Mittersill, Crossed Skis, Franconia N.H. — c. 1960s

A vintage Mittersill ski patch, estimated to date from the 1960s, featuring a red heraldic shield holding a white bird over a white M, with yellow skis and poles crossed behind it. MITTERSILL in red across the top, FRANCONIA H. curving along the bottom, pale blue field. The yellow thread on the skis has kept its color better than anything else on the patch.

Mittersill was a serious place built by a man with a sense of occasion. In 1952 it hosted a tennis match on skates, Billy Talbert against Pancho Segura, two of the best players in the country. That was a Mittersill idea. Only a ski area run by a baron would have thought of it.

The heraldry is pure Austria. The crossed skis are pure postwar New England. Somebody wanted both on three inches of twill, and the embroiderer made it fit. It looks like a family crest a pair of skis wandered into.

The skiing stopped in 1984. The crest outlasted it, and so did this.

Embroidered on twill, merrowed edge. Photos are the condition report.