When I was browsing the listings I saw this and thought, “I haven’t seen this Japanese ratchet design in some time.” When I took a closer look and realized it was actually produced in Germany, my eyebrows raised in pleasant surprise. Seeing this design from Japan is good, but seeing the much rarer (and I feel, more desirable…) German version is a true treat. The added kicker are the sellers. You’d be hard-pressed to interact with two nicer people.
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
VINTAGE HALLOWEEN GERMAN DIE-CUT 8 " TALL BLACK CAT PLAYING TROMBONE
The tip of one ear is definitely missing on this glazed, rather than matte, German diecut. As with almost all of the glazed diecuts from this period of the 1920s, the colors appear strong.
RAREST Vintage Halloween Fence Diecut Decoration JOLs Black Cats, Germany 1935!!
This is considered by many collectors to be THE German diecut to own. Its length, complexity of design and overall scarcity are three of the more important factors making this statement a true one. These don’t surface often. The last one was on eBay in late October 2021 and it sold for $5,000. That example was in significantly better condition than this one, so this one’s condition may act as an upper limit gate on the valuation, although with prices unsustainably frothy, who’s to say?
This diecut is rare enough that I wasn’t able to locate one good enough for the collection until just ~3 years ago. A couple of notes: This diecut design was factory folded at the center then shipped. The fold line is between the second and third figures. Although I haven’t seen more than a dozen of these in 34+ years of collecting, a majority of the ones I’ve seen have separated at this fold line. Several were missing the left-most figure for some reason.
I chatted with the great seller this morning. She stated that sometimes great rarity trumps minor-to-moderate condition issues. I agree with the sentiment. It’ll be fun to watch this auction!
08/07 Update: The result was shockingly low given the rarity of this diecut. Yes, $2551 is a lot of money but considering an example in somewhat better condition sold just nine months ago for almost double tells me too many high-end items are hitting the market within too short of a time frame. Whomever the buyer was should pat themselves on the back for such an unbelievable score.
RARE Original Vintage Halloween Decorations Box for Set of German Diecuts, 1920s
Here’s a true piece of ephemera - a box from the 1920s that originally held a dozen of the detailed, heavily embossed diecuts that Germany produced from ~1920 through 1935, pre-WWII. These boxes seldom come available, especially in this bright, intact condition. I think the average retailer would not sell the boxed sets but only the contents, separately. Perhaps a few retailers did, but I think these boxed sets were sent by the Germans or the host of wholesalers used at that time to the retailer, which would then discard the box and sell the innards. I’m speculating here, but feel this is likely considering how few such boxes surface. This is a high-end item that collectors, and especially advanced collectors should covet.
06/30 Update: Although the final price was $770, which is a lot of cash, I was surprised that this didn’t bring more.
Vintage Halloween Embossed Cardboard Black Cat Face German Germany 1920's 1930's
I’m impressed with the condition of the highlights on this cat head diecut. The green, red and white highlights were applied by hand. These highlights are often degraded over time with use and light exposure, so it is a treat to see one with near-perfect highlights. Rolled-ear aside, I hope it brings strong dollars.
06/07 Update: This brought $129.02.
1930s *RARE* Vintage Halloween German WINDOWPANE Diecut WITCH w/ Moon Embossed
The quartet of designs comprising the 1930s windowpane diecuts produced in Germany have long been avidly collected. Prices have escalated markedly over the last 5 years. That said, this is a very strong price, deservedly so for this fine seller. I really like the time she takes to explain what is being sold and some data points on past sales for similar items. Make sure you formally follow agmccloskey!
1930s RARE? Vintage Halloween OWL IN TREE WINDOWPANE Embossed Diecut GERMANY
The full set of these German windowpane diecuts comprises four designs. The owl typically lags the other designs in terms of value, all else being equal. I feel this reality is driven by the static and uninspired imagery, especially compared with the other three designs, which can all be seen on page 170. These large diecuts typically have significant edge wear and cracking of the surface paper. The wonderful seller seems to place too much emphasis on WorthPoint. This design has come available quite a number of times over the last few years on eBay alone. I’ve even offered two in my annual auctions since 2015. The ending price for this listing is in rough parity with what these have been fetching.
Rare Vintage Halloween 1930’s Skittle Game Piece Germany 3.75”
I watched this listing with great interest. For a long time I referred to these kinds of items as skittles based on information given to me long, long ago by Paul Schofield and Mary Lou Holt. That information was incorrect. These kinds of items were really table pieces that could act as a place card holder. (Many of the wood bottoms had grooves to hold a place card. Others didn’t, so I suppose a place card could have just leaned against it.) There were apparently two sets made. An example of the more common set is shown in this listing’s final photo. Others can be seen on page 26. The larger item, which sold for $405, is part of a set that truly is not often seen. Another from this set can be seen on page 26. I’ve long coveted examples from this latter set, but don’t own a single one. The date on this, if correct, confirms my hunch that this rarer set was made after the more common set. I suspect the rarer set was produced for a single season. I know I have a photo of many of the items from the rarer set somewhere. If I find it, I’ll post it here.
