GOSHEN, Conn. – An important on-site auction of three historic properties and the hundreds of treasures they hold is slated for Saturday, Nov. 1. The auction has just gotten better with the addition of estate items from prominent homes in Watertown and Old Greenwich, plus many new items that have only recently come to light after being unpacked and inventoried over the last month in Goshen.

LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

The auction, set to start at 11 a.m. Eastern time, already included an eight-acre farm with historic 1812 farmhouse and outbuildings located at 227 Old Middle St. in Goshen – where the auction will take place – an 1831 country store located at 10 Old Middle St (at Routes 63 and 4) in Goshen, and a circa-1900 home in Southbury known as “The Little Red Schoolhouse.”

Now add to that an 1870 home near the Green in charming Watertown that has been in the same family since 1900, plus its contents; and the contents of an upscale estate home in tony Old Greenwich, in Fairfield County. The Watertown home is on an acre of land at the corner of Route 63 and Woolson Street.

The cornucopia of items inside the buildings will be sold by Tim’s Inc. Auctions of Bristol and Litchfield. They are so numerous and wide-ranging, many will be offered in multiple lots, often many boxes comprising one lot. Additional treasures from prominent estates in Watertown and Old Greenwich have also been added, showcasing an already packed and exciting auction.

The four historic properties will be offered at 11 a.m. by Litchfield Real Estate Auctions LLC, brokers. The contents and treasures will be sold immediately afterward, at noon, by Tim’s Inc. Auctions. Offered will be a trove of Westmoreland Glass pieces, stunning estate jewelry items, wonderful period furniture, vintage lamps and lighting, gold and silver coins and more.

Discovered in the Old Greenwich estate, among the items that have been in the same family for decades, is a shelf clock made by Eli and Samuel Terry, the first clock makers in the United States, with woodworks made right in Goshen, where it will be sold, fittingly enough. A Goshen label on the clock is proof. The early 19th century shelf clock features beautiful sailing ships in the lower glass, outstanding Hitchcock-style stenciling throughout and other unique features.

One of the highlight items from the Watertown home is a highly collectible circa 1920s General Electric refrigerator – an older model, with the motor (or compressor) mounted on top. The refrigerator is even stocked with unopened vintage beer bottles, with beer, from the era.

Collectors of sports memorabilia will be astounded by an album containing dozens of signed photographs of baseball stars from years gone by, including Ted Williams and Mickey Mantle, plus some hockey and football autographs. The collector was a former decorated veteran of the Vietnam war, who used guile and determination to gather the autographs into one massive book. He died recently, and the entire proceeds of this lot will go toward paying for his burial expenses.

There are so many boxes of Westmoreland glass – easily 1,000 boxes or more – that some will be sold in multiple lots, as many as 50-60 boxes in a single offering. They were collected by the late Wilfred Reil of Litchfield, whose heirs are offering them now. The attic of the general store building is filled with china cabinets, bookcases and corner cabinets that are themselves filled with glass objects and other collectibles. Each cabinet will be sold, one by one, as a single lot.

Recently unpacked are huge leather-bound ledgers from Westmoreland Glass Co., a stack waist-high from the 1920s. Handwritten ledger entries document the firm’s business dealings with companies like Woolworth’s. Also just discovered are historical photos of the company that probably hung in the company’s main building and show some actual glass pieces that will be in the auction, plus a 1930s-era photo that was used as a window display at a Philadelphia bank.

Even fine art will be in the sale, highlighted by a bronze bust of a woman by the noted French artist Emmanuel Villanis (1858-1914). The sculpture, titled Lucrece, was rendered in the 19th century.

Period furniture will feature laminated rosewood carved chairs attributed to John H. Belter of New York; a rosewood carved rococo marble-top table with magnificent three-dimensional carvings, attributed to either Belter or J. & J.W. Meeks; and a monumental 72-inch-tall by 60-inch-wide mirrored-back sideboard, heavily carved with original finish, by Belter or Meeks.

