There’s no drop in the pearl market — on the contrary, its pearly glow shines brightly!
€187,500 Necklace of 75 natural pearls and one cultured pearl, gold clasp set with a 3.24 ct emerald-cut diamond. Neuilly-sur-Seine, December 13, 2023. Aguttes auction house. Ms Dupré La Tour.
A product of early antiquity, the ever-fascinating pearl, born of the oyster by the purest chance, has come down through the ages with true staying power. We should remember that, during the first half of the 20th century, Paris was the global trading center for this “sea fruit”, as it was dubbed by Paul Claudel. The leading jewelry companies made the most of these ocean treasures, vying with each other in inventive ways to glorify them. The majority of those fished along the “Pearl Coast” (as the Gulf countries were often called) were shipped to France. At that time, this jewel was the focus of everyone’s desires, before slipping into relative obscurity because pearls were considered old-fashioned. But now, increasingly scarce in Mother Nature, they have returned in force with all their resplendent qualities, and auctions regularly post impressive results.
€124,100 French work, Roger Mazin workshop hallmark, convertible earrings in white gold with diamonds and natural pearls, l. with pendant 5.2 cm/2 in. Versailles, October 10, 2023. Osenat auction house.€66,560 Necklace of 96 natural pearls, l. 54.5 cm/21.6 in, gross weight 23.7 g/0.8 oz. Hôtel Drouot, November 28, 2024. Beaussant Lefèvre & Associés auction house. Messrs. Emeric & Stephen Portier.€40,672 Suzanne Belperron (1900-1983), pair of gold and platinum drop earrings set with brilliant and baguette diamonds holding a drop-shaped natural pearl, h. 5 cm/2 in., gross weight 16.6 g/0.56 oz. Neuilly-sur-Seine, July 3, 2024. Aguttes auction house. Ms Dupré La Tour.
The delicate pearl is in the spotlight at the École des Arts Joailliers in Paris in an exhibition that runs until June 1st
€29,210 Attributed to Fontana, second half of 19th century, gold brooch decorated with two natural pearls, one as a pendant, the other surrounded by diamonds, h. 4.5 cm/1.6 in. Hôtel Drouot, December 21, 2023. Auction Art Rémy Le Fur & Associés auction house. Ms. Soupault.€182,000 Attributed to Chaumet, Paris, c. 1908, necklace with 38 natural pearls, clasp set with a navette diamond, gross weight 41.9 g/1.4 oz. Hôtel Drouot, December 13, 2022. Delon-Hoebanx auction house. Mr. Buffetaud.€196,800 Cartier, 2003, pair of gold and natural pearl drop earrings; one round pinkish gray pearl with three Fancy pink diamonds, and a pear-shaped pearl pendant, h. 3.9 cm/1.2 in., weight 13.3 g/0.46 oz. Paris, Espace Tajan, December 6, 2023. Tajan auction house. Mr. Salit.
Top-estimated lot: the first American wooden minnow bait representing the link between late-1890s plugs and the first commercially offered minnows from just after the turn of the 20th century
The Historic First American Wooden Minnow
DENVER, Pa. – Fans of antique fishing lures found the waters more than inviting at Morphy’s December 9, 2024 auction of Wayne and Lori Edens’ antique and vintage fishing lure collection, Part I. The highly anticipated debut selection of treasures from the Edens trove surpassed $900,000 and left bidders eager for more. On Saturday, May 17, Morphy’s will auction Part II of the storied collection, which is widely regarded to be the largest, most comprehensive and most important collection of its type ever to come to the public marketplace. In all, 680 ultra-rare lures – or “baits,” as they are known to fishing enthusiasts – will be presented at the exciting gallery event, with all forms of remote bidding invited, including live online through Morphy Live.
For historical value alone, it would be hard to beat the first American wooden minnow that characterizes the link between the rotary and cedar plugs of the late 1890s and the first commercially offered minnows from just after the turn of the century. The auction example is the actual bait that was famously found in the tackle box of Twin Lakes, Ohio, resident Hiram C Rice. A hand-shaped bait with natural wood grain and a dark back, it features slightly curving gill marks, striking copper-colored “perch” stripes, and a golden belly. The “File Maker” spade-shaped props are original and identical to those on a similar bait seen in an Arlan Carter reference book, and the prop bearings appear to be original and unchanged. When found, the bait’s right eye was cracked but still intact, and the left eye was missing. In the interim, a pair of reddish decoy-style eyes was inserted. Its glass eyes and added side hooks are easily removable, should that be the new owner’s preference. This wonderful antique minnow is one of the most significant and desirable objects in angling history and is the best representative predecessor to all other American wooden underwater minnows. In strong VG Plus condition, it will cross the auction block with a $15,000-$30,000 estimate.
Also incredibly rare, a circa-1910 Model #7000 Heddon 747 Mascallonge Minnow bait was originally found in a group of three at a doctor’s lake estate residence in Maine. This big boy is huge, measuring 8 inches in length. The cup is rigged with extra-strong trebles and fore and aft unstamped props. Specifically designed as a floater, it lacks belly weights. This choice bait has flawless amber glass eyes and short hand-painted gill marks on its chin. It is in VG Plus condition and carries an auction estimate of $10,000-$20,000.
