This beautifully framed piece features an original piece of watercolor artwork glass-framed in an attractive two inch wide black resin frame with a double mat. The outer dimensions of the framed piece are approximately 17” wide x 24.5” high, although the exact size will vary according to the size of the original piece of art.

At the core of the framed piece is the actual piece of original artwork as painted by the artist on textured 100% rag, water-marked watercolor paper. In many cases the original artwork has handwritten notes in pencil from the artist (be sure to “See the actual artwork without the frame” elsewhere in this website). Simply put, this is beautiful, one-of-a-kind artwork.

The outer mat is a rich textured black acid-free mat with a decorative inset white v-groove, while the inner mat is a complimentary colored acid-free mat reflecting one of the team’s primary colors. The website image of this framed piece shows the mat color that we suggest (Orange), but since each piece is custom framed, we are happy to use whatever color mat you wish (depending on availability) – our standard mat colors are:

Light Blue / Dark Blue / Brown / Maroon (close to brown) / White / Silver / Gold / Yellow (bright yellow) / Green (dark green) / Orange / Purple / Red (bright red, somewhat close to PMS 186)

Beneath the artwork is a silver plate with black text describing the original artwork. The text for this piece will read:

This original, one-of-a-kind watercolor painting of the 1966 Miami Dolphins uniform is the original artwork that was used in the creation of this Miami Dolphins uniform evolution print and tens of thousands of other Miami Dolphins products that have been sold across North America. This original piece of art was painted by artist Nola McConnan for Maple Leaf Productions Ltd.

Beneath the silver plate is a 3” x 9” reproduction of a well known, best-selling print that celebrates the history of the team. The print beautifully illustrates the chronological evolution of the team’s uniform and shows you how the original art was used in the creation of this print. If you look closely, you will see that the print features the actual artwork being offered for sale. The 3” x 9” print looks like this:

The piece is framed with an extremely high quality framing glass. We have used this glass style for many years with excellent results. We package every piece very carefully in a double layer of bubble wrap and a rigid double-wall cardboard package to avoid breakage at any point during the shipping process, but if damage does occur, we will gladly repair, replace or refund. Please note that all of our products come with a 90 day 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Each framed piece also comes with a two page letter signed by Scott Sillcox describing the history behind the art. If there was an extra-special story about your piece of art, that story will be included in the letter. When you receive your framed piece, you should find the letter lightly attached to the front of the framed piece.

If you have any questions, at any time, about the actual artwork or about any of the artist’s handwritten notes on the artwork, I would love to tell you about them. Simply email me, Scott Sillcox, at scott@heritagesportsart.com and I will tell you everything I can about your original piece of art. The artists and I spent well over ten years of our lives creating these pieces of original artwork, and in many cases there are stories I can tell you about your actual piece of artwork that might add an extra element of interest in your one-of-a-kind purchase.

Please note that all reproduction rights for this original work are retained in perpetuity by the National Football League unless specifically stated otherwise in writing by the NFL. For further information, please contact Heritage Sports Art at questions@heritagesportsart.com .

 

History

The American Football League (AFL) began in 1960 as an 8 team rival league to the NFL. Both leagues competed head to head for players, fans and broadcast revenue. This was the way it was from 1960 to 1965 - two separate leagues, two separate champions (although few people would have honestly believed that the AFL champion could have beaten the NFL champs). Then in 1965 the two leagues agreed to merge. It was decided that beginning in 1970 there would be only one league, the NFL. In the interim, between 1966 and 1969, the AFL Champion would play the NFL Champion for the World Championship. It was only after the first World Championship had been played in 1966 that the name Super Bowl came into being.Thus it was in the midst of the merger of the AFL and the NFL that in 1965 the city of Miami and owner Joe Robbie were awarded an AFL expansion franchise, the first team to join the AFL since its birth in 1960 (the Dolphins became the 9th AFL team). A name the team contest was held and over 1000 names and 19,843 entries were submitted. Of the 12 finalists, the Dolphins moniker garnered 622 entries making it a landslide winner!The inaugural season started out with a bang with Joe Auer returning a 95-yard kickoff for a touchdown, just 15 seconds into Miami's first game. Though the Dolphins would finish a disappointing 3-11 that opening season, by the dawn of the 1970's Orange Bowl crowds would witness football supremacy.This 66 home uniform, as worn by such Dolphins notables as Joe Auer and Edward Chief Wahoo McDaniel, quickly established the legendary Dolphins aqua, orange & white color scheme. Look closely at the helmet and you'll notice that the dolphin is wearing a small helmet of his own and that his beak extends beyond the sun halo. Keep a close eye on this fellow, hell be undergoing some minor modifications over the course of the next 35 years.Note: We have been contacted several times by Dolphins fans asking us if the way we have shown the helmet logo on the 1966 helmet is correct. We really appreciate this sort of question and we encourage people to keep em coming. On the 1966 helmet, we show the dolphin head outside of the orange ring, and the fans in question felt it did not jump out of the ring in 1966. After further research, we have discovered game photos from the 1966 and 1967 season that show both logo styles in the same photos. So that's where the confusion stems from - the team actually used two different logo styles - we chose to depict the dolphin jumping out of the helmet because it is a different look than what the team settled on for the next 10 years, which was the dolphin head within the orange ring. If anyone has further info on this subject, please share it with us at ssillcox@rogers.com.