Saturday, April 13, 2013

Auction Gold - 1965-67 Don Chandler Game Worn Jersey

This amazing Glory Days-era jersey is currently up for auction at Heritage.

1965-67 Don Chandler Game Worn Green Bay Packers Jersey. The famed punter who was named to the NFL's 1960's All-Decade Team, and a Pro Bowler in 1967, Don Chandler will forever be remembered for kicking the controversial fourth-quarter "Phantom" field goal that tied the game at 10-10 in the Green Bay Packers' exciting victory over the Baltimore Colts in a 1965 Western Conference playoff contest.

The exemplary green and gold Durene jersey perfectly represents that classic Lombardi-era style of the 1960's. Graded a perfect A10 by the experts at MEARS, it displays the all-important "Sand Knit [size] 46" tag in the tail, while its original "[size] 46" tag remains in the collar. Use is extremely heavy, while it has more than 20 team repairs in the fabric, suggesting that it was also used by a different Packers player during practice. Sure to be the centerpiece of any high-end Packers collection, this is unquestionably one of the most impressive vintage football pieces in our May catalog auction. LOA from MEARS, A10. Guide Value or Estimate: $6,000 - $8,000.
It's truly amazing. This particular style is from the height of the Vince Lombardi era, a classic jersey that defined a team. By 1965, the Packers had finally settled on the block numbers the team still uses today (after first trying several variations).

They're not kidding about the team repairs - this jersey has been through the ringer. The work is so fine that you may miss it at first glance, but even a cursory examination reveals heavy stitching, especially on the numbers.

Amazing how much abuse these jerseys took, and the lengths the team went to in order to keep them on the field.

Image credit: Heritage Auctions

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Where can I purchase a jersey like this? It looks similar to my 1971 high school jersey. I would love to have one like it.
jlitch1@comcast.net
OR
jlitch.sjnra.org@gmail.com