Another top entry is a Heddon Introductory Model 155 all-brass Dowagiac Minnow, solid yellow with black gill marks. Its design incorporates three belly weights, each completely sealed. Both its white iris glass eyes are perfect, and its unmarked nickel-plated props are shiny and spotless. The brass eyes, cups, and bearings have all mellowed with a chocolatey patina, and all five non-nickel-plated hooks appear to be original. The box is of the correct era for the lure, being a type II with thicker panels and the thumbnail notch on the lid, and bearing the phrase “NOTICE HOW THE HOOKS ARE HUNG!” Very few Heddon Minnows combine this magnitude of rarity with such beautiful condition. Estimate: $10,000-$20,000
One of the rarest combos in the Edens collection is a 3½-inch brown-spotted Wilcox Wiggler graded Near-Excellent with clear, solid-glass eyes. One of few of its type ever to surface, it is housed in an equally rare VG-condition paper label box from The Wiggler Mfg. Co., Elmwood, Indiana. Even the extremely rare paper insert remains inside the lid. The Wiggler’s beautiful hardware suggests it has never seen water. This desirable bait is expected to land $10,000-$20,000 at auction.
A brown and gold Trory Minnow made by Enterprise Mfg. Co. (Pflueger), of Akron, Ohio, is one of the most influential American underwater minnows every produced. Morphy’s specialists confirmed that it is a very early model dating to 1900 or 1901, at the latest. Its details include a crudely-formed wooden tail, gold perch bars on a natural brown body with a dark back, and large, blemish-free eyes. The silver belly has fine hand-painted gill mark on either side, and its hardware is original and uncleaned. This eye-catching bait was discovered in a tackle box in the Canton, Ohio, area. In Excellent Minus condition, its pre-sale estimate is $6,000-$12,000.
Collectors are expected to “leap” at the chance to acquire a Hosmer Mechanical Froggie bait in a rare yellow color with its (restored) original paper-labeled box. John D. Hosmer of Dearborn, Michigan, started making his six-section kicking frogs around 1929 but didn’t sell any commercially until approximately a decade later. Hand-painted with fastidiously-detailed red and black spots on the back and red lines on the belly, the auction example has perfect glass eyes. Its well-conceived mechanical leg apparatus is still functional. There isn’t a serious frog lure collector who wouldn’t want this example, which is in Excellent Minus condition and estimated at $5,000-$10,000.
Other standout lots include a circa-1915 Strawberry Spot Miller’s Original Wood Minnow bait, reversible and in its solid picture box with a $1 price imprinted on its label; and a late-1920s bait made for Herbert Kinney by Heddon with cup and screw-eye hardware and solid glass eyes. Each of the baits is estimated at $2,500-$5,000.
Part II of the Wayne & Lori Edens fishing lure collection will be auctioned live on Saturday, May 17, 2025 at Morphy’s flagship gallery, 2000 N. Reading Rd., Denver, PA 17517, starting at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. All remote forms of bidding will also be available, including absentee, by phone, and live via the Internet through Morphy Live. For additional information on any item in the auction or to reserve a phone line for bidding, call 877-968-8880 or email [email protected]. Visit Morphy’s online at www.morphyauctions.com.
New York, NY — Lark Mason Associates is pleased to announce the upcoming sale of a rare and historically significant Steinway Model A Grand Piano, painted by landscape and decorative arts artist Arthur Edward Blackmore and reputed to have once belonged to the famed model and actress Evelyn Nesbit. With an estimate of $30,000-50,000, online bidding starts May 1st and runs through May 15th on iGavelAuctions.com.
Crafted in 1897 by Steinway & Sons in New York (serial number 88495), this richly painted mahogany piano was decorated in a “French Renaissance” style by Arthur Edward Blackmore (1854–1921), who signed and dated the painted panel at the end of the lid. Commissioned by the prominent industrialist and art collector Isaac D. Fletcher, the piano was purchased directly from Steinway for his newly built mansion at the corner of East 79th Street and Fifth Avenue—the Harry F. Sinclair House, now home to the Ukrainian Institute of America.
Following Fletcher’s death in 1917, his mansion and art collection were bequeathed to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and in 1918 the contents of the home were sold at auction. The piano, listed as Lot 222 in the American Art Galleries sale held January 25–26, was described in a double-page illustrated entry as:
“Specially designed case, Style A; made in rich polished mahogany, with elaborate decorations in color and gilding. Has square front legs and carved lyre. The front panel bears a painted ribbon scroll with the quotation, ‘As may the strains through my ear dissolve me into ecstacies [sic].’ The painting includes trophy and floral panels with scrollwork, signed by Arthur E. Blackmore and dated 1898.”
While documented provenance ends with this 1918 auction, by repute the piano was subsequently owned by Evelyn Nesbit (1884/85–1967)—the original “Gibson Girl,” stage and film actress, and central figure in the infamous scandal involving architect Stanford White and her husband Harry K. Thaw. Though no primary documentation exists confirming her ownership, the piano was marketed as hers when sold to prominent Albany businessman John Desmond, in the late 1980s. Desmond, owner of The Desmond Hotel in Albany, New York, installed the instrument as a decorative showpiece in the hotel’s signature restaurant, The Scrimshaw, citing its unique artistry and cultural history.
Upon the hotel’s later sale to the Crowne Plaza group, the piano was transferred to the current owner, who now offers it for auction through Lark Mason Associates. Several contemporary testimonials referencing Nesbit’s purported ownership accompany the piano.
