The Musselburgh gutta percha golf ball was one of the most important golf balls of the late 1890s, though it was quickly replaced by the Haskell, which dominated the golf ball industry seemingly overnight. Among other achievements, the Musselburgh ball was used by Harry Vardon to win the 1898 Open Championship. Harry Vardon also stated “I can say that I never used a better [ball], as it flies well, putts well, and above all, it is always good gutta.”

A single Musselburgh golf ball in above average condition is worth about $2,000-$3,000 each. Back in 2004, “Antique Golf Collectibles” by Chuck Furjanic listed a grade 9 of 10 single Musselburgh ball at $2,750.

Offered here is surely the greatest Musselburgh find in history; a complete dozen original 1890s Musselburgh golf balls.

And take a look at the box! The three dimensional clamshell Musselburgh box is the Holy Grail of early golf ball boxes. We’re quite confident that we could sell the box by itself for well over $3,000, as the lid of a completely separated Musselburgh box has previously fetched over $1,000!

For golf ball collectors, this likely represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Though we’d love to see this collection stay together, the breakup value must be mentioned, as it’s almost certainly in the tens of thousands of dollars.