“We were thrilled with the results,” commented Jeanne Bertoia in the days following the second auction session of the Donald Kaufman collection of toy automobiles, sold at Bertoia Auctions September 25 and 26. The legendary collection of the late Donald Kaufman was touted in a host of publications after record setting sales were achieved during the first session of the auction this past March, including an interior cover article in The New York Times.
Kaufman, who attended the first session of the auction, as well as the September session, passed away on October 12.
This most recent sale, conducted in two sessions, was once again subjected to the same level of fevered enthusiasm as had been seen earlier this year. Estimates were routinely cast aside as bidders chased the coveted lots.
Toy collectors from around the world converged on this specialty auction house, founded by the late Bill Bertoia, to compete for what can only be described in the automotive toy world as a consummate collection containing only the best of the best.
“From the aspect of form and design, it is art,” proclaimed Bertoia as she gazed around at the various showcases, each one filled to the brim with fun and colorful toy automobiles, trucks, race cars and motorcycles. Variety and age spanned the history of motorized transportation.
“They just pop, the colors are so strong and original,” she said. “A lot of these toys are fresh-out-of-the-box examples and many are also one of a few known examples.”
Many were playthings created for the serious boy, exact replicas of construction trucks and machinery, so precise as to allow for full scale excavation and building inside a sandbox-sized world. Others exuded fun, comic character tin litho toys such as Mickey and Minnie Mouse speeding along on a motorcycle. Pedal cars, puzzles with automotive themes, Buck Rogers ray guns, 1960s space age cars, “the colors and sleekness, everything is just so magnificent,” said Bertoia.
Kaufman reportedly showed signs of becoming a collector at the age of three, amassing collections of bottle caps and matchboxes. Kaufman’s father and uncle opened a candy business in 1922 that, through the aid of Donald, later expanded to become K-B Toys, eventually with 1,300 retail outlets. He sold his share of the company in 1981.
In the years that followed, Kaufman amassed the quintessential collection of more than 7,000 antique toys of all varieties. Cast iron vehicles ranked high on Kaufman’s collecting list, and a host of those examples were “one-of-a-kind” or “one of a handful known.”
“He was always striving for the best,” said Bertoia, “Donald upgraded toys from his collection so many times over the years&†he was always on the lookout for the best possible example.”
With almost 500 fewer lots offered in the March sale, this most recent auction “bridged the $3 million mark.” In contrast, the first session of the Kaufman Collection, which included many of the best toys from the collection, grossed $4.2 million.
One distinct aspect of the collection was that there are no duplicates in the sale, explained the auctioneer. “There are variations in color and in the casting, but there are no duplications.” An amazing feat for a collector who amassed more than 7,000 of the finest examples available.
Buyers made their way to the sale from Germany, Switzerland and a host of other countries where the toys were originally manufactured. Many items were repatriated, but American toy collectors were also strong buyers at the auction.
Segregated into categories ranging from “Japanese Automotive” toys from the 1960s, to “European Automotive,” which included prized Marklin hand painted tin toys, the sale started off with a selection of the latter. The first lot offered was a Gunthermann Blue Bird racer, the shorter version measuring 12 inches long, in excellent condition that sold at $1,725.
A tin litho delivery truck by Brimtoy, estimated at $2/3,000, would prove typical of the way the crowd reacted as estimates were routinely cast aside. Competitive bidding pushed the lot to a selling price of $5,175. A Hess toy limo offered a few lots later, estimated at $2,500/3,000, sold at $5,462, and an “exquisite” boxed Bing touring auto shot past estimates to bring $13,800.
The top lot of the auction came as a Marklin live steam fire truck, circa 1912, was offered. “It is a stunning masterpiece in overall detail,” stated the catalog description of the lot. Exemplifying the legendary Marklin detail from its bright hand painted open frame with exposed boiler to its many appointments, the museum-quality piece of which there are fewer than five known to date, was, according to the catalog, “the finest in Marklin’s range of toy perfection.”
This example was in virtually all original condition except for a small handle replaced on one door and some missing fire hose. Estimated at $40/50,000, bidding on the lot was brisk, with a host of players getting in on the action. The estimates were quickly surpassed, with the lot eventually selling for $149,500, going to an anonymous European collector.
