09 May 2019
|
Hartleys jam in the toys
Hartleys jam the toys in!
The Spring dolls and toy sale of Hartleys of Ilkley in April was a successful event, with around £50,000 achieved from a diverse selection of collectables.
A French Bebe 29” bisque head doll, with paperweight glass eyes, reached £750, while a Jumeau Bebe 26” bisque head doll was bid to £700. More interesting was a Simon & Halbig musical automaton doll, with spinning top action, which sold for £800; while a French early bisque shoulder head doll exceeded its top estimate and realised £680. The best teddy bear was actually the best price in the whole sale: this was an early 20th century straw-filled bear which, in spite of areas of wear, realised a creditable £950.
Amongst the miscellaneous category, an attractive (French) Jeux de Course racing game with four horses running around a circular plated track reached £420. For the speed merchants, a Tri-ang Vanwall pedal car, generally complete but covered in rust, was bid to £440. At the other end of the spectrum, a perfect Mamod steam-powered double decker bus, in its box and never used, sold for £320 - this had to be a bargain for someone!
As for autographs, a pair by Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, in an album with other famous names such as Wilfred Pickles and Frankie Howard, sold over estimate at £250, while a shirt from Ronaldo (remember him?), signed and framed, reached £150. A tinplate Japanese Cadillac saloon car doubled its upper estimate to peak at £340.
The model railway sections were both larger than usual. The OO gauge offering included a Trix Coronation Train Set in a presentation box and in relatively good condition (selling at £660); and a charming Bing table top set, including a clockwork LNER 2-4-0 locomotive and two coaches, which realised £270.
Within the O gauge lots was a Hornby Princess Elizabeth 4-6-2 locomotive and tender in its presentation box. This was originally brought out by Hornby to beat the emergence of Bassett-Lowke, and this example, in mainly good condition, sold for a reasonable £620. An Exley for Bassett-Lowke LMS motor coach, originally a special order from Exley, and in its original box, sold at a less than expected £340. A larger scale Bing 0-4-0 live steam locomotive and tender described as “in a state of disrepair suitable for restoration”, still managed to sell for £640, against an estimate of £50-70.
Finally, a Stuart James Coombes kit built stationary vertical engine, with the odd assembly problem, but used for display and never having been run, brought up the end of the sale with an expected price of £640.