A pair of very different lots both carry an eagle theme. One is a “Don’t Give Up the Ship” 28-inch-long by 9-inch-tall carved eagle made around the turn of the century by William Shephard of Mystic, Conn., with stars, stripes and shield in a nautical motif. The other is a Black Forest humidor, 22 inches tall, with a full spread eagle at the top, monumental and beautifully carved.

Lamps and lighting will include a Pairpoint Puffy table lamp with hummingbirds and flowers and a Pairpoint cut glass table lamp with dome shade (both made in Meriden, Conn.); Gone With the Wind lamps, to include one with a cut jewel shade by Bradley & Hubbard and one with a deep red etched satin shade with ram’s heads at the base, signed Bradley & Hubbard; hall lamps with opalescent shades; and several nice library lamps in various shapes and sizes.

Estate jewelry promises to be an exciting category in the auction, with new and dazzling pieces being uncovered by the day. Sold will be a Victorian bow pin with diamonds and sapphires, set in 18K gold and platinum; a women’s one-carat diamond ring; a pair of ancient Roman earrings; and a pair of David Webb (N.Y.) screw-back earrings complete with the original box.

Also sold will be 14K and 18K gold pocket watches; a circa-1790 century mid-Georgian pin with over one carat of diamonds and rubies; an Art Deco platinum diamond pin with sapphires, boasting over 3.5 carats of diamonds; and an early Victorian necklace with diamonds and sapphires, with one carat of diamonds and white sapphires with natural golden pearls.

Still more jewelry will feature a stunning 18K diamond necklace with over one carat of diamonds; an 18K women’s diamond and platinum ring with diamonds totaling just under three carats; a women’s single-stone 1.05-carat diamond ring; and a women’s diamond ring with two large diamonds totaling over two carats total weight. Also sold will be a lovely Cartier cigarette box.

The coins in the sale – and there will be many gold and silver coins – were still being inventoried at press time.

Even classic and vintage automobiles will cross the auction block. These will include a 1949 Buick Special, black, in absolute like-new condition, with just 15,000 miles on the odometer; a 1957 Buick Special, turquoise in color inside and out, also in showroom condition, with lots of chrome; a 1951 Buick sedan; and a 1926 Ford Model T two-door sedan, in running condition. All of the vintage cars are currently on view at the Goshen General Store (10 Old Middle St.).

Decorative items and collectibles will feature bride’s baskets, pickle casters, Flow Blue china, perfume bottles, Wave Crest, mesh purses a Nantucket sewing basket with swinging handle, a Rookwood vase, Roseville pottery and more. At press time, boxes were being opened and yet more treasures were being discovered. This will probably go on right up to the date of auction.

“The Little Red Schoolhouse” building features high ceilings, two bedrooms and a large kitchen. For more information on any of the four historic properties, call Mary Helen Levine at 203-525-4753; e-mail is mhla@aol.com.

Goshen is a pretty town located 10 minutes north of Litchfield, in northwest Connecticut. It is celebrating its 275th anniversary.

A buyer’s premium of 23% will be applied to all purchases.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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VINELAND, N.J. – At this point in the evolution of antique toy and bank collecting, it could be argued that there are two basic groups of collectors: those who have had the privilege of viewing the Max N. Berry collection, and those who will see it for the first time on November 14-15, 2014 at Bertoia’s. Over those two days in mid-November, the family-owned New Jersey company will auction a total of 479 lots of early toys and mechanical banks from the distinguished Berry collection, with nearly 100 lots planned for the Friday evening session, and the balance to follow on the Saturday. Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

“I don’t know where you would go to top the Max Berry collection for ‘wow factor.’ Max has been astonishing his fellow collectors for decades, with one impossibly rare toy after another,” said Bertoia Auctions associate Rich Bertoia. “Max set his sights on buying primarily from pedigreed collections whose name value gave the toys and banks automatic provenance.”

Of the nearly 200 mechanical banks to be offered in Bertoia’s November sale, many are so rare, they fall under the heading of “less than a handful known.”

A prime example would be Berry’s 1880s “Darky Fisherman” mechanical bank, designed by Charles A. Bailey of Cobalt, Connecticut. Formerly in the Steven and Marilyn Steckbeck collection, it is one of only two known examples designed with an original fish dangling at the end of the fisherman’s line. Bertoia’s estimate is $225,000-$250,000.

