Babe Ruth continues to set records well after his death. The Sultan of Swat’s jersey from the 1920s managed to rake in $4.4 million this week, setting a world record as the world’s most expensive piece of sports memorabilia.
Sold by SCP Auctions the final price for the jersey was $4,415,658, surpassing the former record for the “original rules of basketball” which were written by Dr. James Naismith who created the game at a YMCA in 1891. The rules of basketball fetched $4,338,500 at auction.
This time around the winning bidder of the Babe Ruth jersey has chosen to remain anonymous.
The bid also means the famous T-206 Honus Wagner tobacco baseball car is no longer the most expensive piece of baseball memorabilia. The Wagner sold in 2007 for $2.8 million.
Bidding for the Babe Ruth jersey reached a frenzy as 36 people placed bids on the piece of sports history on April 30. Before going up for sale the jersey was housed in a Baltimore museum from 2004-2009 courtesy of a private collector.
The auction also produced some other big ticket items including Lawrence Taylor’s Super Bowl ring which fetched $230,401 alongside a Ruth cap that was worn by former Yankee David Wells which brought in $537,278. The auction also brought in $366,967 for the jersey Mickey Mantle was wearing when he hit his 535th home run.
If you really want to own a piece of Babe Ruth history his former Massachusetts home is up for sale with a buying price of 5,124, a steal if you consider it comes with 5,124 square feet.