Jackie Robinson’s 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers jersey has sold at auction for a staggering $2million.
The first African-American to play Major League Baseball, who died aged 53 in 1972, wore the garment 70 years ago during his historic first season.
He had been signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in a landmark move which heralded the end of racial segregation in the sport.
Jackie Robinson’s 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers jersey has sold at auction for a staggering $2million
The first African-American to play Major League Baseball, who died aged 53 in 1972, wore the garment 70 years ago during his historic first season
Before he took the field on April 15 1947, black players played in the ‘Negro ‘leagues set up in the 1880s.
The star sportsman went on to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962 and played in six World Series, as well as being a major figure in the Civil Rights Movement.
Robinson’s game-worn jersey – emblazoned with the Dodgers’ logo and his number, 42, which has since been universally retired – was auctioned on Monday.
Bidding as part of Heritage Auctions’ Heroes of Sport sale stretched until 1am Monday with the final hammer price in Dallas, Texas, standing at a staggering $2.05 million.
The unique lot was accompanied by a letter penned by Robinson’s widow Rachel Robinson, who endured hundreds of death threats during her husband’s success.
Robinson’s game-worn jersey – emblazoned with the Dodgers’ logo and his number, 42, which has since been universally retired – was auctioned on Monday
Bidding as part of Heritage Auctions’ Heroes of Sport sale stretched until 1am Monday with the final hammer price in Dallas, Texas, standing at a staggering $2.05 million
She wrote: ‘To Whom It May Concern: This 1947 home uniform was brought home by my husband Jackie Robinson at the end of his first major league season.
‘You can see Jackie wearing this uniform during the Jackie Robinson Day Ceremony at Ebbets Field in 1947.
‘A photo of him wearing the uniform can be seen in the Most Valuable 1949 Player Series Jackie Robinson Book.
Jackie Robinson in 1946
‘The jersey has been in the Robinson Family Archives since the end of the 1947 World Series.’
The sale smashed Heritage’s own world record for a post-war game-worn jersey, which was previously held by a 1955 rookie model from Robinson’s teammate Sandy Koufax.
That shirt sold for $573,600 – less than a third of the new record.
Chris Ivy, Director of Sports Collectibles at Heritage, said: ‘It’s an extraordinary testament to the enduring reverence for Robinson.’
A spokesman added: ‘This is a piece so significant to both our national pastime and our nation itself, that it would merit a position of honor in either the Baseball Hall of Fame or the Smithsonian Museum.
‘No rookie Robinson jersey exists in any public institution, nor in private hands, and there are no appearances in any auction database.
‘This example survived only because of Jackie’s personal desire for a souvenir-almost all Major League jerseys of that era were repurposed for secondary use in the farm club system and worn until they essentially fell apart.’
The jersey was the anchor piece in a four-day, two-auction series at Heritage that resulted in $13.6 million in total sales.
The sale smashed Heritage’s own world record for a post-war game-worn jersey, which was previously held by a 1955 rookie model from Robinson’s teammate Sandy Koufax