“This exceptional instrument is not only a finely crafted Steinway but a unique artifact that touches upon the intertwined worlds of art, music, celebrity, and Gilded Age New York,” says Lark Mason, founder of iGavelAuctions and Lark Mason Associates. “Its rich provenance—from Isaac Fletcher’s Fifth Avenue mansion to The Desmond Hotel—makes it an extraordinary opportunity for collectors of decorative arts and Americana.”
To view the piano, located in iGavel’s New York showroom, 229 East 120th Street, call (212) 289-5524 or email [email protected]
The latest two-day television memorabilia sale from Julien’s offers a dose of nostalgia. The company’s Channel Surfing: A Broadcast to Binge auction will take place live in Los Angeles and online on May 7 and 8, 2025. Billed as a tribute to television history, the wide-ranging catalog includes items from classic and contemporary series. Auction Daily examines some of the top lots.
Wonder Woman (Lynda Carter) Americana uniform bodysuit with production-made bracelets and photo. Images courtesy of Julien’s.
Wonder Woman Uniform
Leading Julien’s television memorabilia sale is a bodysuit worn by Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman on the late-1970s television series of the same name (lot #359; estimate: USD 100,000 – $200,000). Star-spangled and accented with gold, this strapless outfit is composed of a bodice and attached shorts. The outfit comes to auction paired with two hammered brass bracelets from the Warner Brothers Archive.
Lynda Carter portrayed the character of Diana Prince/ Wonder Woman over three seasons from 1975 to 1979. The offered bodysuit appeared in season two. Carter’s original costume was redesigned to highlight the actress’ physique and streamline the costume’s visual elements. It was designed by Donald Lee Feld (credited as Donfeld). The costume is now considered a television icon, thanks in part to its association with Wonder Woman’s spinning transformation from Diana Prince to her superhero identity.
Original front door from Cheers. Images courtesy of Julien’s.
Cheers Front Door
Fans of the 1980s American sitcom Cheers will have the opportunity to own the titular bar’s front door, used during all 11 seasons of the show (lot #429; estimate: $125,000 – $150,000). This set piece served as a portal between the outside world and the insular neighborhood bar. It is made of wood with an acrylic window emblazoned with the bar’s name in black lettering. The door will be offered alongside its original hardware, hinges, and an unattached door closer. Cheers was filmed in Hollywood, but the classic set design was modeled on a real bar in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. The set is famous for its quirky details: the bar was functional and stocked with real bottles of alcohol, although the cast members drank only low-alcohol beer. The bar included a seam along the center, allowing it to fold open and reveal an office space.
Other Cheers set pieces will be available in this television memorabilia sale, including Cliff Clavin’s barstool (lot #430; estimate: $10,000 – $20,000), a Tiffany-inspired glass hanging lamp shade (lot #439; estimate: $6,000 – $8,000), and various costumes worn on set.
Batman, The Riddler (Frank Gorshin) pilot and movie-worn Riddler suit jacket and vest with signed photo. Images courtesy of Julien’s.
The Riddler Costume
Another key lot in Julien’s upcoming television memorabilia event is the original suit jacket and vest worn by Frank Gorshin as the Riddler in the 1960s Batman television series (lot #355; estimate: $20,000 – $30,000). Gorshin wore this bright green cotton ensemble for the pilot episode and the related 1966 feature film. It is covered with hand-stenciled question marks, evoking the character’s craftiness and mystery. The jacket features a swirling, floral silk lining and green buttons. Gorshin advocated for an updated Riddler costume, disliking the character’s leotard depicted in the Batman comics. The resulting question-mark suit and bowler hat made a lasting cultural impression and are now closely associated with the character.
The Handmaid’s Tale, June/ Offred (Elisabeth Moss) signature crimson red uniform with hats. Images courtesy of Julien’s.
The Handmaid’s Tale Costume
Collectors interested in more contemporary television memorabilia will have a few options in this sale. Among the key lots is Elisabeth Moss’ signature crimson red costume from The Handmaid’s Tale (lot #621; estimate: $8,000 – $10,000). This costume appeared on screen during the show’s first season and is one of two created for Moss; the other is housed at the Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. as an important artifact of American culture. The offered costume includes a cape, dress, bonnet, and skull cap.
In this item’s lot description, Julien’s notes that the series’ initial lead costume designer, Ane Crabtree, intended the red costumes to symbolize both life and oppression. The initial early costumes were crafted entirely by hand, from fabric dying to assembly.
Julien’s Channel Surfing sale will take place on May 7 and 8, 2025 at 1:00pm EDT. To browse the complete catalog and register to bid online, visit Julien’s.
Find more coverage of upcoming auctions on Auction Daily.
515 choice lots are led by a 1978 Star Wars Double Telescoping Darth Vader, graded AFA 80 NM and the only example in its high grade ever to appear in any auction
Star Wars (1978) – Darth Vader 12 Back-a Afa 80 Nm (Double-telescoping, Pop 4).
YORK, Pa. – Hake’s triumphant sale of the Jeff Jacob Collection Part I made history this past January as the first-ever action-figure-specific auction to surpass seven figures, cashing out at a hefty $1.45 million. And while the initial offering of 435 mostly AFA-graded lots from Jacob’s stellar collection achieved a milestone that cemented it in history, the viral buzz throughout the toy hobby seemed to be just as focused on when Part II would be unveiled. The answer is May 15, and bidding has already opened, with the full 515-lot catalog available to view now on Hake’s website.
