Sir Donald Bradman’s first baggy green up for auction
It’s under lock and key in a vault – but Don Bradman’s first baggy green will go up for auction this week to pay back the victims of a fraudster.
SA News
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The first baggy green worn by Australian cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman – owned by an elderly fraudster accountant – will hit the open market for the first time this week.
Arguably one of the most valuable pieces of cricket memorabilia in the country, it is expected to fetch upwards of $1 million when Pickles Auctions opens the bidding on Thursday evening.
It is currently being kept under lock and key in a vault – and requires armed guards if it is to be taken out for inspection.
The cap, from Bradman’s debut test series against England in 1928/29, was owned by now-jailed fraudster accountant Peter Dunham, who was gifted the hat by the boy from Bowral in the 1950s.
Dunham, 76, was this year jailed for eight years and two months for stealing millions of dollars from clients.
While the baggy green has been on loan to the State Library for some years, its sale will now help compensate Dunham’s victims.
Pickles Auctions regional executive Gavin Dempsey said it was a “once in a lifetime” opportunity to buy the hat, which he believed was unlikely to ever be put on the open market again.
“It’s the most iconic of all Australian sporting memorabilia, in my opinion,” Mr Dempsey said.
“I think there will be quite possibly international buyers who look to buy it.
“I definitely expect that some of the wealthier Australians would certainly look at buying it. It would make a fantastic piece in your boardroom.”
If a foreign national were to buy it, however, the baggy green would have to remain in Australia as it is protected under the Cultural Heritage Act.
The record price for a baggy green was set in January this year when Shane Warne’s cap sold for $1,007,500 to the Commonwealth Bank in a charity auction.
Bidding for Bradman’s baggy green will open at 5pm, Adelaide time, on Thursday at pickles.com.au
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