Another extraordinarily rare bank in the Berry collection is a J. & E. Stevens Preacher at the Pulpit. Patented in 1876 and one of three known, it comes to auction with a long and storied line of provenance that goes back to pioneer collector Dr. Arthur E. Corby. Estimate: $150,000-$175,000.

The only known original example of a circa-1890s Target in Vestibule mechanical bank, ex Steckbeck and L.C. Hegarty collections, is of unknown American manufacture. In near-mint condition, it is estimated at $30,000-$40,000. A rather obscure circa-1878 Rival mechanical bank with a “springing” monkey figure could reach $30,000-$45,000; while a circa-1880 C.G. Bush Clown on Bar bank, ex Hegarty collection, it is estimated at $60,000-$80,000.

A horse-theme “Trotter” mechanical bank purported to be the only surviving example was made around 1890 by an unknown manufacturer. When a coin is dropped into the saddle, the horse’s front leg paws the ground. “There is a mold for a still bank that has a similar appearance, but being non-mechanical, it does not have a moving leg,” Bertoia noted. The Horse bank is entered with an $18,000-$25,000 estimate.

Other prizes include an 1882-patented Shoot That Hat mechanical bank, $40,000-$60,000; an American Mechanical Sewing Machine bank, $18,000-$22,000; and an 1884-patented Presto Penny Changes to Quarter bank that “magically” converts a deposited penny to a quarter. It will take much more than 25 cents to own this intriguing bank, which is estimated at $40,000-$55,000.

At the top tier of mechanical banks in the Max Berry collection are two original models, both made of lead, formerly in the Hegarty collection. One is a Wishbone bank in which two figures “pull” on a wishbone that comes apart; the other is a circa-1881 Charles A. Bailey-designed Old Aunt Dinah and the Fairy. Both of these patterns will be auctioned with an $80,000-$100,000 estimate.

Collectors of tin banks will find many exciting rarities in the Berry collection, as well. The only known example of a Weeden clockwork Chinese Ball Tosser, with its original box, is expected to make $70,000-$90,000. Also featured are two Saalheimer & Strauss Mickey Mouse money boxes in very fine condition, est. $15,000-$30,000 each; and an extremely rare, German-made Automatic Savings Bank depicting a circus strongman punching a sailor character, est. $10,000+.

A prominent Washington attorney and trusted high-level political adviser, Max Berry purchased his first mechanical bank in 1967, but his toy buying didn’t begin until 1970.

“In the beginning, the only reason I purchased toys was because I knew the big bank collectors wouldn’t sell their duplicates, but they would trade them if you had a rare toy to offer to them,” said Berry. “Before long, I was buying and collecting both toys and mechanical banks, and I ended up with a couple of thousand pieces in my collection.”

Berry’s wise bartering strategy resulted in an enviable sub-collection of early American horse-drawn cast-iron toys. Few would argue that the piece de resistance is an exquisite Ives Cutter Sleigh, the only one known that retains its original seated figure. Estimate: $125,000-$150,000. A Hubley Revolving Monkey Cage Wagon, one of possibly three known, could reach $75,000-$100,000. Additionally, many early cast-iron firefighting toys will be offered.

A Who’s Who of bell toys includes many scarce pieces. A circa-1885 Woman Drummer is a quintessential American patriotic toy, depicting a seated woman in an open cart with eagle finial. As though in a parade, the center bell rings as the toy is pulled along. Estimate: $22,000-$25,000. Additionally, the auction offers a three-dimensional brass pattern for a bell toy called “Christmas Morning,” an endearing depiction of children with toys and a cat. It was formerly in the collection of financier Edwin H. Mosler Jr (1919-1982) and reportedly was one of his favorite toys.

Early American tin was another of Max Berry’s favorite categories, and he had his share of great examples from the finest makers, including George Brown, Althof Bergmann, Merriam, and Hall & Stafford. There are platform toys with suffragette figures and a menagerie of animals that includes elephants, goats, and horses with trainers.

