COMPLIMENTARY COPY
“Empire Strikes Back” Action Figure Sells For $112,926 New World Auction Record Set For “Star Wars” Toy FRIDAY AUGUST 2, 2019 • VOL. 50, NO. 31
Jeffrey S. Evans’ 36th Semiannual Americana Event Sees Strong Sales North Carolina Inlaid Walnut Cellaret/Bottle Case Sold For $87,750 By Susan Emerson Nutter Many antique auctions today feature collections amassed over time and with purpose. This was true for the 36th Semiannual Americana and Fine Antiques Auction featuring Virginia and the South held by Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates on June 21 and 22. Day one featured the Jack and Tommie Marsh collection, more than 500 lots of country Americana and folk art. The Marshes, of Columbia, S.C., bought from other well-known collectors and dealers at shows such as Heart of Country in Nashville, Tenn. This first day saw solid sales of highly desirable items, with many moving from the Marsh collection into yet another devotee’s stash. A Pennsylvania poplar bucket bench with an interesting off-set single drawer in a lovely old blue took top honors, selling for $4,095 (est. $800-$1,200). Prices include a 17 percent buyer’s premium. A bid of $3,042 (est. $2,000-$3,000) secured ownership of a Pennsylvania painted pine Dutch cupboard that featured both spoon rests and a pie shelf, and, wearing the date “1915” as well as a sweet rabbit with a checkerboard design in each corner, a desirable folk art hooked rug
Attributed to Micajah Wilkes (Bertie County) this North Carolina inlaid walnut cellaret/ bottle case was the sale’s top seller, obtaining a selling price of $87,750.
Gerrard Classic Auto Collection Donated To AACA Library And Research Center
AAN Current News
Hurley To Sell Estate Of Stained Glass Artist Roy Chambers on page 4
Jonathan Castner Joins Alderfer’s Auction Team on page 4
Club To Open New Library In Hershey, Pa., In 2020
Made of chintz with applied designs, this circa 1840 Maryland appliqued bed cover sold for $5,265. It measured 115-by-117 inches and descended in the Clopper-Hutton family.
A nice collection of English Staffordshire also made a strong showing at this auction, including this Whieldon-type ceramic owl figure, which sold for $6,000.The circa 1780 figure was 7.75 inches high and was property deaccessioned by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Va., with all proceeds to benefit the Collections Acquisition Fund.
Hake’s Auctions of York, Pa., has its removal was more than likely confirmed that a rocket-firing Boba due to a production issue with Fett action figure that sold for the rocket-firing mechanism. Either $112,926 in their July 11 online sale way, the Boba Fett rocket-firing set a new world auction record for a prototype went on to become one “Star Wars” toy. Also, it now goes on of the rarest of all “Star Wars” record as the first “Star Wars” toy to toys and is highly revered in the break the six-figure barrier. collecting world. The 3.75-inch prototype, which The price paid for the prototype was intended to be part of Kenner’s exceeds the previous auction licensed toy line for “The Empire record for a Star Wars toy, also held Strikes Back,” was displayed at the by Hake’s, by more than $26,000. 1979 Toy Fair in New York City but To learn more, readers may visit never made it into mass produc- www.hakes.com. tion. While some speculate that the toy was pulled from the production line after being deemed a possible safety hazard to children, many “Star Wars” The rocket-firing Boba Fett prototype (L-slot) action figure, 3.75 inches high, s c h o l a r s AFA 85 NM+ condition, Kenner, 1979, sold for $112,926, the first have con- “Star Wars” toy to sell for six figures. It is a world auction record for any cluded that “Star Wars” toy. Image courtesy Hake’s Auctions.
snatched a $2,457 (est. $300-$600) final bid. Day two’s offerings also came from stellar collections, but also from another source. Offered were items from several well-known estates where no intentional “collecting” took place, but instead were made up of generations of items brought together due to life events and family acquisitions. The material in these estates was outstanding and also well-known by many antique enthusiasts, making for some spirited bidding. For sale on the second day was the historic property descended in the Clopper-Hutton family of Montgomery County, Md., more specifically from “Woodlands,” their Continued on page 2
The Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Library and Research Center is pleased to announce that William T. “Tom” Gerrard has donated his extensive literature collection to the library. The library has cared for the collection since 2013, calling it the Gerrard Classic Auto Literature Collection. Gathered during a 35year span, this collection includes many of the rarest items known to the hobby covering the 1950s and 1960s. I t e m s include sales catalogs, brochures, color and fabric samples, shop manuals, wiring diagrams, dealer binders, filmstrips, slides and more. The formal transfer of ownership occurred earlier this year. Gerrard has had a long-standing relationship with the AACA Library and Research Center, which is why he originally offered the massive collection to the center on a long-term loan. “After several years of watching the staff handle my collection and seeing the dedication they had for its preservation, it makes me pleased to now make
my loan a gift. With the announcement that AACA will be opening a new and modern library in 2020, the timing seems perfect. I believe strongly in the library and its mission, and I hope that the materials will help other collectors and restorers for many years to come,” stated Gerrard. Each item in the Gerrard Classic Auto Collection has been digitized and cataloged and is r e a d i l y accessible in hard copy or electronic format. The library is free and open to the public Mondays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., currently located at 501 W. Governor Road, Hershey, Pa. This donation will further the AACA Library’s mission of connecting people with primary sources pertaining to automotive history and further solidify its position as “America’s Automotive Library.” For more information about the AACA Library and Research Center, visit www.aacalibrary.org. The AACA, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, has served as the Continued on page 3
Rowe’s Sells Group Of T206 Cards For $12,000 on page 6
Major Work By William Louis Sonntag Gifted To The Palmer Museum Of Art on page 11
In This Issue SHOPS, SHOWS & MARKETS . . . . . . . . . . starting on page 3 SHOPS DIRECTORY . . . . . . . . . on page 5 EVENT & AUCTION CALENDAR . on page 7 AUCTION SALE BILLS . . . starting on page 7
FEATURED RESULTS: Rowe’s Auction Service - July 18 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania - Page 6
AUCTIONEER DIRECTORY . . . . . on page 8 CLASSIFIEDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . on page 11