Joe DiMaggio to Lefty Gomez.</B></I> It's a little known fact that baseball demigod Joe DiMaggio, the idol of a generation of young baseball fans, had a baseball hero of his own. And that man was Lefty Gomez. Already a pinstriped veteran by the time young Joe arrived on the scene in 1936, Gomez took the Italian slugger under his wing and the two became the closest of friends over the seven seasons they shared a Bronx dugout. So in 1943, when Gomez was rather unceremoniously shipped off to the Washington Senators to play out the last season of his storied career, DiMaggio marked the solemn occasion with the presentation of this eighteen-karat gold watch engraved on verso, "To Vernon, Best Wishes, Joe DiMaggio." Later Gomez would return the kind sentiment, remarking, "I want to thank all my teammates who scored so many runs and Joe DiMaggio, who ran down so many of my mistakes." The "Impala" watch is missing its leather band but is otherwise in fine, fully-functioning condition. A letter of provenance from the consignor explains that the watch was given to his uncle, the Chief of Police in Hartford, Connecticut, by Gomez. Its status as a sad parting gift from one New York Yankees Hall of Famer to another places it in an elite realm of collectibility. Who will be the next man to assume curatorship of this important artifact? <BR><BR><B>Important notice:</B> Heritage usually auctions material at the rate of 200-250 lots per hour. On some occasions eBay Live bid software or the Internet may not be able to keep up with the pace of the auction. We recommend placing a realistic absentee bid now as insurance to avoid disappointment. Occasionally the auctioneer may eliminate or reject an eBay Live bid, and the auctioneer may also reopen a lot after the close of the eBay live bidding (usually because we missed an audience bid), and may reject your bid even if it shows you as the winning bidder. By bidding via eBay Live, you agree that Heritage may award the lot to another bidder at its sole discretion under the circumstances described above or any other reasonable circumstances. Since eBay bids are not shown to us until we open the lot on the floor, we treat those bids just like floor bids. In most cases the floor responds before the eBay bid is presented to us, due to Internet lag time, so for consistency we have made it a policy that floor bids are always considered first over tie eBay live bids. Also please note that all Heritage lots purchased through eBay Live carry a 22.5% Buyer's Premium. Please make sure you read the Terms and Conditions before you bid. This lot is being auctioned in conjunction with a live floor auction by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers. All final auction and invoice information will be supplied by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers, and all other information should be considered preliminary. Lot:19522 <BR><BR><B>Winning Notification and Billing:</B> After the FINAL session in this auction is complete, Heritage will send e-mail and snail mail invoices. This process normally takes several days. All final auction and invoice information will be supplied by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers, and all other information should be considered preliminary. <BR><BR>This auction will be conducted on a live auction floor and over the Internet through eBay Live. If you choose to place an absentee bid, please take a moment to <font color='#0000ff'><u><a href='http://pages.ebay.com/liveauctions/help/before/laabsentee.html'>learn how eBay Live absentee bidding works</a></u></font><font color='#000000'>