Collecting Cars, the online auction platform that’s become the go-to for petrolheads and collectors alike, is currently offering up a piece of Australian history that has nothing to do with cars and everything to do with our greatest ever sportsman.
NSW Heritage Number Plate ‘1114’ is up for grabs, and before you scroll past thinking it’s just a set of old plates, here’s the thing: this combination was gifted to Sir Donald Bradman himself after the historic 1930 Ashes series. You know, the one where he scored 974 runs and basically made England question why they invented the sport in the first place.
The plate set is believed to be one of only six presentation models ever produced, originally commissioned for the Mayors of Australia’s five mainland capitals and The Don. So yeah, Bradman was literally given the same treatment as the leaders of the country’s biggest cities. Not bad for a bloke from Bowral.
What’s actually on offer is a pair of enamel plates in pristine condition, housed in a bespoke presentation box, along with a smaller enamel replica designed as a keepsake. It’s the kind of thing that would look equally at home in a museum or mounted pride of place in someone’s man cave (though we’d argue it probably deserves the museum).
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“A Heritage Number Plate combination with a story like NSW ‘1114’ is an opportunity that might not appear again for some time,” says Lee Hallett, Head of APAC at Collecting Cars, which is putting it mildly.
The auction is part of Collecting Cars’ Heritage Number Plates: Part XI series and runs until Tuesday 24 February. If you’ve got deep pockets and a soft spot for Australiana, this is about as good as it gets.
You can view the auction and place a bid over at Collecting Cars.