The sensational array of Star Wars toys in the May 15 lineup goes back to the very beginning of the storied film franchise. The groundbreaking first wave of Kenner Star Wars toys issued in 1978 included figures of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Ben Kenobi with a distinctive feature known as a Double Telescoping (or “DT”) lightsaber. However, only limited numbers of those figures were produced before design changes were made and the DT lightsabers were eliminated. As a result, very few “DT” figures now exist in their original state. One of the few surviving original Darth Vader DT 12 Back-A action figures, AFA-graded 80 NM, is the top highlight of the Jeff Jacob sale Part II. It is only the fourth carded DT Darth Vader specimen ever to be offered by Hake’s and the first in such a high grade ever to be auctioned anywhere. At the time of cataloging, AFA’s Population Report indicated that only nine examples of its type had been graded, a mere four assessed at AFA 80 (only one has been graded higher).
“Because this is the first time an AFA 80 Double Telescoping Darth Vader has ever appeared at auction anywhere, it was our unanimous choice for the catalog cover,” said Hake’s Auctions’ president, Alex Winter. “Also, it’s such a rare and important toy, with no past auction results for comparison, we decided not to assign a pre-sale estimate. It has a required opening bid of $25,000, but we think it could sell for substantially more than that.”
From Kenner Canada’s 1985 Star Wars: The Power of the Force range, a Yak Face 92 Back AFA 90 Y-NM/Mint 4in action figure is blister-carded together with its matching aluminum collector’s coin. Representing the most desirable of the last 17 vintage issued Star Wars figures, the auction entry is one of only eight examples of its type in an AFA 90 grade, according to the current AFA Population Report at the time of cataloging. The first of its type in this incredibly high grade ever to be offered by Hake’s, it is estimated at $20,000-$35,000.
A Kenner Star Wars (1978) Jawa 12 Back-A action figure, 2.25 inches high, is from the toy company’s initial production run and therefore is a vinyl-cape variety. Later, Kenner switched from vinyl to cloth to be more consistent with the cape seen in the film. AFA-graded 85 NM+ on an unpunched card, the Jawa figure is expected to reach the $10,000-$20,000 range.
One of the most sought-after of all toys in Kenner’s Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) 12-Inch Series is IG-88, a replication of an assassin droid and bounty hunter in the film who is notable for his ruthless efficiency. Presented in its original window box, the toy is the highest-graded example ever offered by Hake’s, and at the time of cataloging, the AFA Population Report indicated only eight examples exist in AFA 85 grade, with none ranking higher. Estimate: $10,000-$20,000
Collectors who seek out obscure variants will surely be drawn to an archivally-cased Star Wars (1979) R5-D4 21 Back-A action figure, AFA-graded 85 NM+. The 2.5-inch figure is an example of what is known as the “Red Bar” variant because the vertical rectangle on the right side of its chest is solid red. At the time of cataloging, this was the single highest-graded specimen of its type according to the current AFA Population Report. A “wild card” piece that might produce an auction-day surprise, it is estimated at $5,000-$10,000.
In the famed galaxy “far, far away,” transportation was light years faster and the designs much more imaginative than anything seen in Detroit’s jaw-dropping concept cars. In 1979, Kenner released its Millennium Falcon Spaceship, a toy depiction of the craft most famously used by smugglers Han Solo and Chewbacca before, during and following the Galactic Civil War. The Millennium Falcon from the Jeff Jacob Collection is AFA-graded 75 EX+/NM in its factory-sealed box and is only the fifth sealed example ever to appear in a Hake’s auction. “Originally, this toy was very expensive, retailing at $29.95,” Alex Winter explained. “Due to the cost, few were sold, and over the years, even fewer survived, especially with unopened boxes. It’s an extremely desirable toy.” The auction estimate has been set at $10,000-$20,000.
A fine example of Kenner’s Star Wars (1979) Darth Vader TIE Fighter vehicle will cross the auction block, with flashing “laser” light and “space sound” features, in its original factory-sealed box. AFA-graded 85 NM+, it is one of only seven known examples in that grade with none graded higher in the AFA Population Report as of the time of cataloging. The only comparable example Hake’s has ever handled came from the Russell Branton Collection, which the company auctioned in 2019 (note: this is not the same toy). Estimate: $10,000-$20,000
Moving from a celestial setting to terra firma, the auction includes many dozens of super-high-quality GI Joe figures, vehicles, playsets and accessories. A Hasbro GI Joe (1984) Attack Vehicle (VAMP) and Heavy Artillery Laser (HAL) Series 3 Vehicle, housed together in a Sears-exclusive 2-pack. is AFA-graded 75 EX+/NM. This very rare set is factory fresh in its still-sealed box. At the time of cataloging, it was one of only six graded examples shown in the AFA Population Report, with only two examples similarly graded 75 (four are graded higher). Estimate: $5,000-$10,000
One of the most iconic and fantasy-fueled toys in Mattel’s Masters Of The Universe line is its 1983 Castle Grayskull Series 1/12 Back set which contains a “Fortress of Mystery and Power for He-Man and His Foes.” Its individual features are described on the box: “A Jawbridge that Opens and Closes, Combat Trainer, Armory and Weapons, a Trap Door over the Dungeon, Castle Throne, a Working Elevator, Laser Cannon, Scaling Ladder, Castle Flag, Four Floor Levels Of Adventure Possibilities!” This large and outstanding set, which is AFA-graded 80 NM, is expected to sell for $5,000-$10,000.
