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A sponsored post by RR Auction.
The 1904 St. Louis Olympic Games was sparsely attended and was only one of the attractions at the seven-month long Louisiana Purchase Exposition, a major World’s Fair that drew 19.7 million attendees on a 124-acre site.
It was dominated by the U.S., which won 76 of the 97 events across 16 sports, including the men’s 110 m high hurdles, with 1903 U.S. national champion Fred Schule winning the gold in 16.0 and leading a U.S. sweep.
After 121 years, his gold medal is one of 384 lots on offer by Boston-based RR Auction, with bidding finishing on 16 January 2025.
It’s in amazing condition, and includes most of the original ribbon, and the original (worn) case; the medal itself bears the event name. Expected to bring perhaps $150,000, it was already up to $53,594 before New Year’s!
The breadth of this auction is remarkable, with 57 lots of Olympic medals and 35 lots of Olympic torches. The listings show a sensational 39 lots expected to bring $10,000 or more:
● $150,000: St. Louis 1904 gold medal (track & field)
● $150,000: Grenoble Winter 1968 torch
● $75,000: St. Louis 1904 silver medal (football)
● $60,000: Stockholm 1956 gold medal (equestrian)
● $60,000: Nagano Winter 1998 gold medal (ski jumping)
● $50,000: London 2012 gold medal
● $40,000: Nagano Winter 1998 silver medal (ski jumping)
● $35,000: Lillehammer Winter 1994 torch
● $30,000: Tokyo 1964 gold medal (fencing)
● $30,000: Albertville Winter 1992 torch
● $30,000: Paris 2024 bronze medal (wrestling)
● $30,000: Paris 2024 torch
● $25,000: London 1908 gold medal (hockey)
● $25,000: Los Angeles 1932 gold medal
● $25,000: Berlin 1936 IOC Chain of Office
● $25,000: Innsbruck Winter 1964 gold medal (speed skating)
● $25,000: Sapporo Winter 1972 torch
● $25,000: Calgary Winter 1988 torch and flame lamp
● $20,000: Nagano Winter 1998 bronze medal (ski jumping)
● $20,000: Turin Winter 2006 silver medal
● $15,000: Zappas 1889 Winner’s Diploma
● $15,000: St. Louis 1904 participation medal
● $15,000: FIFA World Cup 1938 gold medal
● $15,000: Cortina Winter 1956 gold medal
● $15,000: Mexico City 1968 gold medal (volleyball)
● $15,000: Albertville Winter 1992 bronze medal
● $15,000: Athens 1904 gold medal (boxing)
● $12,000: Beijing 2008 silver medal (baseball)
● $10,000: Chamonix Winter 1924 bronze medal
● $10,000: Berlin 1936 silver medal (equestrian) and other items
● $10,000: St. Moritz Winter 1948 gold-silver-bronze medals
● $10,000: Melbourne 1956 silver medal (and participation medal)
● $10,000: Rome 1960 silver medal (track & field)
● $10,000: Rome 1960 bronze medal (shooting)
● $10,000: Tokyo 1964 gold-silver-bronze medals
● $10,000: Munich 1972 gold medal
● $10,000: Montreal 1976 gold-plated torch
● $10,000: Sydney 2000 bronze medal (handball)
● $10,000: Beijing 2008 silver medal (baseball)
Three of the most valuable lots belong to Olympic torches for Games held in France! Yes, there’s a Paris 2024 torch, expected to bring $30,000, but two ultra-rare Winter Games torches are also available. The legendary 1968 Grenoble torch is also expected to bring $150,000, as one of just 33 made, and shared by the torch runners. The 1992 Albertville torch, one of the most graceful ever designed, was also made in an exceedingly limited quantity of just 130; it’s expected to bring $30,000, with bidding at $16,500 before New Year’s.
The St. Louis Games has two more rarities in the auction, with the oddly-shaped silver medal for the men’s football tournament available, expected to bring $75,000 and the ultra-rare Olympic participation medal – maybe the most-desired of all such medals – expected to reach $15,000.
The auction includes multiple items from the estate of Australian Olympic canoer Phil Coles, who became a member of the International Olympic Committee in 1982 and served to 2011. He passed away in January 2023.
A collection of torches and other items from Coles includes a potential bargain, a group of four Olympic torches from Rio 2016 and Winter Games torches from Salt Lake City (2002), PyeongChang (2018) and Beijing (2022), estimated to go for $8,000, and already at $2,000 by 30 December.
Two other Coles torches on offer are from Tokyo 2020, and the Sochi 2014 Winter Games, plus his IOC member medal and Olympic Order in Silver.
There are also two unique medal sets – gold, silver and bronze – from the 1948 St. Moritz Winter Games and Tokyo 1964. The St. Moritz set are specimen medals, never awarded, but the Tokyo set has medals from water polo, gymnastics and fencing! Both are expected to bring $10,000.
A full set of medals is also available – individually – from the 1998 Nagano Winter Games in ski jumping. Rarely seen, the gold is expected to bring $60,000, the silver at $40,000 and the bronze at $20,000. Bidding on the gold has already reached $22,000.
There are also a rich selection of Olympic diplomas, including a winner’s certificate from the 1889 Zappas “Olympics,” a precursor to the revival of the modern Games in 1896.
A unique item among all the Olympic items is a FIFA World Cup gold medal from the 1938 tournament in France, won by Italy. The research note adds, “In addition to the players on the winning Italian squad, high-ranking executives in FIFA and the French Football Federation (FFF) also received gold winner’s medals.”
Not considered as rare, but still compelling are early Olympic items, including eight medals from the 1900 Paris Games and 15 badges for various officials for the 1908 London Games.
Fans of pin sets can choose from a Tokyo 2020 Torch Relay commemorative set from Coca-Cola with 47 pins representing the 47 prefectures the relay was to visit, and national sets for the 2018 Winter Games for Russia (20 pins) and Beijing 2022 for China (31).
Maybe the wildest items are two “license plate toppers” for the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. These attached to the top of auto license plates at the rear fender, one showing an athlete running and the other inscribed “Olympic 1932 Games” and “Los Angeles.” Bids for those started at $150 each.
The auction runs to 16 January, with cut-off times depending on each item’s status beginning at 6:00 p.m. Eastern time. All bidders required to register before placing a bid.
This is quite a show, with an amazing breadth of items, especially among the medals and torches, and strong interest from collectors before the end of the year.
A sponsored post by RR Auction.
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