Yellow Halloween Lantern Head Back Cat Confectionery Candy Bisque/Card Box c1930

This is a fantasy item I've not seen before, so prepare to see many more of them over the year. This abomination is being sold by a dealer in England who claims to have only a pair to sell. (Trust me, if this sells to an under-informed bidder for solid dollars, this seller will surely discover some more!) The claim in the listing's headline is that this item is from the 1930s - a claim not made in the body of the listing. This is not old and has zero collectible value.

03/21 Update: Two bidders got snookered by prevailing on these two lots with the exact same bid - $127.50. Prepare to see more of this fake. 

Vintage Halloween Little Paper Mache' German Tiger Pumpkin with original insert

This item was made during or after 1995 and was part of the first big wave of fakes that crashed around our hobby beginning then. Since these have no collectible value, the poor soul who spent $306 on this can kiss their money goodbye. Do your research before investing sums like this in ostensibly vintage Halloween items. 

VINTAGE EARLY HALLOWEEN JOL CANDY CONTAINER PAPER MACHE JACK O LANTERN GERMANY

This is a fake made sometime after 1995. What's "new" about this fake is the added greenery to the bottom. Whomever bought this wasted money. 

Vintage Paper Mache Halloween Pumpkin Jack-O-Lantern Insert & Handle 5 1/2" Tall

This fake was made off-shore within the last few years. The curly handle was the first give-away, followed by the faux crackled finish and the bone white base of the fake when the surface color is removed. The interior has a finished texture, quite different from the authentic examples. The buyer should get their money returned. 

Antique PAPER MACHE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN w/PAPER INSERT

Unfortunately, the buyer of this item flushed money down the drain in the belief that this was as described - antique - when it was made in the last 10-15 years. This is one of the styles issued by Jamieson Studios of Canton, Ohio. Their output was and is higher-end, but that can't overcome the fact that this is a decorative item with no vintage Halloween value. (By the way, why would anyone bid on this with such a astronomical shipping cost? I have hefted the one in my folk art collection and it is pretty light-weight!) 

halloween lantern

Not having something in-hand to examine is almost always an impediment, but I don't feel this is a vintage item. The material from which the JOL is crafted isn't consistent with anything I've seen in authentically old items. The bale, in terms of how it is somehow fastened to the inside as well as its thickness, is also not consistent with vintage items I've examined. The inserts look new. The fabric leaves do appear to have some age to them, but overall I feel there is enough doubt with this item that I'd ask a lot of questions before placing any bid. 

VINTAGE ORIGINAL HALLOWEEN PAPER MACHE' JACK O' LATERN W/ WIRE HANDLE

Unfortunately, someone spent $38 on this reproduction. This is not a vintage pulp JOL. It looks like a quality reproduction, perhaps one done by Stamm House, but it is a reproduction nonetheless. Things to note: the fake wear patterns, the overly thick bale, the unfinished bottom and the fact that it is not pulp. 

Rare Vintage Metal Pumpkin Jack O' Latern Spooky Halloween Decoration

This is a recently made fake with faux aging. The seller jarringly and apropos of nothing writes that Mike Wolfe from History's American Pickers loves vintage items. As someone who has provided an on-camera appraisal of a truly vintage Halloween item for that program, I am confident in saying that Mike Wolfe would pass on this item. 

This bug-eyed JOL with its protruding tongue is a memorable design and would probably make a strong display presence, but it is not a vintage item. This began appearing about 10 years ago and has decorative value only. The thick bale is inconsistent with truly vintage items as are the over-sized clasps securing the candle holder to the bottom cardboard piece. Don't be fooled!