Vintage toys, banks, advertising at center of joint auction

DOWNINGTOWN, Pa. — Pook & Pook, Inc., Auctioneers and Appraisers with Noel Barrett Antiques and Auctions, LTD. hosts their first joint auction, Dec. 2-3.

Session one includes an array of Schoenhut pieces, dolls, china dish sets, doll houses, and shops. The bulk of the sale, however, is on Saturday starting at 10 a.m. The selection includes a group of mechanical and still banks, automotive toys, trains, and European and American clockwork toys. In addition, vintage advertising, carousel fixtures, motion picture theater memorabilia, and Swiss Bucherer figures will be presented.

Online bidding will be available at both Bidsquare and LiveAuctioneers.

Noel Barrett first fell in love with toys, predictably, at an early age. Over time, his fascination evolved from seeing toys as “neat things to have” to pursuing the business behind childhood nostalgia. “[Toys are] something that I’ve always enjoyed…I’ve turned a hobby into a business,” said Barrett. Years of hunting and dealing helped Barrett build both a superior knowledge of his field and a loyal client base. Both are things that made his eventual auction business a hot spot for collectors. Like Barrett, Ronald and Debra Pook started off as antique dealers and graduated to auctioneers in the 1980’s. They soon became a record setting auction firm offering some of the finest antique furniture, fine art, and decorative accessories.

While Pook & Pook has had several successful toy auctions, including selling the contents from Merritt’s Museum of Childhood, a sale grossing over $2 million, toys have been a smaller subset of the company’s decorative arts coverage. Ron Pook hoped to expand Pook & Pook, Inc.’s scope to include more auctions of toys and related material. A joint auction with Noel Barrett provides the backbone for such a move. Similarly, Barrett’s smaller auction house benefits from Pook & Pook, Inc.’s infrastructure and strong online and media presences. Friends Pook and Barrett saw an opportunity to improve on what both companies offered working in tandem starting this December.

A large two-day joint auction, it is the perfect start to the Pook & Pook, Inc. and Noel Barrett collaboration. Highlights on Friday include an impressive collection of Schoenhut, with rare figures such as the Arab Chief, African Drummer, and large Pony Blitz dapple white wooden riding horse, as well as French Jumeau and Jules Steiner bisque head dolls.

On Saturday, bidders can look forward to items such as a stunning Gustav Dentzell outside row

carousel horse, an elaborate steam-powered, craftsman-made model of a circa 1900 horse-drawn fire pumper, a rare matched pair of Steiff Mickey and Minnie Mouse cloth dolls, an Arcade cast iron Brinks Express Company paneled delivery truck, and an exceptional cast iron CINCINNATI STOVE WORKS figural horse and rider advertising plaque, circa 1903. Saturday train highlights include a Marklin O Gauge, number 2924 Ithaca Pullman train car, a Marklin O Gauge, number HR 66/12920 passenger train set, a Marklin Gauge I, number TK66/12921 locomotive, and a Lionel standard gauge 381E special green state train set.

The auctions begin at 6 p.m. on Friday, December 2nd, and 10 a.m. on Saturday, December 3rd.

Bidders interested in items featured in this joint auction are encouraged to contact Pook & Pook, Inc. at info@pookandpook.com or (610) 269-4040 with questions regarding condition reports and/or additional photographs, as well as online, in-house, phone or absentee bidder registration. To purchase a printed catalog for the December 2nd & 3rd sale, email catalogs@pookandpook.com or go to www.pookandpook.com.