Antique toy collection of Curtis and Linda Smith heads to Bertoia March 16

VINELAND, N.J. – Antique toy collectors who dream of time-traveling to the 1970s and ’80s when now-legendary toy shows and auctions took place have an opportunity to bid on items originally collected then. The breathtaking collection of Linda Smith and her late husband Curtis Smith will be offered in a single-owner auction (the first of two) on Saturday, March 16 at Bertoia. The catalog is now available for bidding at LiveAuctioneers.

“Curt and Linda Smith were prominent in the toy-collecting fraternity for decades,” said Michael Bertoia, president of Bertoia Auctions. “Both were active members of the Antique Toy Collectors of America (ATCA) and served on numerous committees over the years. Curt even served as the club’s president.”

The Smiths’ decades-long collecting adventure would take them to now-historic East Coast and European auctions, shows, and markets, where they acquired pieces with provenance from such fabled pioneers of the antique toy hobby as Louis Hertz, Bernard Barenholtz, Athel Spilhaus, Covert Hegarty, and Leon Perelman.

Top billing in this month’s auction goes to a Carpenter cast-iron Tally Ho horse-drawn coach. All-original, including its removable, often-missing figures, the dashing 26in-long vehicle is described by Michael Bertoia as being “the finest of all known examples.” Its estimate is $50,000-$75,000.

Curtis Smith made no secret of the fact that he especially loved firefighting pieces. The Smith collection includes a large-scale German horse-drawn fire pumper of hand-painted tin with painted wooden horses and composition fireman figure at the reins. Remarkably, it retains its original rubber fire hose and hand lever for pumping water. In excellent condition, the 14in-long toy is estimated at $15,000-$25,000.

Linda Smith has always favored the hand-lever velocipedes in their collection, in particular a circa-1880 Uncle Sam clockwork perambulator that is believed to be one of only two surviving examples. The Uncle Sam figure is dressed in its original cloth jacket and ‘American Flag’ striped pants. This famous toy is pictured in two esteemed reference books: American Clockwork Toys by Blair Whitton and American Tin Toys by Bernard Barenholtz. It was owned by both authors, consecutively, before joining the Smith collection and now comes to auction with a $40,000-$60,000 estimate.

A grand Althof Bergmann circus roundabout, measuring 17in in diameter, is unquestionably one of the finest early American clockwork toys ever to reach the marketplace. It has a storied background, having been discovered in a Pennsylvania attic by a picker. According to Linda Smith, the picker had been given permission to “clear out the attic and keep anything he wanted.” He was not a toy expert, so he listed it on eBay, where it was purchased by Steven Weiss of Gemini Antiques Ltd, then resold to the Smiths. In pristine condition and in fine working order, it is the only known example of its type. It carries an estimate of $30,000-$50,000.

Politically significant, a circa-1890s George Brown clockwork hoop toy depicts a William Goodwin-made girl with a hand-painted head pushing a wheeled vehicle with a suffragette balance-figure at its center. The 11.5in toy is pictured in Whitton’s American Clockwork Toys and has a $10,000-$15,000 estimate.

Michael Bertoia said: “The Curtis and Linda collection is a classic, and the March auction – part one of a two-part series – is an event the world will want to watch. The high condition that distinguishes the entire collection is unrivaled. Many of the best of all known examples, whether tin or cast iron, are included in the Smith collection. Some of the primitive American tin pieces, which are so desired by collectors, have thick, bright, original paint. These are the types of toys you just never see. They were acquired by collectors 40 to 50 years ago, and unless a collection is auctioned as a whole, there aren’t many opportunities to buy toys of this caliber.”

Carpenter Tally Ho horse-drawn coach, estimated at $50,000-$75,000 at Bertoia.

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German horse-drawn fire pumper, estimated at $15,000-$25,000 at Bertoia.

German horse-drawn fire pumper, estimated at $15,000-$25,000 at Bertoia.

Althof Bergmann circus roundabout, estimated at $30,000-$50,000 at Bertoia.

Althof Bergmann circus roundabout, estimated at $30,000-$50,000 at Bertoia.

Uncle Sam clockwork perambulator, estimated at $40,000-$60,000 at Bertoia.

Uncle Sam clockwork perambulator, estimated at $40,000-$60,000 at Bertoia.

