BOXING COLLECTION
and the
BOXING ENDOWMENT

The IISOH is seeking $1 million (one million Dollars)
from a benefactor in order to establish
an endowment for the sport of

BOXING

CASH DONATIONS:

Cash donations IN ANY AMOUNT are always welcome and are added to the endowment with the donor receiving recognition
for their support in a variety of ways. All donors are recognized in the publications and/or website of the Institute.
Donations over $250 are recognized with an engraved brick (paver) to be placed in the cafe patio area or walkways through the sculpture
gardens. Larger donations are recognized with engraved marble, granice or bronze plaques that will be mounted on interior or exterior walls
designated by the Board of Directors as "walls of honor." The endowment fund will grow over the years as additional donations are added through
additional fund-raising events and public donations.

The IISOH a non-profit, educational corporation under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.
Your donation is tax deductible.

Become a CHARTER MEMBER now

NON-CASH DONATIONS:

• Books, Monographs, Juvenile literature, Theses & Dissertations
  
  
  
  
• Bound and unbound serials (magazines, journals, etc) and Newspapers (hard copies or microfilm)
  
• Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Reference books
  
• Original letters of correspondance, Manuscripts and Archives of organizations
  
  
  
  
• Ephemera (pamphlets, booklets, folders, fliers, tickets, etc).
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Miscellaneous items that do not fit into the above categories
  

• Boxing Posters
  
  
  
  
• Antique Boxing equipment
  
  
  
• Statuary in bronze, resin, plaster, terracotta, etc.
• Paintings, Serigraphs, Drawings, etc.
• Photographs, prints, negatives, glass plates, etc.
• Films, movies, videos, dvd's, especially older films in need of archival preservation
• Music, records, tapes, sheet music
• Graphics, 16th - 19th century lithographs & prints
• Boxing-related medals, awards, trophies, commemorative medals, participation medals, badges, etc.
• Pins, flags, banners, advertising and other boxing-related memorabilia
• Philatelic items, stamp collections, illustrated postcards on Boxing
  
  
  
  
• Numismatic items, coins, exonumia with Boxing themes
  
  
• Uniforms, clothing, textiles, fashions
  
  
  
  

These lists are not comprehensive and are limited only by your imagination!
Boxing is an international sport that dates back to the ancient Olympic Games and many ancient civilizations.
We seek everything, in every language, in order to develop a comprehensive research collection.

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Boxing in Sport History Boxing is extremely popular in many nations. It is a sport in the modern Olympic Games and a serious professional sport. Some famous modern boxers include Rocky Marciano, Joe Frazier, Muhammad Ali (formerly known as Cassius Clay), George Foreman, Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. The sport of boxing is very old dating back to several ancient civilizations. The ancient Egyptians practiced boxing. The two boxing boys (above) are illustrated on a wall painting from the Minoan civilization around 1600 BCE. Boxing was an important sport to the Greeks and were part of the ancient Olympic Games from 688 BC until the Games were banished by Roman Emperor Theodosius Ist in 393 CE. We learn much about ancient boxing from the large number of paintings found on vases and other pottery from that ancient era. The ancient Romans practiced a cruel form of boxing with hard metal studs wrapped around their hands with leather thongs -- which can be seen on the statue at the top of this page and the images below. The English revived the sport of boxing in the 1600's with the first mention in a newspaper dated 1681. Bare knuckles and brutality were common at the time making the sport quite brutal. The rules were refined by John 'Jack' Broughton, who is considered to be the father of English boxing. He was boxing champion from 1729 until 1750 and introduced some refinement to the sport including a break for the boxers when one was knocked down. In the 1790's Daniel Medoza, another British boxer, introduced refined techniques to the sport which included fancy footwork, sparring and the use of counter punches. In 1867 the Marquis of Queensberry, John Sholto Douglas, introduced The Queensbury Rules which are still used today. These rules included such refinements as three minute rounds, a ban on hugging and wrestling the famous ten second count, and the use of protective gloves. In modern times refinements included the use of protective headgear in youth boxing and a limit to the number of rounds in the match. Lithograph by Théodore Gericault, Boxeurs (The Boxers), 1818, With a history dating back to antiquity the sport of Boxing has vast quantities of documentation that the IISOH would like to acquire. Please join us in development of this collection. Send a donation in cash or non-cash form. When we build a facility -- please visit often.

The IISOH is a Pennsylvania non-profit, Educational, Literary and Research corporation
organized under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.
The IISOH is devoted to the subject areas of
History of Sport - Physical Education - Recreation - Dance - Sport in Art - Olympic Games
Donations are tax deductible