I was initially surprised at the high price this German windowpane diecut fetched but then I looked at its condition. The size of the four designs lends itself to bent corners, lots of missing surface paper and lots of crackling, but they are largely missing in this fine example. The diecuts were made in the 1930s. I am very happy the seller, a true collecting ace, received such a strong price. Prices for vintage Halloween on eBay have been on the soft side for a while now, making this result even more satisfying.
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
Vintage Halloween Germany Windowpane Diecut Decoration Owl Antique 1930s HTF
The Germans produced four windowpane designs. If you are going to see one design, chances are it will be this one, the owl. (You can see the others on page 170.) What makes this particular example noteworthy is its condition. It seems to have a minimal amount of surface paper loss and crackling. The seller states that this was produced during the 1930s. Although that cited date is more often than not correct, it isn’t in this case. There is a black circular mark on the reverse of the diecut that indicates it was made during an interval of 1946-1949 in an occupied zone of Germany. This shouldn’t have a material difference on valuation.
06/10 Update: This fetched $732.53.
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 antique German Halloween die cut windowpane with witch vintage GREAT!
I’ve seen many examples of this diecut over the years. The condition of this one being sold by a knowledgeable and honest seller is in the top five of all those I have seen. Because these are so large they are prone to lots of surface paper cracking and typically have suffered the indignities of tape and multiple punctures. The description indicates this example has largely escaped those problems. The way the colors have mellowed on this one is pleasing. I hope this does well. It is heartening to see such a quality item amidst all the crapola that one has to wade through now since eBay changed their holiday categorization system.
Vintage Halloween germany windowpane owl diecut
The Germans produced four designs of these windowpane embossed diecuts. These are large and really make a statement in a display. This owl diecut seems to be in significantly better condition than what is typically seen. I know the seller, too. He is knowledgeable and honest. Bid high and bid often - but vote just once.
09/18 Update: This fetched $586.77.
Large HALLOWEEN FLYING WITCH W BIRD STARS Germany Embossed Paper Diecut H10
Even given the fair amount of surface paper missing this German windowpane diecut brought less than I would have expected. This design is one of four comprising a full set, all being roughly the same size. (Some of the cottage industries producing these windowpanes trimmed the borders some. As long as the trimming doesn’t touch the central image, there is generally no diminution of value.)
Vintage Halloween German JOL Windowpane Diecut
The condition of this is typical of these large diecuts. The Germans produced four different designs of these “windowpane” diecuts during the early 1930s. None surface often. This is surely the oddest imagery of all - a lascivious JOL! The others to this set can be seen on page 170.
Vintage RARE GERMAN WindowFrame diecut,Cat with crow on the fence,1 of 4 produc
$399.99 as the opening bid for this heavily damaged German diecut is the very definition of optimism. The seller, whose grasp on grammar, punctuation and spelling is tenuous at best, really should tamp down the optimism and simply list this remnant at $9.99 without a reserve.
09/03 Update: The seller, after no interest at her too-high opening bid price, lowered it to $39.99. That action has attracted some interest, with the price now at $79.
09/04 Update: This remnant sold for $152.50.
Large 13" Vintage German Halloween Embossed Jack-O-Lanterns Diecut!
This result is truly pushing the very boundary of sanity. This windowpane diecut, one of a set of four made during the early 1930s, has never sold for anything remotely close to this (frankly) ridiculous level. $5799.99 is more than was paid ~10 days ago for a one-of-a-kind German diecut. Hey, I'm not greedy - anyone wanting the one shown on page 170 can have it for $3500. I am worried that these unsustainable prices are so daunting to new collectors that the overall hobby will be damaged.