Tin touring cars did well, with a Bing four-seater, described as “one of the earliest and certainly the most elegant” in Bing’s line of touring cars, doubling estimates. In pristine condition, the clockwork auto, estimated at $18/22,000, climbed to $59,800. A large open touring car by Bing, a four-seater in a gray paint with yellow embossed painting and a gold stripe, was another lot to do well. Estimated at $25/30,000, the car was bid to $40,250.
Three touring cars to achieve $20,700 included a Bing open four-seater in midnight blue, a JEP Renault car in yellow paint with Count Coluzzi provenance, and a Carette rear entrance tonneau clockwork car in excellent condition.
“Arguably the rarest of examples with surviving box” was the German-made Tippco Mickey and Minnie riding motorcycle tin litho toy, circa 1930. A somewhat tattered box was missing a couple of the side flaps from the top, although it retained a strong lithographed image of the Disney duo speeding down a country road. The toy itself, driven by a clockwork mechanism, was in excellent overall condition and carried a presale estimate of $40/60,000. When the dust had settled behind the speeding cycle, a top bid of $71,300 had been registered.
Another motorcycle to do well was a rare Hubley “Flower Shoppe” Indian delivery van in near mint condition. Listing a provenance of the ex-Haggerty collection, the red painted example was termed “a true classic in a very elusive design.” Bidding on this lot was also brisk, reaching $36,800.
Pressed steel cars and trucks brought substantial prices, with a Gendron “Stutz” car leading the way. The 28-inch-long car, described as “the best Stutz known to exist,” handily exceeded the high estimate of $20,000 as it sold for $52,200. A large American National Packard roadster, also 28 inches long and in absolutely original condition, was another of the pressed steel lots to do well, selling for $18,400. A Kingsbury “Little Jim” covered delivery truck made for J.C. Penney, circa 1927, blew past estimates, bringing $17,250.
Early tin limousines were plentiful, beginning with a boxed Carette limo from 1911, hand painted in a deep brown with red window trim. The rare clockwork-driven car with the original driver was described as being in near mint condition. Estimated at $15/18,000, the car sold for $32,200.
A Bing tin limo, hand painted in maroon with gold trim, was in pristine condition with only a minor paint scrape on the rear fender. In all original condition, aside from the replaced driver, the car sold for $16,100.
A Gunthermann “roll-back” roof limo, circa 1930, in a vivid blue paint with orange highlights, retaining the original box, nearly doubled estimates, bringing $13,800.
A Marklin delivery truck, circa 1920, with a green body and black trim did very well. The clockwork mechanism truck, estimated at $1,2/1,800, retained the original oil drum cargo and sold for $39,100. A Distler tin litho “Reichspost” delivery truck also did well, as it soared past the $2/2,500 estimates to bring $11,500.
A large Arcade “White” cast iron dump truck in the rare and early red and black color combination sold for a premium price. Retaining the original box and cataloged as in “near mint condition,” the truck sold for $14,950.
From the 1960s Japanese fantasy cars came a rare boxed “Atomic Jet” racer. Measuring 26 inches in length, the rare car featured a dramatic streamlined design. Estimated at $4/6,000, the friction-driven toy sold for $21,850.
A Gunthermann “Gordon Bennet” race car with a blue body and a four-leaf clover on the hood, along with the “5” designation, was in all original condition. Described as pristine, with the only damage being a portion of one white rubber tire exhibiting a loss, the car raced past the $4/5,000 estimate to bring $27,600. Another Gunthermann race car, circa 1920, with a two-seater open cockpit and boat tail rear, was clockwork driven and sold for $18,400.
A group of early biscuit tins that were made in automotive forms caught the fancy of collectors, with a “C.W.S. High Class Biscuits” delivery van selling at $13,800. A William Crawford and Sons limited Rolls Royce biscuit tin doubled estimates, realizing $10,350, while a Crumpsall Cream Crackers tin in the form of a delivery truck made $9,775.
One lot that surprised many in the crowd was offered in conjunction with a Hubley Dutch Cleanser Girl cast iron pull toy. In near mint condition, the pull toy sold between estimates at $6,900. The following lot, however, estimated at $300/400, was subjected to sustained bidding that pushed the price to $10,350. The lot consisted of a small Art Deco-style clock with the Dutch Girl Cleanser logo, and a cigar box with a stenciled logo on the lid.
The next installment of the Kaufman collection auctions will be conducted April 9 and 10. For more information, www.bertoiaauctions.com or 856-692-1881.
