Wessex Auction Rooms - May 2024
The 1st & 2nd of May saw our fourth specialist Toy Collectors auction of 2024 and it was my personal favourite of the year to date. As you may or may not know I am a lover of all things toys and this auction really had it all. Whether you love, like or just don't really care about toys, I find it is the one auction that really gets the nostalgia juices flowing. I challenge anyone and everyone to view one of our toy auctions and not come away with a smile! They really are like walking back in time and finding yourself in a Beatties, John Menzies or a Toys R Us store!
Over 1100 lots went under the hammer which featured sections of model railway, diecast models, Star Wars and 1980s action figures, metal soldiers, retro computer gaming, teddies, dolls and much more. The standout collection of this sale came from a trip over to Gloucester which resulted in a haul Dinky, Hornby, Scalextric, Triang and other 'magic names' from the history of toys which was divided into over 650 lots that sold for in excess of £110,000 including buyer’s premium. Many of the best performing lots were unboxed collections of Dinky models one of which contained 45 examples from the hay day of 1960s including 2 x 988 ABC Transmitter Vans, Bedford Kodak Van, 274 AA Service Mini Van as well as various French made Dinky models including a lovely 268 Renault Dauphine Mini Cab in red. Naturally without their original boxes these models were showing signs of wear and paint loss but still managed to attract fierce bidding that resulted in the hammer going down at £720 including buyers premium. A lesson that just because you don’t have the boxes it doesn't mean you can’t make a small fortune!
For the collectors of Dinky that like their boxes the auction included a Mighty Antar with Transformer (code number 908) in excellent condition without play wear or paint chips. For high end collectors, condition and completeness are everything. Of course, toys were made to be played with so finding these early examples from the 1960s in pristine condition will always add a premium in price, and a selling price of £780 including buyer’s premium for this one model proves this point.
The late 1970s early 1980s saw the film & tv related action figure boom. There's no getting away from the fact that Star Wars is the absolute king and our auction contained 'carded' and 'played with' examples alike. For those that have a loft full of 'battle worn' Star Wars figures hidden in the loft you may be pleased to know that one lot of 41 original figures in a play worn condition, the lot included 29 of the original weapons and accessories which originally came with the figures, and it is often these accessories that add the value to a collection seeing as many of these small grey pieces of plastic would have been lost over the years. The final selling price was £840 including BP.
We also sold various carded and unopened figures from the original Star Wars figure line including a Palitoy The Empire Strikes Back Imperial Stormtrooper (Hoth Battle Gear) figure which was contained within a 'bubble' and on a backing card far from perfect. The card featured a '45 back' which simply means that upon looking at the back of the card you would find the pictures of 45 other action figures available to buy in the series. However, an interesting addition to the item was that the front of the card contained a promotional sticker for the opportunity to 'Become a Bounty Hunter', and these small things can make a big difference to toy collectors and this figure sold for £360 including BP.
The auction began with over 300 lots of model rail from OO, O & N gauge and Lot 1 was a group of three cased Graham Farish by Bachmann N gauge locomotives including a Jubilee Class 45643 Rodney BR locomotive in the lined green early emblem, these three sold for £264 including BP and were the first of 60 plus similar N gauge lots. The most common of the gauges remains OO gauge and many a child's dream would have been to have a large lay out up in the attic bustling with stations, sheds, villages, shops, footbridges and houses - and lot 300 would have put one a long way towards completing that dream! The lot featured 67 boxed & carded Hornby Skaledale resin trackside buildings such as Country Police Station, Derelict Farmhouse, Honeysuckle Cottage to name a few. The Skaledale range was introduced in 2003 with 6 initial items but the popularity of these high quality models meant the market flourished and the line continued to grow, still ever popular to this day, the lot sold for £840 plus BP.
We cannot wait to get stuck into a busy summer here at Wessex Auction Rooms and next month I will look forward to telling you all about a very exciting auction taking place on Thursday 11th July
Wessex Auction Rooms are always consigning for forthcoming auctions and welcome entries Mon-Fri 9-5 at our auction rooms just off J17 of the M4 (Chippenham) with no appointment necessary, or on an appointment basis at our central Bath office, or at your home.Contact the team on 01249 720888 or email enquiries@wessexauctionrooms.co.uk