Auction Details

DENVER, Pa. – The selection just keeps getting better in Dan Morphy’s Premier auctions, the next of which is slated for Oct. 15-16 and will feature the extraordinary Cristol/Glickman family’s doll collection, the advertising clocks of longtime collectors Jerry and Millie Maltz, and part II of the Michael O’Hearn antique and vintage toy collection. The 1,850-lot auction will appeal to those who seek “fresh-to-market antiques with deep provenance,” said Morphy’s founder and CEO, Dan Morphy.

The opening session will feature an extensive lineup of toys, much of which is from the revered collection of retired California architect and Victorian home preservationist Michael O’Hearn. The grouping includes more than 100 Japanese windup toys, 400+ Japanese car lots, 75+ character toy lots and more than 75 examples of pressed steel.

Among the toy highlights are a lithographed-tin friction Ford Sunliner with original box, estimate $4,000-$6,000; and many other 1950s-’60s Japanese versions of Oldsmobiles, Plymouths, Buicks and other brands in near-mint condition with original boxes.

The wide-ranging O’Hearn collection also includes a number of desirable space toys, such as a battery-operated tin litho Space Station, $1,500-$2,500; a boxed Moon Patrol Space Division No. 3 car, $1,800-$3,000; and a Bandai Space Patrol Super Cycle, $3,000-$6,000. A boxed Superman Krypto Ray Gun in near-mint condition could zap a winning bid of $1,400-$2,200.

Within the comic character toy category, bidders will find a rare boxed Schoenhut Barney and Spark Plug figure in unplayed-with condition, $2,000-$3,000; and a windup Howdy Band, near mint with its original box, $2,000-$3,000.

The fleet of pressed-steel vehicles includes all the big names, including Buddy ‘L,’ Wyandotte, Keystone and Steelcraft. A pressed-steel Lincoln made by Turner is estimated at $2,000-$4,000, while an example of the always-popular Buddy ‘L’ Transportation Bus is expected to cruise to a winning bid of $2,500-$3,500.

Day two will open with approximately 350 lots from the comprehensive 50-plus-year doll collection established by the late Martha Cristol and later jointly maintained with her collector-daughter, Merle Cristol Glickman. The wonderful array of dolls to be offered in this session include an exquisite Bru Jne bebe, $18,000-$22,000; and a Jumeau bebe, $6,000-$9,000. A rare circa-1910 Simon & Halbig fashion lady could fetch $3,000-$4,000.

An excellent selection of more than 30 Lenci dolls, all in beautiful condition, includes a rare, 38-inch red-headed Cossack boy, $3,000-$5,000. Among the other cloth-doll highlights is a circa-1890s Beecher-type black doll, $1,800-$2,400.

Also to be offered are more than 30 Madame Alexander dolls in near-mint condition, a fine, early jointed-wood church figure; and boxed Knickerbocker dolls, including a complete set of composition Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs dolls.

European tin toys are led by a fine Marklin steam-powered boat manufactured expressly for the French market. “This boat is from the first series, and has a unique hull and four original lifeboats,” said Dan Morphy. “It came to us from the original owners through a referral from a Florida art gallery, and it might well end up being the top lot of the sale. It’s estimated at $10,000-$15,000, but early Marklin toys have been very strong, so it would not surprise me if it were to sell for more than that.”

Other Euro toys include an Ernst Planck #421A live-steam brewery in very nice condition, $2,000-$3,000; and an assortment of Lehmanns, including a near-mint and working Heavy Swell (tipsy gentleman) with original key, $3,000-$4,000; Wild West (rider on bucking bronco), OHO car, and Auto with Garage.

Additionally, the sale will feature a grouping of 20 European tinplate penny toys, all from one collection. Examples include a Ferris wheel, $1,000-$1,500; fighting cat and dog, carriages and cars.

A private collection of 10 Noah’s arks with animals includes an Elastolin ark with wood wheels and 20 animals, $1,000-$1,500; and a very rare and unusual ark with 30+ fretwork animals carved into its sides, $1,000-$2,000.

Mechanical and still bank collectors will be well pleased with the examples consigned to the October auction. Topping the list of mechanicals are a beautiful, near-mint example of a Lion Hunter, $15,000-$20,000; and a near-mint-plus Boy Scout bank, $12,000-$15,000. Still banks include a J.M. Harper Two Kids, $1,500-$2,000; Hubley Mascot, $1,500-$2,500; J. & E. Stevens General Butler, $1,500-$2,500; J.M. Harper Nesting Dove, $2,000-$3,000, Shimer Toy Co. Electric Railroad Car, $3,000-$4,000; A.C. Williams Armored Car, $2,000-$3,000; and a J. & E. Stevens Battleship Maine, $3,000-$4,000.

The antique advertising section of the sale offers a large selection of porcelain and tin Coca-Cola signs, with top lots including a large 1904 red-version Lillian Nordica poster, $4,000-$8,000; and a large 1908 World’s Fair Coke serving tray in near-mint condition, $3,500-$5,500.

Many collectors are eagerly anticipating their chance to acquire rarities from Jerry and Millie Maltz’s magnificent 34-year assemblage of Baird advertising clocks. The Maltzes are renowned experts on the subject of early advertising clocks, and the 27 specialty clocks to be auctioned in Morphy’s Oct. 15-16 sale are actual examples depicted in Jerry’s 1998 reference book titled Baird Advertising Clocks (see sidebar feature on the Maltz collection). “This is a connoisseur’s collection,” said Dan Morphy. “Nobody knows more about Baird clocks than Jerry and Millie Maltz, and as their collection shows, they left no stone unturned in their quest to find the rarest and best examples, and to document the history of these clocks.” Among the highlights are an 1897 Baird Coca-Cola clock with double-spring Seth Thomas movement and Chicago label, $15,000-$20,000; and the most coveted of all advertising clocks – a design that Baird created specifically to advertise its own company. In 100% original condition and retaining its original key, the clock is believed to have been displayed on the wall of Baird’s executive office in Plattsburgh, New York. It, too, carries a presale estimate of $15,000-$20,000.

Other clocks in the Maltz collection advertise a panorama of products, including Chief Bonus Tea, El Caza Honeymoon Cigars, Bachelor Cigars, Venus Soap, Aspinall’s Enamel, Nichol’s Oriental Balm, Ghirardelli’s Chocolates, Mischler’s Herb Bitters (Reading, Pa.), Walkden’s Inks, Spanish Blacking, Jonas Flavoring Extracts, Goulding’s Manure and Monell’s Teething Cordial. Clothing retailers include: Gusky’s, Shonfield, Woolf, Marshall & Ball, and Baltimore Clothiers. Other handsome timekeepers in the collection promote the Toledo Blade daily newspaper, and Jolly Tar Tobacco. The latter clock was an early Baird production, made in 1888. Even its reverse-painted gold lettering is completely original.

The advertising section also features numerous signs, including Austin’s Dog Bread (lady feeds dogs), $2,500-$3,500; Brookfield Rye Whiskey (nude depiction), $2,000-$3,000; Miller & Mooney Hunting Supplies, $1,500-$2,500; and U.S. Ammunitions, $1,500-$2,500. An Ever-Ready Safety Razor clock with original pendulum is estimated at $4,000-$6,000; while a late-19th-century folk art wood depiction of a pig advertising Hodson Pork is expected to make $8,000-$12,000.

Other star lots in the varied and colorful second session are a Caille Eclipse 5-cent floor model standing slot machine, $15,000-$18,000; and an all-original 1960s Bowden bicycle, $3,000-$5,000.