A rare felt-covered papier-mâché German candy container in the form of a black bear with a witch riding on its back led the sale, bringing $3,658.
Review by W.A. Demers; Photos Courtesy Kleinfelter’s Auction
MYERSTOWN, PENN. — A single-owner holiday collection yielded sweet surprises on August 29 as Kleinfelter’s Auction dispersed myriad lots of candy containers, still banks, celluloid toys, ornaments, miniature trees and more, all celebrating the variety and creativity of holiday décor. Leading the pack was a rare felt-covered papier mache German candy container in the form of a black bear with a witch riding on its back. It brought $3,658.
Kleinfelter’s Auction has specialized in real estate and auction services for nearly a century as a family-run, small town local auction bringing many lifelong collections to market, and is gaining steam with national buyer’s for it’s high value, fresh-to-the-market estate items that cross the auction block.
In this sale, advertised as an Online Holiday Spectacular, the auction house also offered an early Twentieth Century German clockwork toy reindeer, which realized $3,186.
A lot of early chalkware Halloween candy containers performed well, bringing $3,068.
A lot of early chalkware Halloween candy containers went out at $3,068.
Many of the most sought-after items had their origins in Germany. Such was the case with a lot of early German composition Halloween candy containers. They fetched $2,478.
The early 1900s were the heyday for candy containers, but they got their commercial start in the late 1800s, mostly of German origin from a recipe of flour and paste recipe, which was later altered to mold-pressed papier mache. An early lot of German papier mache Halloween candy containers made $1,534.
Toothy pumpkins, witches, goblins and black cats proliferate among the hollow containers for concealing Halloween treats. Although not of the spooky black cat variety, a lot comprising two early papier mache cat candy containers found a buyer at $1,416.
Rattle forms were another way of delivering holiday treats. Early Germany papier-mâché candy rattles earned $1,239.
Early Germany papier-mâché mache candy rattles earned $1,239.
Another lot of early German Halloween papier mache candy containers left the gallery at $1,121.
All prices given include the buyer’s premium as stated by the auction house. For information, www.kleinfelters.com or 717-272-7078.