Made by Kenner, a Transformers (1985) Series 2 Minicar Bumblebee, AFA-graded 85 NM+, is encapsulated in a blister card that contains an Autobot Bumblebee (robot form, yellow variety). It is a fourth release with a Registered mark. The card art shows a red vehicle and figure in robot mode. At the time of cataloging, the AFA Population Report showed only nine examples in AFA 85 grade, with none higher. In Mint condition, this toy is estimated at $5,000-$10,000.
LJN Toys was the manufacturer of a Thundercats (1986) Lion-O, Series 2, 14 Back action figure No. 3510 with red hair. The figure includes “Battle-Matic Action,” a “Sword of Omens” and a “Secret Power Ring” that enables Lion-O’s eyes to illuminate. The blister card advertises an offer for a “Free Mumm-Ra” mummy-form action figure offer. At the time of cataloging, the AFA Population Report indicated this was one of only nine examples known in the AFA 80 grade. Its pre-sale estimate is $5,000-$10,000.Hake’s May 15, 2025 online auction exclusively featuring Part II of the Jeff Jacob Collection of Star Wars, GI Joe, and other popular vintage action figures and toys is now open for bidding. For a free printed catalog or additional information on any item in the sale, call +1 866-404-9800 (toll-free) or +1 717-434-1600; or email [email protected]. View the fully illustrated catalog online and sign up to bid at https://hakes.com/.
Very rare in French auction rooms, John White Alexander — one of the American masters of painting — pays us a visit, in the company of an adolescent from the Belle Époque.
John White Alexander (1856-1915), Portrait d’Édith Révil, 1900, signed and dated canvas, 90.5 x 121 cm/35.62 x 48.03 in. Estimate: €30,000/€50,000
In the effervescent Paris of the 1900s, American painter John White Alexander’s reputation for excellence seems to have been well earned, and Portrait d’Édith Révil is ample proof of this… It was around 1880 that the New York artist discovered the City of Light, then the capital of the arts, at the culmination of a European study tour that took him from Munich to Venice. In the city of the Doges, his meeting with his compatriot James Abbott McNeill Whistler proved decisive, the latter having a definitive influence on his work, inspiring him to use fine, diluted matter. In 1881, Alexander eventually returned to New York; but fascinated by Paris, he returned regularly to France, where his annual participation, from 1893 to 1899, in the Salon de la Société nationale des beaux-arts, made him a celebrated and sought-after painter. By 1900, John White Alexander decided to stay longer in the French capital, to fulfill a few prestigious commissions. The result is four portraits, the first three of which are of the sculptor Auguste Rodin, the President of the Republic Émile Loubet and, perhaps, the architect Frantz Jourdain. The last — our painting — depicts Édith Révil, the 14-year-old daughter of Monsieur and Madame Fernand Révil, who commissioned the work. Having made his fortune in the silk industry, the industrialist acquired a townhouse at 199, boulevard Malesherbes. For the posing sessions John White Alexander visited as a neighbor, he was staying at 190 at the time… The result certainly lived up to the expectations of the teenager’s parents, who hung the painting in their living room, as can be seen in a photograph taken at the time. It shows Edith, her long hair adorned with a red flower, facing forward, looking the viewer straight in the eyes and her left hand supporting her chin, while her favorite dog lies at her feet. Adapting his usual virtuosity in rendering the beauty of young women, and the radiance precious fabrics, in scenes with a Symbolist atmosphere, the artist is able to capture the age of his model. In fact, at the retrospective organized in March 1916 at the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh, after the death of John White Alexander, Portrait d’Édith Révil was considered one of his major works, as it featured prominently in the exhibition catalog, even though the original remained on this side of the Atlantic. As for his young model, she married Jean Guiffrey, curator of the Department of Paintings and Drawings at the Musée du Louvre, in whose lineage the painting has remained to this day.
300 European and American toys and trains of extraordinary rarity include coveted Marklin productions: 1904 Ferris Wheel, 45in Amerika oceanliner, Gefion battleship, many ‘book’ examples & sole survivors
DENVER, Pa. – On Thursday, May 29, Morphy’s will auction Part I of the lifetime personal collection of European and American antique toys amassed by the late Tom Sage Sr (1939-2024) of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Widely acknowledged as a pioneer of antique toy dealing and collecting, Sage was known for his encyclopedia knowledge of toys and a well-cultivated international network of industry contacts with whom he conducted business for more than 50 years. While buying and selling rare toys was his full-time occupation, Sage also had a mental wish list of toys and trains he personally wanted to own. Over several decades, he astutely filled the slots on that list, and it is those very special pieces that will be offered in the May 29 sale.
While literally every toy in the collection is a showstopper, the auction catalog’s cover photo suggests the top seller may very well end up being Sage’s magnificent 1904 Ferris Wheel made by the revered German firm Marklin. One of only three or four of its type known to exist, it is likely the nicest of that elite handful of survivors. In researching his father’s toys, Tommy Sage Jr, who heads Morphy Auctions’ Toys & Trains department, related that he had found copies of circa-1910 photos taken in Brooklyn of the Ferris Wheel’s then-owner sitting with his son and holding the actual auction toy.
“The Ferris Wheel can be traced back to the gentleman’s relative who worked for a Brooklyn department store and who received the toy when the store closed down before World War I. Dad purchased it at Sotheby’s in 1994. It was one of his finest toys, and he thought so highly of it, he kept it in his bedroom,” Sage said. The Ferris Wheel will convey to its new owner with paperwork, the aforementioned copies of 1910 photos, and a Sotheby’s tag and receipt. The pre-sale estimate is $100,000-$200,000.
