Edward Hugh "Ned" Hanlon, Center Field, Detroit Wolverines, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1887

Editor: Here we have an 1887 photograph of Edward Hugh "Ned" Hanlon, a center fielder for the Detroit Wolverines. It comes from the "Old Judge" series of baseball cards distributed with Old Judge Cigarettes. It looks like a staged action shot. The sepia tone gives it such a sense of history... What catches your eye in this image? Curator: The resonance of early baseball imagery. Notice how the very composition—the idealized figure against the backdrop of a simplified, almost symbolic, stadium—creates a mythic quality. It reminds me of early religious icons depicting saints against gold leaf backgrounds. Does the baseball function like a halo in this image? What 'divine' qualities were attributed to baseball players? Editor: I never thought about the baseball as a halo, but that’s an interesting point. There's almost something sacred in the way the game was—and is—viewed by some. A source of shared identity. Do you think the advertisement aspect changes how we view the player? Curator: Absolutely. The cigarette brand inextricably links pleasure and habit with Hanlon's prowess, promising a piece of that athletic glory to the consumer. Think of the "Old Judge" banner as a kind of heraldic emblem. What values did baseball and this particular brand seek to represent at the time? Editor: Perhaps ideals of athleticism, skill, and even a growing sense of American identity through a shared love of sport. I find it amazing that so much can be communicated through one photograph, now existing as a relic on aged paper. Curator: Indeed, this photograph reminds us that the past is not just something we read about, but something we continue to internalize through inherited visual symbols, evolving and layered over time.