Jim Bunte

Jim Bunte

Jim Bunte has worked in editorial, design and the toy and auction industries for more than 30 years. He co-founded Auction Central News in 2007.

Marklin, Japanese tin and cast iron toys continued their marketplace dominance at Bertoia

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VINELAND, N.J. – Bertoia Auctions‘ Annual Fall two-day sale, which took place on November 17 and November 18, provided a case study in the ongoing marketplace strength of specific collecting categories. As has been the case for years, Japanese postwar tin toys, vintage American cast-iron and prewar Marklin toys remain the top sellers above all other collecting areas. Complete results are available at LiveAuctioneers.

Japan helped rebuild its war-ravaged economy through exports. Tens of thousands of mom-and-pop operations opened up, providing skilled labor creating subassemblies — molding, building motors, and lithographic printing on tin, to name a few — that would be aggregated by the prime contractor, who then directly marketed the toys to American wholesalers. Louis Marx & Co., the leviathan of American tin toy manufacture, saw the low-cost option of Japanese imports as a win-win, and set up the Linemar brand to represent these toys to American consumers. The top Japanese tin toy lot of the sale was a boxed, like-new friction-drive Space Explorer from the 1950s, marketed in the U.S. as a Linemar (“Best By Far”) toy. It hammered for $25,000 ($31,250 with buyer’s premium), far exceeding Bertoia’s $1,200-$1,800 presale estimate.

Founded in 1859, Marklin is one of the oldest still-operating toy firms in the world. Known today primarily for its model railroading products, the company has produced an amazing range of toys during its tenure, including vehicles, construction sets, operating steam plants, ships, and aircraft — all highly coveted by today’s collectors. Bertoia’s sale delivered a stern reminder of Marklin’s leader status in the form of a 19th-century Brooklyn clockwork paddlewheel steam ship. Measuring 20in long and 16in in height, the ship had some minor replacement parts – common for toys of this vintage – but was in otherwise incredible condition. Bidders agreed, sending the toy to a $36,000 ($45,000 with buyer’s premium) finish, making it the top lot of the sale.

Launched in 1894 and one of the kings of American cast-iron toy manufacturing, Hubley survived until the 1980s and was a toy store staple. Two Hubley items outperformed estimates, the first of which was a Hubley No. 5 Engine House meant to accompany a vintage Hubley pumper. One of only two known examples, it was estimated at $7,000-$10,000 but hammered at $26,000 ($32,500 with buyer’s premium) to a LiveAuctioneers online bidder. The other lot was a cast-iron Hubley giraffe from its extensive line of door stops. Still retaining its original paint, the 13in giraffe sold for $15,000 ($18,750 with buyer’s premium), well above its presale estimate of $6,000-$9,000.
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Linemar Space Explorer toy, which sold for $25,000 ($31,250 with buyer’s premium) at Bertoia.
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Aoshin Tremendous Mike Robot toy, which sold for $14,000 ($17,500 with buyer’s premium) at Bertoia.
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Marklin, Brooklyn clockwork paddlewheel steam ship, which sold for $36,000 ($45,000 with buyer’s premium) at Bertoia.
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Hubley No. 5 Engine House, which sold for $26,000 ($32,500 with buyer’s premium) at Bertoia.
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Hubley giraffe door stop, which sold for $15,000 ($18,750 with buyer’s premium) at Bertoia.
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Bertoia’s to auction Bill and Stevie Weart antique toy collection, Sept. 8-9 

Hubley cast-iron ‘Say It With Flowers’ delivery motorcycle, 10in long, the book example depicted in Bill and Stevie Weart’s ‘Cast Iron Automotive Toys’ (2000) reference book. Rare all-original toy in excellent to pristine condition. Estimate $15,000-$25,000

VINELAND, N.J. – On September 8-9, with absentee and Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers, Bertoia’s will auction the antique toy collection of the late Bill and Stevie Weart, a couple whose contributions to the toy hobby were immense. Anyone who ever had the privilege of visiting the Wearts at their magnificent home in Allentown, Pennsylvania, was left with the impression that they had witnessed something exceptional for these times. Their grand three-story residence, which was situated in a tranquil parklike setting, visually reflected what was most important to them in a home: fine architecture, tasteful furnishings, a garden that beckoned wild birds, and most of all, an interior design plan that prioritized the display of their spectacular toy collection.

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