In addition to rarity, another characteristic apparent throughout the museum-quality Sage Collection is exceptional – if not astonishing – original condition. Tom Sr was one of the first antique toy dealers who weighed condition as the overriding factor prior to making any purchase. Tommy recalled, “He recognized early on just how important condition was to the trailblazers who came just before him in the toy hobby. He took that as a cue to follow and would always pay a lot of money to obtain a perfect example.”
It would have taken many years of dedicated searching for Sage to have located his 45-inch Marklin Amerika tin oceanliner. Made circa 1909-1910, it is an electric version, powered by a dry cell battery-operated motor housed within the hull and connected to two propellers via a drive shaft. Beautifully appointed and in stunning original condition, it represents the largest cataloged (Ref. 5050/11E) Marklin oceanliner of its era. “My dad was very fond of large German boats, and this was one of his best,” Tommy said. Estimate: $100,000-$150,000
Also produced at Marklin’s original factory in Goppingen, Germany, a handsome, all-original Gefion battleship is designed with a distinctive “ram” front, a feature that was added to real warships of its era for the expressed purpose of inflicting damage on enemy vessels. With respect to toy ships, the rule is, the bigger the ram front, the earlier the production. This particular toy, which comes with a crew of 11 original Heyde soldiers, dates to around 1904. Its auction estimate is $30,000-$50,000.
Marklin rival Rock & Graner, which also based its operation in Goppingen, Germany, was the manufacturer of a 20-inch-long Wilhelm II clockwork side-wheel (paddlewheel) boat with a substantial front bow. Tommy Sage noted that his father owned some 70 antique toy boats, and of those, only two were paddlewheelers. He explained that they are especially rare because not as many were made in comparison to other types of marine craft. “In the early 20th century, kids preferred battleships and oceanliners, so far fewer paddlewheelers actually made it to the marketplace,” he said. Rare and desirable, the Wilhelm II is pictured in (David) Pressland’s Great Book of Tin Toys (New Cavendish Books, 1995). Its pre-sale estimate is $15,000-$25,000.
A fabulous automotive toy that would be deserving of a place in even the most advanced collection, a hand-painted 13-inch-long Bing taxi is finished in an unusual maroon color and is complete with its taxi meter, liveried driver, and even its original store box from Au Bon Marche in Paris. It is featured in Pressland’s Great Book of Tin Toys and, in Tommy’s opinion, is “dead-mint, perfect … You just don’t find antique cars in such remarkable condition.” Estimate: $25,000-$35,000
A classic that appeals to both toy aficionados and collectors of holiday antiques, a circa-1912 Fischer Father Christmas car is lithographed on its red body with endearing images of teddy bears and other playthings. The rear section of the car is loaded with Christmas-themed goodies, including a small feather tree, a Cracker Jack mini Toonerville Trolley, and other small toys and novelties. Sage observed that the car is “in mint condition and one of the finest of few known examples of its type.” Estimate: $15,000-$25,000
Another German automotive toy depicted in Pressland’s Great Book of Tin Toys is a circa-1890s hand-painted tin horseless carriage of primitive design with unusual maroon spoked wheels. It is possibly the earliest of all cars in the collection. The vehicle has a full-figure driver with a female passenger seated behind him. While the toy’s manufacturer is not known, there is some speculation that it might have been made by Gunthermann. To the best of Tommy’s knowledge, it is the only extant example of its type. Estimate: $6,000-$9,000
Tom Sr was fascinated by early German trains and trams and acquired some extremely fine productions, including a circa-1900 Marklin clockwork tramway trolley. Hand-painted in green with red and cream, the near-mint tram car still has its six original figures and four original catenary poles, with a 27-inch track on which to travel. Like so many important toys in the collection, this turn-of-the-20th-century charmer is illustrated in Pressland’s Great Book of Tin Toys. Tommy opined that it is the best of all trolleys in his father’s collection, describing it as “absolutely beautiful.” Estimate: $20,000-$30,000
A circa-1890s Rock & Graner 1 gauge floor train set consists of an engine/tender combo (push toy) with two additional cars and replacement passenger figures. “This train is a very early production,” Tommy said. “Dad bought it at Alderfer Auctions (Hatfield, Pa.) many years ago.” Its auction estimate at Morphy’s is $20,000-$30,000.
Tommy recalled that his father loved to place an antique Marklin lamp next to every antique toy car he displayed. His wonderful selection of Marklin “lighting” included single, double, and especially-rare triple-globe lamps. One of his best “triples” retains all three of its original globes, with appealing robin’s-egg blue original paint still present on its metal lamp post. Standing 16½ inches tall and in excellent to near-mint condition, it is expected to sell for $8,000-$12,000.
The Thursday May 29, 2025 auction of Tom Sage Sr’s Private Collection of Antique Toys & Trains – Part I will be held live at Morphy’s gallery, 2000 N. Reading Rd., Denver, PA 17517, starting at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. All forms of bidding will be available, including absentee, by phone, and live via the Internet through Morphy Live. For condition enquiries, to leave an absentee bid, or to reserve a line for phone bidding, call Dan Morphy tollfree at 877-968-8880 or email [email protected].