Jeanne Bertoia, owner of Bertoia Auctions, said anyone wishing to learn about antique toys will have the perfect opportunity to do so at the preview and auction.

“What makes Max so special as a collector is that his personal satisfaction has never been tied to the idea of amassing a large quantity of toys. His greatest pleasure has always come from sharing his lifetime of knowledge in hopes of inspiring others to collect,” she said. “Having him in the room is like having access to a graduate course in antique toys, with the most fascinating professor imaginable in charge. Our preview and auction are going to be welcoming, hospitable events to honor Max, whom we have no doubt will be the center of attention.”

To contact Bertoia’s about any item in the auction, call 856-692-1881 or email toys@bertoiaauctions.com.

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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CLOSTER, N.J. – “It will creep you out,” warned Sterling Associates’ owner, Stephen D’Atri, describing the vast contents of the estate to be auctioned on Wednesday, October 22, with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers. “By day, Mark Falk was a high-level government employee who went to church regularly and played music as a hobby. All of his friends say he was a wonderful, interesting guy. But what made him different was that he also had a fascination with death.”

Falk’s harmless but unusual obsession led to his amassing an extraordinary collection of sheet music, books, photographs, artwork and other objects – even human bones – that had a connection to death.

“Because of his interest in music, Mr. Falk collected hundreds of thousands of pieces of sheet music and music journals, some of them hand-published, from the 18th century to contemporary times. The music covers all sorts of themes, but we named our auction ‘Danse Macabre’ because, in one particular section of his sheet music collection, he had many renditions of the song titled ‘Danse Macabre,’ by various composers and arrangers,” D’Atri said.

D’Atri and his team spent well over two months sorting through and lotting the sheet music, which D’Atri said would appeal to individual collectors as well as online and brick-and-mortar sheet music dealers. A specialty section of the sale is geared especially toward retailers and buyers of 18th, 19th and 20th-century music.

“All of it is original material,” said D’Atri. “You can tell that, over the years, Mr. Falk bought sheet music from sources in many different countries. Many items were priced in lira, franks, Deutschmarks, or later on, in euros.”

The “macabre” section of the sale contains 50 to 60 lots of books and other literary works, many published prior to 1920. Examples include: “The Ultimate Jack the Ripper Companion,” “The Quacks of Old London,” and “Devils, Drugs and Doctors.” Some are more scientific in their approach, such as “Post Mortem – Essays, Historical and Medical,” “Mistakes and Accidents of Surgery,” and the 1866 publication “What to Observe at the Bedside and After Death in Medical Cases.” Additional subjects covered include mass murderers, poisoners, the devil, pirates, and American Indian “horrors and massacres.” Books will be offered in lots by category.

A number of large edged weapons will be auctioned, including crude African tribal daggers and Nepalese “kukris.” Among the voodoo and vampire-related items are two vampire-killing sets – one of which is housed in a large coffin – and a 24- by 12-inch voodoo priestess box that contains effigy dolls, brushes, mystical herbs and other paraphernalia. “So far, the vampire and voodoo items have been the most visited lots in our online catalog,” said D’Atri.

The macabre selection also includes taxidermied insects (tarantulas, spiders, beetles, etc.), 1850s-1870s post-mortem daguerreotypes, and several human bones. “In the bone grouping there’s a foot, hand, pelvis and a partial skull. We already have multiple absentee bids on all of them,” D’Atri said.

“Aside from the morbid aspects of Mark Falk’s estate, it contains many of the types of things you’d expect to find in a nice home,” D’Atri observed. “There are clocks, sculptures, paintings and other decorative objects.”

The auction also includes two baby grand pianos – a 2005 Vogel V 180 Royal (by Schimmel), of lacquered mahogany; and a Chickering. Both will be auctioned at the beginning of the sale, together with 150 lots of sheet music. The music section will be followed by books, then all other categories.

There are many ways to participate in Sterling Associates’ October 22, 2014 Danse Macabre Auction, but the company conducts its auctions a bit differently than most.

