Milestone to auction sensational collection of rare antique toys, Oct. 2

Paya tin windup motorcycle with sidecar, 11in long, Spanish. Rare all-original and complete example with working bellows. Estimate $3,000-$5,000

WILLOUGHBY, Ohio – Collectors of rare antique and vintage toys – whether manufactured in Europe, Japan or the USA – are in for a treat on Saturday, October 2nd. That’s when Milestone Auctions of suburban Cleveland, Ohio, will present its Fall Antique Toy Spectacular starring one of the most diverse collections of fine toys ever amassed. With the exception of a few select additions from other consignors, the 704-lot auction is devoted exclusively to the marquee collection, whose superlative holdings are a testament to decades of searching and networking within the toy hobby. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

Featured: 138 rare toy motorcycles, 117 Lehmann & Gunthermann windups, George Brown masterpiece + museum-quality Ives toys, Marx prototypes, character toys

Continue reading

Milestone’s May 1 auction loaded with rare robots, early comic character toys

Masudaya (Japan) 15-inch battery-operated Target Robot from the famous ‘Gang of Five.’ All original and complete with correct dart gun and one dart. Estimate $8,000-$12,000

WILLOUGHBY, Ohio – They came from the future and landed on Earth in the 1950s and ’60s, but now toy robots of that classic production era seem more like prophets whose mission is being fulfilled more than half a century later in the labs of MIT and NASA. For many collectors, the connection to robots is rooted in a childhood memory – discovering that Santa had left them a walking, flashing, noisy android under the Christmas tree. Collectors will relive that indelible memory on May 1st at Milestone’s 766-lot Spring Spectacular Toy Auction, which features a specialty grouping of more than 100 coveted vintage robots and space toys.

Continue reading