Hi Readers, I’m going to be doing lots of things the rest of this month. It’s nearly summer AND it has remained cool in the valley, so the outdoors beckon. I’ll return sometime in July with additional posts and a newly restocked For Sale page.
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
2 Antique Vintage Halloween Full Boxed Sets of Witch Seal Decorations ca. 1940s
Whitney produced these boxes of seals sometime during the early 1920s. Whitney was a decided underdog in the realm of boxed seals and the like. Their design aesthetic was largely static and yawn-inducing. Their output was a fraction of the two big dogs they were trying to emulate, Dennison, the undisputed master of the boxed seals business, and Gibson, which tried for a few years to catch the leader, but never succeeded. I feel that some manager at Whitney urged the company to enter the boxed seals business, and they did so half-heartedly. The first season or two Whitney didn’t even bother to label their boxes with quantity or even their own name. The two boxes in this listing date from those first one or two seasons. After this they did label their boxes, no matter how small the dimensions, with what you’d expect. Today, collectors avidly search for Dennison boxed goods from the teens through the early 1930s. The Gibson boxed seals market is also quite strong, and has remained so for a decade. Whitney seals have struggled to break through, certainly due to their lack of oomph. It’ll be fun to see what this listing brings.
Vintage Halloween Cellowax Jack-O-Lantern Party Favor candle box toy not candy
It is so great to see a rare item like this being offered on eBay. I’ve only seen this box now four times since I began collecting in 1988. I actually offered a box in rougher condition but with its correct candle in my recent March auction. That brought $366. A couple of things to note with this listing. It looks like two of the box’s interior flaps have been reinforced. One appears to be missing. Also, the candle included in the lot is not the kind of candle that would have been originally sold with the box. (I’ve included two photos below of the correct candle.) That said, the box is the gem - not the candle. I have a near-mint box and candle in the collection - and the set is a real showstopper. I hope this listing brings the high dollars it deserves!
Vintage Halloween 8" Witch Rocket Rosbro Kokomold Candy Container Pumpkin Wheels
Hard plastic - specifically the more unusual Kokomold items - seems to be having a moment in the sun. Base prices have long remained strong, but there has been a marked strengthening of late. This dual-colored large witch-in-rocket should do quite well. As of this writing, it has been bid up to $495 with nearly 5 days left!
Vintage Halloween 6.5" Witch Bat Cat Owl Paper Noisemaker Ratchet Marks Bro
I’ve never gotten the allure for this noisemaker. They always look Frankensteined to me. In any event, this example sold for $158, not the $295.98 eBay’s system shows. (Why don’t they simply show the actual selling price?)
Vintage Halloween 4" Metal Round Noisemaker Crow Cat Germany Very Old Rare
The seller definitely made a mistake in offering this rare German tin litho noisemaker for $198.95 or Best Offer. (Whomever stumbled across this listing didn’t even bother to make an offer, but wisely scooped it up for the too-low offer price.) The form of the noisemaker is odd in that the main cylinder is bare with only the two ends having any imagery - spare as it is. This guy was probably produced sometime between 1930-1935. I’ve never seen it before. The Germans didn’t produce that much Halloween tin litho - and the market coverts it. I feel if the seller had simply started it at $198.95 under an auction format it would have fetched no less than double what it did.
Gurley Reproductions
A reader alerted me that The Vermont Country Store has bought some vintage Gurley molds and have been reproducing a few of their candles. When I visited their site (great stuff…) I saw three different Halloween candle designs and three different Christmas candle designs. The Halloween candles could be mistaken for vintage items, so be cautious when purchasing these specific ones. Who knows if TVCS has purchased other vintage molds, so be sure to check their site if you are contemplating purchasing candles you assume to be vintage.
