Charles E. "Charlie" Hoover, Catcher, Kansas City Cowboys, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1888

This card, printed by Goodwin & Company, captures Charles E. Hoover of the Kansas City Cowboys. Note Hoover's pose: the crouch, the ball held out. This motif carries echoes of supplicatory gestures seen across time and cultures, from religious offerings to acts of submission or readiness. Consider how this mirrors images of Roman orators, arms extended, offering their discourse to the masses. Or the iconography of Christian saints bearing gifts, their hands outstretched in a gesture of giving. Over time, such gestures evolve, their original sacred meanings blending into secular contexts. Here, the symbolism has shifted; the act of offering is now about athletic prowess, a test of skill. What was once a gesture loaded with spiritual weight now signifies a readiness to engage, compete, and perform. It reveals the cyclical dance of symbols, their power undiminished as they resurface in new forms, constantly reinvented by the currents of culture.