“All bidding is conducted remotely, but we’re very much a permanent brick-and-mortar company where anyone can come in to inspect the goods,” said D’Atri. “It will be run exactly like a live auction, but without a live audience.”

The Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2014 auction will commence at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, two hours earlier than usual. The live gallery preview is from 10-3 on Oct. 20, 21 and 22; or by appointment. The gallery is located at 70 Herbert Ave., Closter, NJ 07624. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.com.

Click to view a narrated video tour of highlights from the auction. Caution — it’s not for the faint of heart!

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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For additional information on any item in the auction or to reserve a phone line, call 201-768-1140 or e-mail sterlingauction@optimum.net. Online: www.antiquenj.com. View the fully illustrated catalog online at www.LiveAuctioneers.com

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COLOGNE, Germany – In May 2013 Auction Team Breker set a new world record for selling a 1976 Apple I computer for $671,400 (516,500 euros). The Apple I is the iconic first product of today’s most successful technology company, yet its inventor Steve Wozniak might be surprised to discover that a MAC computer that existed 18 years before Apple Inc. was founded is being offered by Auction Team Breker at its Nov. 14-15 auction of science and technology which will also include fine toys and automata.

LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

M.A.C. is the acronym for a Mechanical Analogue Computer built by the English firm Air Trainers Link Ltd. of Aylesbury in 1958. Capable of solving a range of complex equations, this early flight simulator was the first tape-controlled computer system in the world. Input and output data was presented on a moving paper recorder. Although kits were also offered for the technically ambitious, a glance at the complex machinery of shafts, levers and pulleys explains why its case was the size of a large wardrobe (64 x 77 x 24 inches) – a far cry from today’s compact Mac products. This example was discovered on the British Isle of Wight and is believed to be one of only two still in existence. The other is one at the Science Museum London. Auction Team Breker estimates the early computer at $13,500-$27,000 (10,000-20,000 euros).

Another important piece of historic technology on offer is a combined radio detector and Morse receiver of circa 1910, a unique laboratory prototype of early wireless technology (estimate: $6,500-$10,000 / 5,000-8,000 euros). Also included in Breker’s auction is a rare Marconi Magnetic Detector, or “Maggie,” of the sort that once outfitted R.M.S. Titanic’s radio room. The device is credited with saving some 700 lives on board the ill-fated passenger ship (estimate: $10,000-$15,000 / 8,000-12,000 euros).

A more recent historic event is the subject of a satirical automaton of Russian President Vladimir Putin signing the agreement of Accession of the Crimea to Russia on March 18, 2014. The work of well-known author and automata-maker Christian Bailly, Paris, this automaton was modeled on a late 19th century automaton “Pierrot Writer” by Gustave Vichy. Bailly portrays the Putin at a desk; as the light of the old-fashioned lamp dims, the president grows weary, his head drops and his hand pauses. Then, waking again, he turns up the lamp and continues writing (estimate: $33,000-$46,000 / 25,000-35,000 euros).

An imposing forte piano grand format musical box by Nicole Frères carries an interesting history. The property of J.A. Guichard, a merchant in Manila during the 1860s, it was discovered in a farmhouse in rural Maine in 1959, carefully restored and then enjoyed by summer visitors in one of the oldest privately owned mechanical music museums on the East Coast (estimate: $13,000-$20.000 / 10,000-15,000 euros).

Two rare developments in recorded sound from the turn of the century feature in Breker’s auction. The first, a Polygraphon by Polyphonwerk of Leipzig, combines a traditional disc music box with a 78 rpm record player (estimate: $10,000-$15,000 / 8,000-12,000 euros). The second, a Bébé Lioretgraphe, combines a beautiful bisque-headed doll by Jumeau with an ingenious celluloid-cylinder phonograph patented by the French clockmaker and sound pioneer Henri Lioret in 1893 (estimate: $6,500-$10,000 / 5,000-8,000 euros).

Among the traditional tin toys is an elegant open motor coach with passengers by Gebr. Bing – the first model automobile by this maker – from circa 1900 (estimate: $6,500-$10,000 / 5,000-8,000 euros) and a fresh-to-the-market collection of over 70 tin toy motorcycles.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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