VINTAGE PAPER MACHE BLACK CAT FACE JACK O LANTERN PUMPKIN Halloween Decoration

Thanks to the sharp eye of a regular reader, I can convey to you that this is a reproduction made during the 1990s by Seasons Gone By. Notice the flat bottom - an easy red flag for collectors as authentic vintage items have a ring pressed into the bottom. 

paper mache halloween lanterns

The seller states this was made in Germany during the 1930s. It surely was made off-shore, but not in Germany. This was almost certainly made in China in 2016 or 2107. It has zero collectible value. Don't be fooled!

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. 

Cardboard horn w/wood tip Halloween decoration Pumpkins

This is a fantasy piece created by stealing artwork used in Beistle's Halloween Elf diecut. This could have been made yesterday and has zero vintage value. It is disturbing to see such things being offered for sale, especially when they are put in eBay's Vintage Halloween category. 

Vintage ANTIQUE Halloween PAPER MACHE Pumpkin BLACK CAT Nut Cup Candy Container

Unfortunately, the person who bought this may not have known that it is a fairly new item made by Seasons Gone By. The seller, alerted to this fact, certainly did nothing to illuminate the questionable provenance. A long-time collector and reader of this blog contacted me recently to relate the email conversation she had with this seller. I reproduce this for you now: 

This cup was made in the 1990s by a company called Season Gone By and their mark has been removed from the underside. I suggest you correct the listing.

I know that company and am familiar with their reproductions, this is not made by seasons gone by, I bought it in a lot of Halloween antiques, some had scrapes on the bottom like this one and some did not, I just sold a vintage nut cut that was in the same lot, it was intact on the bottom and did not have any makers marks... There is no reason for me to assume this one is made by seasons gone by. I am very clear in my description about this item.

This is a dealer whose listings I'll be watching very carefully.

ANTIQUE VINTAGE HALLOWEEN WITCH NOISE MAKER. 1930's Germany MINTY RARE

These fake horns have been showing up these last few years. This model is larger than the plethora of fake horns that have plagued the hobby since the 1990s. Laughingly, each is always described as this one is - minty! (Of course they are minty - they were made as recently as yesterday!) Don't be fooled by these objects. They have very modest decorative value only.. 

BOX ONLY - Old Witch Brewsome Stunts Cardboard Vintage Halloween

This is a crudely made fake, something that I would have expected to see from curiousimp or trappedintheshadow. Beistle never sold these games in boxes that look like books. Interestingly, and tellingly, the seller says next to nothing about the item being sold. 

Antique German Halloween Pumpkin Head Candy Container ca1920

This is a fake, patterned on the one shown on page 132. This container has been faked in several sizes, all having some issue with the nose in common. Since the only authentic one has a repaired nose, there isn't a template for the fakers to use other than the one shown on page 132. This example is more cleverly rendered than others, given its use of a cotton batting nose, but it is still an object possessing decorative value only. An authentic example would bring ~$2000. 

Vintage Halloween Nodder Candy Containers Veggie Men Germany 5 different iob

These fantasy items were made after 1995 and have zero collectible value. This seller, unfortunately, is impervious to learning, as she and I have had many interactions wherein she insists these kinds of things have some true age to them. There is no documentary evidence that these abominations were made prior to around 1995 when they began appearing at antiques shows. The seller bangs on about what a bargain a buyer will get purchasing these as a set, but unless you want to pour money down a drain for items that have decorative value only, steer clear of these items. Many of this seller's offerings in the Vintage Halloween category are fantasy items, so be sure to ask many questions if you choose to do business with her. 

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 HALLOWEEN CANDY CONTAINER UGLY JOL JACK O LANTERN

This is not a vintage candy container. The genuine article, which you can see on page 132, measures ~4.5" high, far more compact than this abomination. This POS was surely modeled after the one in the collection due to the nose. The genuine article has a piece of felt at the nose, attached by a prior owner to hide a chip. The reproducers either didn't know that or didn't care, blithely copying what they could see from my references. This has zero vintage value. Don't be fooled. 

Vintage Veggie Man Nodder Candy Container Glass Eyes Rare Irtz Collection HL107

All of the Halloween-themed nodders this seller has up were made after 1995 and have zero vintage value. 

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. 

WICKED WITCH ON BROOM DOORSTOP Cast Iron Pumpkins Halloween Vintage

This is a new item, almost certainly made off-shore within the past year. It is nicely detailed and would be fun to have as part of a contemporary display, but it isn't old. The detailing is too fluid and the appearance of the reverse is inconsistent with the one truly vintage Halloween doorstop I have seen in person - a haunted house. 

VINTAGE HITCHY-WITCHY COLLECTIBLE HALLOWEEN SKILL GAME

This is a poorly done fake, characteristic of so many of the items this seller offers. This seller has been on my list of those with whom I do not do business for many years. It seems that every "vintage" Halloween item this person offers is problematic. They used to sell these with no verbiage on the handle. I pointed out this deception in my references. Now I see this seller has made what looks to be a very poor copy of the verbiage and transferred it to the handle somehow. On genuine items, the wording is bold and clear, unlike the muddled mess this fake shows. Even the borders of the handle are poorly done. I'm sorry to see someone wasted $36.52 on this POS. If you're a reader, get your money returned! 

Large vintage Halloween paper mache pouncing black cat decoration 1930’s-1940’s

This is the second one of these "vintage" cats that has been listed in the last 10 days. This was made off-shore somewhere - probably China - perhaps as recently as last week. It has all the styling panache that one would expect from a poorly designed POS. Please don't make the mistake some poor soul recently made and purchase one of these for more than its decorative value - $14.99. 

Antique Germany Paper Pulp Painted Orange Pumpkin JOL Red Nose Pipe Noisemaker

This fantasy item is one of a set of at least 4 that began appearing in the mid-1990s. These are often sold with a truly vintage box, with this ersatz marriage meant to fool the unsuspecting. Don't be one of those. Run, don't walk away from any dealer selling these as anything other than what they are - products made no earlier than 1995.  

Vintage German Halloween Pumpkin Head Train Candy Container

These fakes began appearing in the late 1990s. There are no vintage counterparts. I am sorry to see that some unsuspecting collector wasted $125 plus shipping on junk. Don't be fooled...

WONDERFUL VINTAGE GERMAN DAPPER BLACK CAT ON PUMPKIN CANDY CONTAINER

As the seller intimates, this is a reproduction. (I could tell the moment I saw the photo.) As written in the caption of the real deal shown on page 69: "Reproduced versions of this container with a smaller pumpkin base were made beginning in the mid-1990s. These new versions tend to be heavier and lack the detailing of the originals." This item has no collectible value and is certainly worth nothing close to what this seller has established as the opening price. 

08/16 Update: I was sorry to see some poor sap wasted $172.38 on this reproduction. 

Vintage Halloween DOUBLE SIDED Pumpkin Gingerbread Man Candy Container German

There is no record of this design existing prior to the mid-1990s. The seller states that he or she bought it in Ohio in the 1980s, but this recollection is not correct. This uninteresting design was among the crapalanche of reproductions and fakes that began plaguing our hobby in the mid-1990s when manufacturers began to realize the truly vintage German candy containers were bringing strong dollars. There were few references (and no web sites) back then to steer collectors away from such garbage. Don't be fooled!