DENVER, Penn, — Morphy Auctions‘ final advertising sale of the 2023 season features a unique mix of country store items and railroadiana on Wednesday, November 15 and Thursday, November 16. Featuring more than 1,400 lots, the catalogs are now available for bidding at LiveAuctioneers.
The star of the sale is a 1925 Karl Muller carousel that is in full operational condition after a meticulous restoration. The amusement boasts 18 horses, sleighs and a suspended gondola. “Fully-operating carousels do not come around very often, and hardly ever fully restored and ready for any location,” noted Morphy curator Tom Tolworthy. Measuring 29.5 by 12ft, the carousel is located in the Netherlands. It carries an estimate of $120,000-$150,000.
Also impressive is a 54in-tall Sunbeam Bread tin embossed sign featuring Little Miss Sunbeam from 1953. In nearly perfect condition, the auction house notes that the sign, estimated at $3,000-$5,000, is “a terrific example that would be difficult to upgrade.”
Two collections were combined for Morphy’s railroadiana sale, comprising nearly 800 lots. There’s a dizzying array of station signs, whistles, bells, lanterns and builder plates. Among the standout lots is this circa-1940s Union Pacific Railroad single-sided porcelain shield measuring 22.5 by 2 by 26.5in. In remarkable condition, the shield is estimated at $1,500-$3,000.
In the 1940s, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway’s passenger service was marketed with American Indian themes, owing largely to the territory the AT&SF’s lines traversed. This Hopi kachina-style panel was originally installed in a Santa Fe Vista-Dome car, where passengers could sit “above” the regular roofline of the fleet and view passing surroundings. It has an estimate of $500-$5,000.