Vintage Halloween Dennison Leaf Face Gummed Seals Complete Box W 6 Seals 1920's
Dennison produced an amazing variety of seals, illuminated silhouettes, cut-outs, etc. housed within slide boxes. Designs range from the forgettable to the disquieting to the beguiling. (Give me all the disquieting ones!) Wouldn’t you agree this fits the disquieting bill? One of my favorite designs, this seller is offering this 1924 box complete with the correct complement of seals - two designs, three each. Yes, the box is tattered but can be restored. Dennison slide box products have been on a nice tear of late, so it will be informative to see what this lot brings.
05/22 Update: This sold for $465, a strong result.
Vintage 1940s Halloween Tin Ratchet Black Cat
This exceedingly rare tin litho design was made by an unknown firm during the late 1920s. There is only one other use of this particular litho design known. The near-identical litho was used on a pair of cymbals. (One pair of these cymbals sold on eBay in September 2023 for $2,050.) Given their great rarity, I am confident the cymbals and this clanger were produced for a single season. I have only seen this clanger four times in 35+ years. One is in the collection, one was in another collection and one was sold on this site ~9 months ago for $1,650. This fourth example is in significantly lesser condition than the three others, so it will be informative to see what it brings. I’ll definitely be watching.
05/22 Update: Even though the litho was significantly compromised, this ultra-rare noisemaker brought $636.99!
Vintage Halloween 9" Witch Bat Skull Skeleton Devil Paper Noise Maker Horn
This horn actually sold for well below the price shown. It sold for $135.00, which I feel is somewhat of a bargain. Given the imagery, one might think this horn was produced by Beistle. It wasn’t. Instead, as I write on page 207, “This is surely an unauthorized adaptation of Beistle’s imagery.” I feel this was produced in Japan. These horns don’t often come available, so I was surprised there was such a delta between the reported selling price and the actual selling price. Whatever entity produced this horn made them in at least two sizes: 9” and 15”. I have only seen the latter size once.
Merri-Lei skeleton Clapper Noisemaker
This is a reproduction, made sometime after 2010. Truly vintage Merri-Lei skeleton clappers have lithography on one side only, will be marked at the bottom and are not as thick as this reproduction.
Vintage J. Chein Lg. Halloween Tin Clacker Noisemaker - Green Handle Patent 1906
This large tin litho pan clanger is the earliest appearance of this art. Produced by Chein, the form of this noisemaker is the hardest iteration to find. The seller has a BIN price of $275, or Best Offer. This is a steal. I hope one of my readers snags it before it sells.
05/04 Update: …And one reader did snag it. Congrats to KH of MO!
Rare Vintage Halloween Hard Plastic Kokomold Pumpkin Coach Cat & Witch
This result blew me away. Virtually all market segments have been soft for months, then this sells for what I think is a record price. The same seller had other hard plastic items that all did quite well, so that market segment appears healthy based on those data points. I have become enamored of Kokomold hard plastic items over the last two years and would have loved to add this to the collection, but not at this price. Three bidders were vying for this until the last second. I admire their chutzpah! The seller, who doesn’t appear to have Halloween as a typical offering, must feel like they’ve won the lottery.
Vintage Halloween EXCEEDINGLY RARE CARDBOARD JOL's AND FENCE CENTERPIECE 1920's
I enjoy reading clear, spare writing so how could I not enjoy this listing? Part of one sentence brought a rare smile to this face: “…we honestly feel that finding one in better shape will be daunting.” I concur. This is only the second time I’ve seen this Whitney fence in my time collecting. The fence has a pleasing energy to it, different from some Whitney fences that are static in their designs. If you appreciate these fences - and I have quite a nice collection - you simply cannot let this one get away. When will you see it again?
04/28 Update: This fine fence sold for $355.51.
Antique 40s G.M. Co Die Cut Halloween Candy Container Witch Black Cat RARE
The G.M. Company produced a number of slot-and-tab candy holders during the 1940s and 1950s. They produced a set of six Halloween designs of which this witch stirring a cauldron is one. (You can see the others on page 54.) All of these designs are common, so if you want to add one to your collection just look for those items in near-mint or better condition. This one, which actually sold for $170, is in such poor condition that I am mystified by that price.
