Toy Box Brims with Untold Treasures

| September 21st, 2012

The auction's major stunner was the ineffable triple lamppost rail-side accessory, Märklin, circa 1910, painted cast iron with original glass globes (one missing) and chain, 16¾". It lit up at over four times high estimate at $21,240.

Large bear with honey, licking lips, three-dimensional upright bear in impressive scale with realistic detailed fur, 15" high x 6½" wide, $5900.

"Truk-Mixer," Hubley, 1920's, Mack cab, cast iron, with revolving cement drum body, 7½" long, $14,160.

Vis-à-vis, Bing, circa 1902, precise detailing with fully railed backrest, front spring hangers, full running boards, 10" long, $8260.

Gauge I train station, Carette (Germany), circa 1907, hand-painted extensively embossed façade, 12" high x 17" wide, $12,980.

Bertoia Auctions, Vineland, New Jersey

Toy Box Brims with Untold Treasures

by Dick Friz
Photos courtesy Bertoia Auctions

Bertoia Auctions' September 21-23, 2012, Toy Box Treasures event provided a pleasant, often exhilarating diversion, a welcome reprieve from overexposure to presidential campaign bombast, murder, mayhem, mega-storms, and economic woes. Buyers' confidence was emphatically apparent as intense bidding propelled the final tally to $2.1 million.

The three-day sale fairly brimmed over with 2137 entries, a synergistic array of comic, holiday, transportation, and utility toys, mechanical and still banks, trains, board and skill games, doorstops-vintage playthings from the familiar to the arcane. Toys appeared in virtually every medium, be it crafted in cast iron, tinplate, pressed steel, composition, bisque, hard rubber, celluloid, blown glass, chalkware, spun cotton, fur, papier-mâché, or wood. Motive power varied from steam, clockwork, hand-crank, string pull, and battery-operated to friction drive and youngsters' pedaling and pushing and pulling.

Once again, eminent consignors in their special fields provided a template for a highly diverting, top-shelf presentation. Beckoning were over 100 doorstops from Part II of the exhaustive collection of Chuck and Barbara Cook of St. Louis, Missouri; an ongoing reprise in comic character toys from Ron and Sandy Rosen of West Long Branch, New Jersey; and Part II of European and American steam toys from the estate of the late Klaus Grutzka of West Hempfield Township, Pennsylvania. New consignors in the fold included Mary Grumbine of Bethesda, Maryland, with nearly 40 teddy bears and accessories, and Mimi Ingersoll of Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, with European luxury cars, skittles, bell toys, and late 19th-century American and European tin.

Jeanne Bertoia and her son, Michael, concurred that most uncommon and exceptional quality entries in prime condition with impeccable pedigrees have consistently been in demand over the years. This sale again confirms their resilience despite an uncertain and troubling economic picture. The good stuff has grown appreciably in value and will probably continue to do so.

We caught up with Michael Bertoia a few weeks after the sale, upon his return from a toy show in Belgium. We were curious, in light of the sale's rampant, rousing bidding forays, about his opinion of which constituted the strongest, most dynamic entries in the Toy Box Treasures sale. For starters, and a eureka moment, how about a steam vis-à-vis by Bing (better known as Bing's Dog Cart), circa 1902, that went full throttle to $18,880 (including buyer's premium). Its early paint scheme of green, orange, and yellow, liveried driver, realistic nickel headlamps, front spring hangers, and full running boards added that special bling. Five of the top ten finishers in the luxury car category were crafted by Gebrüder Bing of Nuremberg.

People in the gallery, after a tense few moments of quietude, soon erupted into applause, hailing the surprising ever-upward spiral of a Märklin triple lamppost, circa 1910, in painted cast iron with original glass globes and chain, 16¾" high. The towering authentic-looking rail-side accessory lit up at $21,240, over four times its high estimate, despite missing a globe.

In light of the sale's relentless uptick strength of winning bids, we almost hesitate to point out the sale's one significant reversal of fortune. A classic Märklin Banhnof (railroad station), circa 1902, 14½" high x 19" long, surged far beyond estimate to peak at $55,800 and seemed to be the sale's high point. Alas, upon closer scrutiny, it was later determined that it was a total repaint. After all the early euphoria, news of the total overpainting was obviously a major disappointment. Michael Bertoia confirmed that they'd canceled the Märklin railroad station sale.

