All Black Memorabilia Sold And On Its Way To Te Papa

Although he was just a schoolboy when his 84-year-old grandfather passed away in May 1967, Phil McDonald knew that the two suitcases of his Grandad’s All Black memorabilia contained some unique reminders of a long-gone era of our nation’s game. Phil’s grandfather Alex McDonald was a loose forward in the 1905 All Black team who made a tour of England and Wales so momentous that the then Prime Minister Richard John Seddon turned out to Auckland wharves to welcome them home on their triumphant return.

“I knew it was real New Zealand history, and with great memories of myself and my brother visiting our grandparents in Dunedin’s Kaikorai Valley but realising that I’m getting on in years myself I wasn’t sure of how to preserve this treasure trove including jerseys, signed rugby balls and photos from quite a different era of New Zealand rugby,” says Phil.

That’s when Phil approached John Mowbray of Otaki’s Mowbray Collectables with his more than 100 pieces of rugby nostalgia - “what I saw was an authentic collection in remarkable condition, considering some pieces were nearly 120 years of age and it was obviously from a rugby man of great passion,” John Mowbray said. Alex McDonald followed up his long-playing career with coaching, selecting, and managing teams.

John Mowbray and his staff held talks with potential purchasers and completed the eventual sale to Te Papa for $125,000 plus GST. Phil McDonald is very happy with the negotiated outcome. “What really pleases me, quite apart from the financial return is that Grandad’s collection will be properly cared for - and at the country’s top museum. My grandfather would be very proud of it being shared, because he was always an enthusiastic rugby man with a huge belief in people being out there enjoying themselves.

With more than 55 years’ experience in the stamp, coin, and collectable space, auctioneer John Mowbray says the successful negotiation and eventual placement of these pieces of Kiwi history with Te Papa in Wellington sends a clear message to anyone with memorabilia ‘in the attic or under the stairs’ to at the very least let experts take a look to assess their potential and true value.

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