The Ball that Won the Ashes: The Blackham Ball
While the Ashes Urn is one of the most recognisable trophies in the world of sport, the ball that won the 1882 match at Lords was one of the best kept secrets.
The Blackham BallMelbourne Cricket Club
The mythological 'Ashes' may epitomise the enduring cricket rivalry between England and Australia, but an important relic of the 1882 Test Match at The Oval is held in the Melbourne Cricket Club Museum - the ball that took the final wickets to win the Test and launch the Ashes tradition.
Print, "The Australian Cricketers" 1882 (1882)Melbourne Cricket Club
The 1882 Australian batting lineup included the captain William Murdoch, H. H. Massie and Tom Horan.
The bowlers were formidable, led by "The Demon Bowler" Fred Spofforth, Harry Boyle and Tom Garrett.
And with all-rounder George Giffen and Blackham behind the stumps, the team proved a difficult challenge to the English sides they played.
Watercolour, J Blackham (2001) by Robert IngpenMelbourne Cricket Club
In the midst of the euphoria that erupted as Fred Boyle bowled Ted Peate to take the final wicket, no one noticed the Australian wicket keeper, Jack Blackham, quietly pocket the infamous ball.
Wicket keeping gloves, worn by John McCarthy BlackhamMelbourne Cricket Club
Blackham kept the ball for more than 30 years, before offering it up in 1916 to help raise funds for wounded soldiers of the First World War.
The Victorian Cricket Association (VCA) initiated the fund, to provide for the welfare of returned soldiers from the battlefields.
The Blackham BallMelbourne Cricket Club
John Wren, a well-known businessman, philanthropist and Melbourne Cricket Club Member instantly recognised the ball and its significance to cricketing history.
Wren offered to donate £50 to the Fund on the condition that a list of £1 subscribers was opened and the ball was presented to the National Museum.
The offer was taken up and by the time the subscriber list was closed it had raised £617.
The Blackham BallMelbourne Cricket Club
The Blackham Ball is now held aloft by a carved hand, under a glass dome and mounted on a wooden stand measuring over six feet in height.
The upper section of the stand incorporates panels displaying the list of subscribers and is a who's who of Melbourne identities of the era, including the infamous underworld figure, Joseph Leslie "Squizzy" Taylor.
The Blackham BallMelbourne Cricket Club
A close view of the rear of the Blackham Ball shows that a small square of leather has been removed. This was done by Blackham at the request of 1882 Australian Cricket Captain W.L. Murdoch.
The leather square was incorporated into a brooch presented to the wife of Blackham's employer, Mr Greenlaw, who had strongly supported his career.
Tap to explore
For some years, the Blackham Ball was displayed at the Museum of Victoria before entering the collection of the MCC by the early 1930s.
The Blackham Ball has held pride of place in the MCC Museum since it was established in the 1960s.
An Affectionate Remembrance: The Story of the Mythical Ashes, David Studham ed, MCC Library 2006
Glorious Innings: Treasures from the Melbourne Cricket Club Collection, Richard Bouwman, Hutchinson Australia, 1987