1910-1914 ANTIQUE Vintage Halloween TREAT SATCHEL Devils Bonfire Bat GERMANY
OK, this result blew my mind. (Another from this set of at least six, with broomed witches, sold a day earlier for a hair over $1,700.) These are very cool and rare items, but c’mon. If any one buyer wishes to own four of the six satchels, shown on page 137 from my personal collection, they can be yours for $7,000.
A long-time collector kindly shared a previously unknown design from his private collection, folded to be used as a hat rather than a satchel - expanding the known designs from four to five. You’ll find this below.
Another collector kindly shared a previously unknown design from her private collection, folded to be used as a hat rather than a satchel - expanding the known designs from five to six. You’ll find this below.
Scarce 1920s Halloween Black face Jack O Lantern JOL Made in Germany embossed
It is nice to see a rare item of quality on eBay. Sadly, that forum has largely been a shit-show since they inexplicably compressed the holiday categories about one year ago. This smaller version of this JOL design is one that just doesn’t surface much. Made in Germany during the early 1930s, it will win hands-down in a staring contest. (I now feel this design and related ones were made during the early 1930s. The book’s errata has been updated to reflect this new view.)
Awesome US ZONE GERMANY Halloween Composition JOL Pumpkin Head Clown
This listing yields at least two interesting things. I guess some Veggie figurals were produced post-WWII. Looking at the figural’s paint and the circular paper bottom there is nothing to differentiate it from others produced up to 2+ decades before. The other is the labels themselves. Look at how small and impermanent they are. If they were to be removed - and it would be so easy to remove them - there would be nothing to guide you from concluding it was produced as early as the 1920s. It doesn’t appear as if there is a stamped ink mark on the bottom. Interesting…
Vintage Halloween Decorations
The star of the lot is the German porcelain teacup, grouped with three items FAR below in caliber and desirability. The buyer got a true bargain!
Rare 1935 German Halloween diecut Cat & Boys & Girls hand in hand against fence.
I’ve had several email exchanges with the wonderful seller of this rare German fence diecut. She saw the article in a recent issue of Antique Trader listing my ten favorite vintage Halloween items. One of them, this diecut fence design, I valued at $4,500. That estimated value prompted her to list the fence diecut she acquired ~30 years ago from an estate sale, wherein she and a business partner acquired a box of vintage Halloween items for pocket change. She told me that through a thrift or antique shop she used to run with that partner, all of the Halloween items acquired that day were long ago sold - except the fence. She listed the diecut on eBay with a “make an offer” feature. She said she received multiple offers in the $2,000 range (c’mon people!) and declined them all until someone stepped up and paid very close to my estimate in the Antique Trader. Although she received a market price for the rarity, nonetheless she was sad to see it packaged up and sent away to the savvy buyer. (I say savvy because when something this rare pops up, you pay up. Those offering a pittance for a treasure hoping to snag a bargain happily lost out.
Now, eBay’s increasingly opaque system shows the fence diecut selling for $1,000. Reading this post, you know now that is inaccurate. (I strongly dislike the opaque approach eBay takes to reporting actual selling prices. It is a true detriment to understanding the foibles of the secondary markets.)
This diecut is rare enough that I wasn’t able to locate one good enough for the collection until just 2-3 years ago. Know that these diecuts were shipped folded. The fold line is between the second and third figures. Although there aren’t too many complete examples extant, many of the ones I’ve seen have separated at this fold line. Many, too, are missing the left-most figure for some reason.
Vintage HALLOWEEN Black Cat Face German Die Cut w Transparency! 30's.
I have long said that selling vintage Halloween on eBay in October is risky. Most collectors have spent their budget by the time they begin decorating in early October and so wonderful items sell for much less than they might have at other times. There are notable exceptions, but this is largely true. This diecut is a great example. Two similar ones sold within the last ~15 months for $2,000+. Even though the inserts are faded on this example, I feel the seller would have done better if they had offered it sometime from March to May.
Rare German Mini-Diecut
I attended an event last week in southern California’s California Adventure park called the Oogie Boogie Bash - A Disney Halloween Party. It replaces the significantly superior Mickey’s Halloween Party in Disneyland. As a bonus during the trip, I had the opportunity to view Jason Walcott’s collection for the first time since 2018. Jason’s collection is amazing and wide-ranging. One of the true pleasures of seeing his collection is the quality of each piece. Jason, like me, places a very high value on condition. Anyway, as I was perusing his wonderful displays, I spied the German mini-diecut shown below. I had never seen it before. It makes me wonder just how many German Halloween mini-diecuts were made. Congratulations, Jason, on having such a fantastic collection so nicely displayed. Thanks for letting me visit!