It’s a sure bet that gambling chips from current and legacy casinos generate much interest when they come up for sale on the secondary market. These tiny tokens– usually measuring about 1.5 inches in diameter– are eye-catching and durable; easy to collect and display; and concisely reflect history, happenings, and trends on their small surfaces. Omnia Auctions of Tallahassee, FL offered its 215-lot Casino, Gaming, & Poker Chip Auction on April 19, 2025. The event, which had a 100% sell-through rate, presented casino chips from over 60 legacy and currently operating casinos across America. Here are some royal flush results from this exciting mid-spring sale.
The top lot in this casino chips sale was #85052, a collection of 48 casino chips from the Four Queens casino in Las Vegas. The group was estimated at USD 100 to $200 and traded hands at $480. The collection included two 50¢ chips, six $8 chips, five $10 chips, three $20 chips, 17 $25 chips, one $100 chip, and 14 chips with no indicated cash value. Themed chips in the lot included ones produced to commemorate the Chinese New Year, Labor Day, New Year’s Day, and other local and national events.
The Four Queens casino, which is still in operation today, opened in 1966 under the oversight of developer Ben Goffstein. It was named “Four Queens” – referencing the suits in a deck of cards– as a nod to Goffstein’s four daughters. They were Faith, the Queen of Hearts; Hope, the Queen of Diamonds; Benita, the Queen of Clubs; and Michele, the Queen of Spades. The property has changed hands and has been updated numerous times over its nearly six-decade-long history. Today, the facility has 27,269 square feet of gaming space and is owned by TLC Casino Enterprises.
Lot #85077, a collection of Las Vegas Club casino chips, was estimated at $100 to $200 and sold for $444. Image courtesy of Omnia Auctions.
Other noteworthy highlights from this casino chips sale included lot #85077, a collection of 30 chips from the former Las Vegas Club. This collection was estimated at $100 to $200 and sold for $444. Every chip had a denomination of $10 and was produced with a primarily blue border. These chips featured patriotic images, as well as tributes to sports heroes, Father’s Day, Halloween, and other American holidays.
The Las Vegas Club had roots as far back as the early turn of the 20th century. Starting in the 1970s, the casino took on sports as a focus, and featured baseball-themed restaurants and even a Sports Hall of Fame exhibit with a fine collection of Brooklyn and L.A. Dodgers materials. The casino ceased operations in 2015 and eventually went under the wrecking ball in 2017. A new property called Circa Resort and Casino opened on the Las Vegas Club site in the fall of 2020.
Lot #85141, a framed collection of casino chips from the Brook Club, was estimated at $100 to $200 and sold for $423. Image courtesy of Omnia Auctions.
Lot #85141, a framed collection of chips from the Brook Club of Saratoga Springs, NY, was estimated at $100 to $200 and realized $423. The collection included two $25 green chips, one $1 white chip, one $5 brown chip, one $100 pink chip, one $100 red chip, one yellow chip with no stated value, and one blue chip with no stated value. Each chip was branded with the Brook Club monogram. The group was framed under glass along with a color image of the Brook Club.
The Brook Club was part of a group of nightclubs operating in and around Saratoga Springs, NY from the 1920s through the early 1950s. These destinations offered fine dining and evening entertainment, as well as illegal gambling and alcohol during the Prohibition era. The Brook Club opened in 1921 and was operated by Arnold Rothstein, the individual responsible for fixing the 1919 World Series and creating the Black Sox Scandal. The Brook Club was destroyed in a fire in 1934.
Lot #85104, a collection of casino chips from Paris Las Vegas, was estimated at $100 to $200 and sold for $420. Image courtesy of Omnia Auctions.
Lot #85104, a collection of 31 chips from Paris Las Vegas, was estimated at $100 to $200 and made $420. This lot included 25 $5 chips, four $8 chips, and one $20 chip. These chips were decorated with beauty shots of the casino at night, as well as showgirls, images related to the Chinese New Year, St. Patrick’s Day, Las Vegas performers, and others.
Paris Las Vegas opened in the fall of 1999 and is located on the Las Vegas Strip. The casino hotel complex is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. Its casino footprint measures nearly 100,000 square feet. The property features several replica Paris landmarks as part of its infrastructure and entertainment venues; these include a half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower, as well as spaces representing the Arc de Triomphe military monument, the Louvre national art museum, the Paris Opera House, and the Musée d’Orsay art museum.
Lot #85108, a framed collection of chips and ephemera from the Piping Rock Club, was estimated at $100 to $200 and sold for $396. Image courtesy of Omnia Auctions.
Lot #85108, a framed collection of chips and ephemera from the former Piping Rock Club of Saratoga Springs, was estimated at $100 to $200 and delivered $396. These items included an image of the club, a club matchbook, two $1 yellow chips, three $5 brown chips, four $25 green chips, and one $100 red chip. Each chip was initialed with the initials PLC, for Piping Rock Club.
Like the Brook Club, the Piping Rock Club in Saratoga Springs, NY was part of the Saratoga lake houses group of speakeasy-style nightclubs. The Piping Rock Club opened in the 1930s under the auspices of organized crime figures Meyer Lansky, Frank Costello, and Joe Adonis. In 1954, the property burned to the ground under suspicious circumstances.
For more information on Omnia Auctions’ April 19, 2025 Casino, Gaming, & Poker Chip Auction, visit LiveAuctioneers.
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In the 1880s, Norwegian art experienced an unprecedented golden age. Among its finest exponents was Christian Krohg, to whom the Musée d’Orsay is devoting an unprecedented but partial exhibition.
