On the short list of the greatest images ever taken of Babe Ruth is this batting photograph by Charles Conlon. Ruth is poised to strike at the plate and has his eyes fixed on the pitcher. In our twenty years of hunting down vintage sports photography, this is the only known example from Conlon's negative that we have ever seen, and it is a massive presentational size piece that is also a first for us in examining Conlon's work. The photo was found in a newspaper archive with heavy amounts of stamps, newspaper clippings, and extra paper glued onto the back from years of use. On the outside was a stamp from 1933 clearly visible, but when those were removed by a conservator, an early 1920's engraving stamp was found underneath cementing this was from the correct era, and this was added after it was glued to thicker board for editorial use. This stamp was documented and photographed before the thick paper was also removed to examine the back paper fiber's which is necessary for the new owner to submit to PSA if desired. While not stamped by Conlon, this is not important as many of his works were neither stamped nor signed. It is our believe that the negative was loaned by Conlon (or sold) which was a common practice by the photographer, so that this large photo could be made. An extra special touch as well is that we have the exact piece this image was used to make documented! In 2021 at the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago we found a program that shows this exact die-cut image on the front. A clearly vintage image from the late 1920's and off of Conlon's negative, this is one of only a couple known examples of this image and the largest Conlon work of any player we have ever seen. Photo does have a few small rips and chipping at the edges from news-room handling, but these are all acceptable considering the size of the piece. The artistic die-cutting makes it a cool looking and unique piece of baseball history. All things considered, one of the finest Ruth images on the planet!

Size: 6.75x13
Designation: Vintage 1
Condition: 2/5
Quality: 5/5
Overall Grade: 7/10