A 1911 autographed “Shoeless” Joe Jackson photograph by Frank W. Smith sold for $1.47 at a recent auction. That’s good for the most amount of money ever paid for an autographed photo of an athlete. The photo was auctioned off by Christie’s and Hunt Auctions in New York in a special auction called “Extra Innings: A Private Collection of Important Baseball Memorabilia.”
Christie’s and Hunt Auctions revealed that it is the only known photograph that was signed by Jackson. One of the biggest reasons for it being the only one is that Jackson was illiterate and signed very few documents. His wife normally signed for him, ESPN reported.
This photo was initially sold by Heritage Auction for $179,250 back in 2015. That’s an enormous increase of over 720 percent on the price in just six years.
Jackson is famous for being involved in the “Black Sox Scandal” in which he and other members of the 1919 Chicago White Sox fixed games during the World Series that they played in. Jackson ended up receiving a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for his involvement, despite having a then-record 12 base hits in the World Series. That hits record wasn’t broken until 1964.
The 246-lot auction also featured multiple items from baseball legends, includ a game-used bat from Babe Ruth that fetched $1.05 million and a 1952 Joe DiMaggio autographed letter to Marilyn Monroe that ended up having a price tag of $525,000, among others.
