Noel Barrett commissioned to sell contents of Washington Doll's House Museum – June 19

March 11th, 2004

WASHINGTON, D.C. - After 29 years in business, the Washington Dolls' House & Toy Museum is closing its doors and sending its prestigious inventory to auction. Founded in 1975 by historian and doll authority Flora Gill Jacobs, the venerable institution known to collectors the world over will cease operations on April 30.

Noel Barrett Antiques & Auctions has been commissioned to sell approximately 550 coveted dollhouses, miniature store settings, dolls and antique toys from the museum in a June 19 auction whose real time Internet bidding component will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com.

Barrett expects the auction to be an overwhelming success with bidders participating from all over the world. He cites Ms. Jacobs' esteem within the collecting community as an important factor to the potential bottom line. “She started collecting in 1945 and is known as the doyenne of dollhouse collectors of the postwar period. She wrote the first comprehensive book on dollhouses ( Doll's Houses in America: Historic Preservation in Miniature ).” Because of the collection's importance, Barrett plans to create a video of all items included in the sale. “We want to document it for posterity.”

As with all auctions conducted via LiveAuctioneers.com, the complete illustrated catalogue will be available to view online.

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