Hi Everyone,
Thanks for all your kind inquiries wondering why I haven’t posted anything for a month. I wasn’t hit by a truck, nor did I fall down a crevasse. COVID hasn’t (yet…) wrapped its scaly fingers around my lungs. I simply like to take a month away from the tyranny of the blog during a year.
However, it is now December 1st and I am eager to post. The problem is that eBay has truly been an unending cavalcade of crap for weeks. (I chose a great month to step away.) There have been few exciting lots on that forum. There was one, though. Did you see the Beistle witch table-top decoration with an exceedingly rare multi-colored skirt (see page 224 for the one in the collection with an orange skirt…) that zoomed to $1,725 in the last few moments? Both the prevailing bidder and the underbidder are collectors with discerning eyes. Although I knew the color combination existed in theory, I had never seen one surface before. Bravo to the acquirer!
Bertoia held a spectacular auction featuring many Halloween items from Bob Merck’s collection in early November. I watched the bidding, made some half-hearted bidding attempts, and marveled that collectors would actually dish out $15,000 for a German scary tree candy container or near that amount for a lettuce leaf lantern. Those figures don’t even include the steep buyer’s premium or shipping costs. Buyer’s premiums are a real brake on my acquisition urges. Seeing these prices make me even more grateful I started collecting so long ago.
I’ve been busy preparing for my next auction. I’ve already photographed 50 lots. I am pleased with the strong line-up for next year’s auction, open only to those who have purchased a copy of my third edition from me. By the way, be sure to acquire your copy of my third edition before the price hike. The price per copy will rise from $65 to $77 shortly.
Let’s hope some worthwhile lots surface on eBay soon.