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"The Colossus" Larger Than Life 19th Century Hand Painted Hand Carved Boxing Figure The Finest Piece of Boxing Folk Art Extant
Standing nearly seven feet tall, this 19th Century American Folk-Art Boxing hand-painted carving was likely crafted for a circus/carnival game. Apparently, the object was to hit it in the chest to "ring the bell" or something similar, which would win the player a prize. The figure is in a barehanded boxing pose, dating it to somewhere around the pre-Sullivan-Corbett bare-knuckle days of 1892. The carving has a Greek God look to it, likely designed by a very skilled craftsman who doubled in religious figures. It is larger than life-sized, standing 83" high and 26" wide, and the base is 25.5" deep, hence our nickname taken from the Colossus of Rhodes. The piece has a seriously tracked lineage, recently from the estate of entrepreneur Morton Swinsky and beginning with the White Oak Plantation in Yulee, Florida (further provenance details upon request). Included is an issue of the Architectural Digest picturing the figure. The finest piece of boxing folk art we have seen and rivaling many of the baseball folk art pieces in the legendary collection of Bill and Millie Gladstone.
Past Sports Card, Memorabilia, Non-Sports Card and Collecitble Auction Items
Other past auction items that may be of interest to you.
1966 Muhammad Ali-Cleveland Williams Fight Poster
Dempsey and Firpo Lithograph by George Bellows (1923-24)
John C. Heenan Presentation "Heenan v Sayers" Scrimshaw Shell (1860)
1926 Tunney vs. Dempsey Fight Program.
1887 John L. Sullivan Lorillard Card
Joe Louis WWII Mini Poster (7x10”)
Muhammad Ali Memorabilia & Autograph Collection (15)