For further details on the Toy Box Treasures sale and future auctions, call (856) 692-1881 or check the Web site (www.bertoiaauctions.com).

A Serious Collector Who Never Forgot to Have Fun

Paul M. Ingersoll's toy collection, a myriad mélange of fascinating European and American toys, played a role to heat up bidding intensity among Bertoia's five-alarm array of crowd pleasers. Ingersoll, who died in January 2012 at age 83, was one of the few individuals in memory to successfully intertwine an Americana collecting avocation with his illustrious business and civic endeavors embracing collectibles and the arts.

A graduate of Princeton, he served in the 108th Field Artillery during the Korean War. Ingersoll's early résumé included top management positions with several banking and life insurance institutions. His second career was launched in 1979 when Christie's appointed him to open a Philadelphia-area branch office in Bryn Mawr. Ingersoll was a representative of the auction house for over three decades before retiring in his 70's.

Among other things, Ingersoll cofounded the Friends of the Philadelphia Art Museum and was on the board of the Atwater Kent Museum and Drexel University, founded by his great-grandfather. Not long ago, Ingersoll and his wife, Eleanor "Mimi," enriched the Bryn Mawr College collection with a notable endowment of lithograph prints, photographs, and drawings.

The Ingersolls were married for 60 years and had three daughters, Francie Ingersoll-Taylor, Rita Ingersoll, and Lea Sylvestro. Two daughters attended the Bertoia sale and seemed well pleased that their father's treasures posted strong prices and found delighted new owners.

Mimi Ingersoll told us that Paul "loved toys to pieces" and was forever rearranging his favorites on the shelves in their library. He never owned a black light and was more fixated on a toy's history and what appealed to the eye than obsessing over condition.

The Ingersolls often exhibited at major shows throughout New England, including the Dorset show in Vermont and the Vermont Antiques Dealers' Association show. Who can forget the couple holding court at their Allentown Toy Show booth through the years, wearing their colorful jesters' hats? Paul's hearty laugh would disarm nations. He had a nickname for everyone, his own being "the Nose," a moniker accorded him by Princeton classmates years earlier. Mimi related that the one sentimental favorite she withheld from the sale was an 1890's "Game of Nosey" by McLoughlin Brothers that they both got a kick out of.

The Ingersolls were active members of the Antique Toy Collectors of America. Jeanne Bertoia, in a special Ingersoll tribute handout to auction attendees, recalled that once when hosting a toy tour for fellow devotees, he was asked "What is your favorite toy?" Paul responded, "Like this club, I take joy in them all."

High achiever among the sale's German luxury vehicles was the 11" long Tilbury coach by Märklin, circa 1890, with wicker-styled sides and seats facing opposite directions-renditions said to be initiated by the Lutz factory (Lutz often sold under Märklin name). It sold for $20,060.

Farman biplane No. 5419, Märklin, 1910, clockwork, tin trestle body with framed celluloid wings, repaint on fuselage, flap, and front piece, 14½" x 10", $16,520.

Bahnhof (train station), Märklin, 1902, complete with etched stained-glass windows, arches, ticket window, outdoor seating with café table, composition figures, 17" long x 11" high x 12" wide, $10,030.

Museum-quality German Santa-driven lithographed tinplate clockwork automobile toys would be the crowning glory of even the most Grinch-like Christmas and holiday toy collector. A Claus for applause-a Santa open auto by Tippco (Germany), circa 1928, lithographed tin windup, notable for die-cut stamping and imaginative imagery on car, picturing teddy bears, dolls, cars, and planes from Santa's toy bag, trunk featuring revolving feather tree that activates as wheels turn, 12½" long, sold for $28,910.

The Father Christmas open auto, Fischer (Germany), circa 1912, with die-cuts of toys and small feather trees and two cuddly teddy bears flanking Santa driver, 10½" long, advanced to $26,550.

Pioneer Line Packard convertible pedal car, circa 1925, Gendron (United States), all original, said to be the finest example known, rear folding rumble seat, 66" long, $23,600 (est. $10,000/15,000).