Christian Krohg (1852-1925), Sick Girl (Syk pike), 1881, oil on canvas, 102 x 58 cm/40.15x 22.83, Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo. Photo : Nasjonalmuseet / Borre Hostland
After Edvard Munch (2022) and Harriet Backer (2024), the Musée d’Orsay closes a trilogy devoted to Norwegian painters of the turn of the 20th century with Christian Krohg (1852-1925), a master of naturalism. Bringing together some fifty genre scenes dealing with the quest for emancipation, the exhibition shows an artist who was particularly sensitive to the social issues of his time, sometimes to the point of radicalism. In 1886, the Norwegian authorities censored his novel Albertine – a veritable pamphlet denouncing the regulation of prostitution – while he was working on his major painting, Albertine to See the Police Surgeon (1885-1887). The son of a lawyer and a civil servant, and the grandson of a minister, Krohg became, despite his bourgeois origins, the leader of a protest and libertarian bohemian movement, a feminist and a loving father from the very beginning, through his brush and his pen. While Christophe Leribault, former president of the museum, chose to highlight the artist, curator Servane Dargnies-de Vitry and her Norwegian counterpart Vibeke Waallann Hansen, who was behind the Christian Krohg retrospective at Oslo’s National Museum in 2012, are responsible for the exhibition’s design. The Parisian exhibition brings nothing new to the table. Divided into four sections the exhibition treats the same themes: social class and the human condition. Entitled “Framing”, the first section illustrates the world of fishing, which the artist observed in Skagen, a small village in northern Denmark, where he stayed several times between 1879 and 1894. It reveals portraits of sailors in the middle of the sea, closely framed, as if to underline the heroic character of these last-chance rescuers in the event of a storm.
This evocation of Norwegian society through slices of life is commendable, but does it reveal the Norwegian’s pictorial singularity?
The next section evokes a privileged class, this time urban, with magnetic portraits of the intellectual and artistic elite, cosmopolitan and Scandinavian. That of Krohg’s wife Oda, also a painter – but represented here by only three paintings – shows a modern woman, uninhibited and radiant. The third section is dedicated to the underprivileged, prostitutes and the destitute, whose stigmatization Krohg denounces, and the last, with scenes of family intimacy between generations, to a social model of solidarity and hope. This evocation of Norwegian society through slices of life is commendable, but does it reveal the pictorial singularity of the Norwegian, who never ceased to doubt himself as an artist? As he wrote in his memoirs in 1921: “I don’t know which of the moderns influenced me. But I tried first to imitate Bastien-Lepage and secondly, the Impressionists. In short, I wanted to take part in the radical program. But I had as little understanding of the Impressionists as I did of the Old Masters”. The painter’s hesitations, which explain his consensual style, are barely mentioned, with repeated references to Manet and Caillebotte for comparisons of motifs and compositions… rarely of style. The paintings of Erik Werenskiold and Christian Skredsvig would have shed an entirely different light on their friend’s work: a naturalism that consists in identifying with the model in his everyday life, not in his deepest feelings. This is what Edvard Munch, his pupil, would do.
Worth Seeing “Christian Krohg (1852-1925). Le peuple du Nord” Musée d’Orsay Until July 27, 2025 musee-orsay.fr
The one-of-a-kind group of 121 works by the Japanese artist collected by the gallery owner Jacques Boutersky over nearly 40 years provided a comprehensive overview of the art of a painter who is still little-known. It also delighted collectors and the Cernuschi Museum.
Toshio Bando, Self-portrait with Brush, 1925, oil on canvas, 61 x 45 cm./24 x 17.7 in. Sold for: €98,800
Never before had such a large number of works by Toshio Bando come up at auction. With 121 lots, the sale felt like a positive retrospective. It was above all a reflection of the passion of Jacques Boutersky, who owned galleries in first Nice and then Paris, and discovered Bando’s work by chance at a Drouot sale (Ader-Picard-Tajan) on June 26, 1986. After that, his enthusiasm grew ever stronger, as he became friends with the painter’s widow, Toji — a professional pianist who died in 1994. — and acquired more works by this artist of the Paris School, who was friends with Foujita. Numerous art lovers turned up in Room 9 at Drouot, eager to secure one of the paintings on offer. All of them found buyers for a total of €1,293,370: proof, if any were needed, of how much the Japanese artist is admired. The most sought-after work was of course his Self-Portrait with Brush, or Buddha Composition, seen on the cover of Gazette No. 5, which at €98,800 achieved three times its high estimate, setting a new world record for the painter (source: Artnet). The previous record was also set by Ader, in 2022. While Bando featured himself in several works throughout his career, nudes were another favorite subject of his. Discerning buyers responded well, bidding a splendid €52,000 for Nude with a Gold-Ground Fan (see Gazette No. 12) and €46,800 for the Large Nude (Andrée), 116 x 89 cm/45.7 x 35 in., in which Foujita‘s influence is palpable. His landscapes were also popular, like The Basilica of Saint-Denis (see same article), which went for €14,950, as well as numerous still lifes, including this Pipe And Tobacco Jar in Satsuma Porcelain, sold for a fragrant €28,600. The Cernuschi Museum, keeping a watchful eye, preempted two works: a Virgin and Child of 1924 (73 x 50 cm/28.7 x 19.7 in.) for €12,350, and a Self-Portrait in Top Hat for €10,400. A fine tribute to Toshio Bando.
Toshio Bando (1985-1973), Pipe and Tobacco Jar in Satsuma Porcelain, c.1929, oil on canvas, 24 x 33 cm/9.4 x 13 in. Sold for: €28,600
