Hockey stick from the 1800s valued at US$3.5 million heads to auction

Hockey stick from the 1800s up for sale Goldin Auctions opened up bidding for the “Morse stick,” a hockey stick from the 1800s that has been appraised at US$3.5 million.

TORONTO — An auction company in the U.S. is offering what it calls “possibly the oldest known hockey stick in existence” and is hoping for a big payday from the item.

Goldin Auctions, which specializes in sports memorabilia, recently opened up bidding for the “Morse stick,” a wooden hockey stick that’s believed to be from a period between the 1850s and 1870s.

The first recorded game of hockey happen in 1875.

The stick was likely made from a tree branch or root and has carvings near the blade and the handle, according to the listing. It has been appraised at US$3.5 million and comes with a letter of authenticity from the owners and from sports memorabilia experts.

If the stick fetches the appraised value, it would be the most expensive item Goldin Auctions has ever sold, eclipsing the US$3.12 million it received for a 1909-1911 trading card of Pittsburgh Pirates player Honus Wagner – which is known as the “Holy Grail” of trading cards.

The stick is owned by Gary and Germaine Morse. According to the family, Germaine’s brother found it after buying their grandmother’s house in Vermont back in 1980.

“I find it to be a unique and most interesting artifact that fills the void in 19th century hockey history between shinny, ice polo and ice hockey and would be a valuable acquisition for any series hockey collector or museum curator,” J.W. Fitsell, a board member at the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, Ont. wrote in a letter to Gary Morse.

The International Hockey Hall of Fame has offered to display the stick.

This isn’t the first time an ancient hockey stick went up for auction. In 2006, “the Rutherford Stick” -- which dates back to between 1852 and 1856 -- was sold for CAD$2.2 million.

Bidding on the Morse Stick closes on May 16 and starts at US$100,000. As of Thursday afternoon, it has yet to receive a bid.