Famously averaging an unbeaten 99.94 runs in Test matches, Bradman captained the Australian team in the 1946–47 series, which was the first to be played between Australia and England after the Second World War.
Cricket had been far from front of mind during the long war years, and the Test series represented something of a return to normality for Australians and ushered in a period of cricketing dominance.
The baggy green cap was acquired by the National Museum for $438,550, with the support of the Australian Government through the National Cultural Heritage Account, which contributed half of the cost.
Minister for the Arts, the Hon Tony Burke MP, said the purchase safeguards an important piece of our national history for future generations.
'You'd be hard-pressed to meet an Australian that hasn't heard of the great Donald Bradman, arguably the greatest cricketer of all time.
'Now to have one of his iconic baggy greens in the National Museum of Australia means visitors will have the opportunity to get up close and connect with our sporting and cultural history.'
National Museum director Katherine McMahon thanked the Australian Government for its financial support to purchase this iconic piece of Australian cricket history.
'Sir Donald's baggy green marks the life of Australia's most celebrated batsman and reflects a time when sporting heroes gave Australians hope, following the heartbreak and hardship of the Second World War.
'We are delighted this national treasure has found a home here at the National Museum of Australia for all Australians to enjoy,' Ms McMahon said.
The cap will go into the Museum's National Historical Collection and is one of just 11 Bradman baggy greens known to exist. The cap will be on display in the Museum's recently reopened Landmarks gallery, which explores the moments and objects that help define the nation's history from 1770 to the present day.
The baggy green will sit alongside other Bradman memorabilia at the Museum including an autographed bat from the first Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, during the 1934 Ashes series won by Australia, and the ball bowled by First Nations cricketer Eddie Gilbert (Kaanju) when he dismissed Bradman for a duck in a Sheffield Shield match in 1931.
Background
The National Cultural Heritage Account (NCHA) is a grant program that assists Australian cultural organisations to acquire significant cultural heritage objects.
It helps to retain and protect Australia's cultural heritage for future generations and provide public access to important objects that tell a story about our cultural identity.
The National Museum has acquired other objects with the support of the NCHA:
- Australian Colonial Billiard Table, a masterpiece of late 19th-century Australian design.
- 1912 McDonald 'Imperial' oil-powered 'EB' tractor, one of the earliest surviving tractors manufactured in Australia.
- A rare thylacine skin from 1923, one of the best-preserved pelts of the extinct animal in known existence.
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