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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.

Morphy Auction September 10

At one time Morphy used to include wondrous Halloween lots in their auctions, but pickings have gotten slim these last few years. They have an auction starting on September 10 that includes a few lots of Halloween-related material. I have questions on a few of these lots. 
Lot 323 is composed of one item, the devil horn, that is certainly not vintage and another that is probably not vintage. 
Lot 324 has four noisemakers fanned at the top of the photo that are not vintage. 
Lot 326 consists of three items. The middle item, the JOL-headed girl, has an undisclosed hairline crack to the front as well as to the back according to intrepid collector Cindy, who went to Morphy this very day to examine every lot in question. Her summary: "I was not terribly impressed." 
Lots 327 and 328 feature mechanical items. Too many mechanical items have been appearing too often. Not a one of the advanced collectors I know feel that these many mechanicals haven't been "frankensteined" together or tinkered with in some way. If you are inclined to bid on these lots, ask detailed, probing questions as to the consignor and any evidence of their provenance. 
I wish that Morphy would hire a reputable collector with no financial stake in the auction's outcome to vet their Halloween lots. Offering these kinds of items detracts from their reputation.