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 (Hunter Green), 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 1905 Philadelphia Athletics (now Oakland Athletics) uniform is the original artwork that was used in the creation of this Oakland Athletics uniform evolution print and tens of thousands of other Oakland Athletics products that have been sold across North America. This original piece of art was painted by artist Bill Band 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 Major League Baseball unless specifically stated otherwise in writing by MLB. For further information, please contact Heritage Sports Art at questions@heritagesportsart.com .

 

History

The Oakland Athletics began life in Philadelphia in 1901, which was the first year of the brand new American League. The team was called the Athletics and they were under the management of Cornelius Alexander McGillicuddy - Connie Mack. The story of the Athletics cannot be told without dwelling for a moment on the legend of the remarkable Connie Mack, who would retain his position as team manager from 1901 until his retirement at the age of 87 in 1950. 50 years as manager of the same team it boggles the mind!!! And for every game the highly respected Connie Mack wore a suit and tie.This is a very classic road uniform. The A represents Athletics or Athletics. The jersey features a wonderful collar, similar to a dress shirt. Note also that even though the jersey has four buttons down the front, this is a pullover style jersey that had to be pulled over the head this was common in jerseys throughout baseball at this time. We believe the first major league team to wear a completely buttoned front jersey (ie one that didn't have to be pulled over the head) was the 1909 Phillies, followed by the 1911 Cubs. The pullover style jersey finally disappeared after the 1939 season (the Athletics were the last team to wear it), but of course pullovers resurfaced in a big way with the double knit era of the 70's and 80's.Also, notice that the pants have a center belt loop, which was designed so that the belt buckle would be worn on the side, not in the front. Players of this era usually wore the belt buckle to one side to prevent injury when sliding into a base.The 1905 Athletics finished with a record of 92-56, good for first in the 8 team American League and good enough to send them to only the second World Series ever played. The first World Series was played in 1903, a series that saw the upstart AL Red Sox beat the National League's Pittsburgh Pirates. When the 1904 season ended, John McGraw of the NL's NY Giants refused to play the AL Champion Red Sox. But by 1905 it was agreed that the winners of each league should play each other in the World Series, thus in 1905 it was the Giants vs the Athletics.The best-of-seven series was dominated by pitching, as every game was won by a shutout. In game 1 the Giants beat the Athletics 3-0 in Philly, and in game 2 the Athletics returned the favor by beating the Giants 3-0. Game 3 was also in Philly, and the Giants clobbered the Athletics 9-0. The Series shifted back to NY, and the Giants finished the Athletics off by 1-0 and 2-0 counts to win the Series 4-1. The Athletics struggled mightily at the plate, hitting just .161, and even more remarkable was the fact that the Giants pitching staff combined for a perfect 0.00 ERA over the 5 games!!!Note: This was an era when the pitchers ruled the game. The Athletics own Harry Davis hit 8 home runs all season and won the AL's home run crown. His 8 dingers almost matched the entire season output for the 2nd place White Sox who hit just 11 homers. In fact, Davis won the AL's home run crown four straight years in 1904 he hit 10; in 1905 he hit 8; in 1906 he ballooned to 12; and in 1907 he hit 8.