VINTAGE DENNISON HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN HEADS with SLIDING DRAWER BOX

Here is another fake from a seller that has long been on the list of those with whom I do not do business. Curiousimp has been selling fakes for a while, some better rendered than others. Last month, someone contacted me through the site thanking me for highlighting this seller's problematic items. He shared with me the following, which I've lightly edited. "There are a dozen or more Ouija collectors that were victimized. Some boards sold for over $1500 and some as little as $100. Nothing has happened to him. I've talked with the FBI, both attorney generals, local police and others. The only thing anyone can do is sue. He's out of Florida. Even if I win, there's zero chance he'll actually pay. He has been selling fakes for at least 4 years. Not until the hardcore collectors started talking and sharing what they had did it unravel quickly. Curiousimp has been quiet on Ouija board sales but I suspect he's moved on to something else. Before Ouija boards he had and still does reproduce vintage packaging for fireworks. You'll find some fireworks forums that call him out for faking items. Thanks again for helping to get the word out there." 

04/16 Update: I'm glad to see that this travesty brought only $51, although each of those dollars was wasted. 

Vintage Halloween Pumpkin Man Candy Container c1920 Germany MINT

Here is another fantasy item offered by the same seller referenced immediately below. There is no record of this sloppy, unattractive and ill-formed candy container prior to 1995. As that year progressed, this POS began showing up on the holiday lists circulated by people like the late Paul Schofield and by Jenny Tarrant. The only value I can see with this hunk-o-junk is to toss it in the air when conducting a seance to contact Annie Oakley. This is truly one of the worst of the crapalanche that began in 1995 when German "artisans" began making things to fool collectors. 

Antique Vintage Halloween DRUM Germany c1910s-30s Hand Painted CAT JOL

This is not a vintage item. I have seen these being sold at gift stores and at folk art shows. This seller has long offered a melange of items, some indisputably vintage and others along the continuum of uncertainty. This item is at the "fantasy item" end of the continuum. It has modest decorative value only. 

Antique Beelzebub Krampus Devil candy container / rarity - Germany

This item, like all Halloween items being sold from Germany today, is a fantasy item meaning there is no vintage counterpart. If you scroll through the listings, you'll see this exact devil head being used as part of many items. The Germans have been working hard since ~1995 to flood the US market with these decorative objects in the hope they will fool collectors into thinking they are old. Unfortunately, they have succeeded to a large degree. I visit many collections throughout the US and see too many polluted with these kinds of items. One rule to keep uppermost in your mind as you consider buying things for your collection: if a Halloween item is being sold from Germany, it is merely decorative, not collectible. 

Vintage Halloween paper Cats Musicians

This are not vintage items, but designs that have been recently revised and released by Beistle. There are at least two ways to immediately know these are not vintage: they are double-sided and the white backgrounds were never part of the original designs. These have minor decorative value only. 

halloween lantern

Not having something in-hand to examine is almost always an impediment, but I don't feel this is a vintage item. The material from which the JOL is crafted isn't consistent with anything I've seen in authentically old items. The bale, in terms of how it is somehow fastened to the inside as well as its thickness, is also not consistent with vintage items I've examined. The inserts look new. The fabric leaves do appear to have some age to them, but overall I feel there is enough doubt with this item that I'd ask a lot of questions before placing any bid. 

Rare Halloween Paper Mache Removable Pumpkin Head w/Spring Legs Riding Rooster

This is an item recently made, perhaps by a folk artist. The creator used old springs for the legs. The rest of the detailing lets you know it is of recent manufacture: the too-smooth finish, the illogical wear patterns and the riveted base.  Although it is a nice piece of craftsmanship overall, I object to these kinds of items as they are not indelibly marked somehow so that newer collectors aren't fooled into spending money on them thinking they have some age to them. I contacted the seller to tell her I didn't care for her skeevy description. This is part of her response: Vintage" is a catchall word that means "not brand-new." Sellers often describe an item as vintage if they don't know how old the item is, but figure it was made at least a decade ago. Hmmm...that is a much looser definition than is commonly used and seems to indicate the seller doesn't think this item is too old herself. 
I sure do wish eBay would pour some of their considerable resources into policing their categories. Listings like this can be confusing to newer members of our fun hobby. 

This faux vintage item sold for $78.77, a waste of money. 

VINTAGE ORIGINAL HALLOWEEN PAPER MACHE' JACK O' LATERN W/ WIRE HANDLE

Unfortunately, someone spent $38 on this reproduction. This is not a vintage pulp JOL. It looks like a quality reproduction, perhaps one done by Stamm House, but it is a reproduction nonetheless. Things to note: the fake wear patterns, the overly thick bale, the unfinished bottom and the fact that it is not pulp. 

RARE DRESDEN? HALLOWEEN JACK O LANTERN CANDY CONTAINER-SHAPE OF GUITAR

I saw this listing and knew that it was not an old item, or one even particularly well made. However, thanks to both Janelle Henry and Angel Cullen, who posted about this on the Vintage Halloween FB group, we now know that this is a bit of folk art made in China for "Yvonne & Julia -Spinning Wheel." The seller has done the right thing and has ended the listing. 

Vintage Halloween Cardboard Black Cat Noise Maker/Rattle

This is a modern fake. The cat's faces have been copied from an authentic item. The dull finish is the hallmark of fakes put out by curiousimp or shadowtown, both long-time suspect dealers on eBay. Other things wrong with it are the overly thick middle section and the brightly colored patterned paper encircling it. Since the references do not show the middle, the faker had to improvise and they got it wrong. The buyer should contact the seller for a refund. 

VINTAGE Halloween GERMAN RATCHET JACK O LANTERN JOL PUMPKIN WOODEN NOISE MAKER

This fantasy item began appearing about 5 years ago. Typically, the JOL face with its overly broad mouth is in perfect condition whereas the ratchet is not. What has been done is the new JOL face has simply been glued or attached to an otherwise forgettable yet vintage ratchet. Married pieces in this ratchet genre are so ubiquitous that it is a genre I completely avoid. There is no vintage counterpart to this face. These have been cranked out (pun intended) indiscriminately and have zero collectible value. 

Old Cast Iron Halloween Ghost Costume Little Girl With Pumpkin Figurine

The first photo shows a ubiquitous fake bank patterned after the authentic and authentically rare doorstop shown below the first photo soon being auctioned by Bertoia. The seller states that the fake bank is 6" high. Here is the verbiage from Bertoia's describing what is their lot #326 in the auction taking place on March 12th: 
HALLOWEEN GIRL DOORSTOP
Very desirable Halloween Girl cast iron doorstop made by Littco Products of Littlestown, PA. Appealing young girl in her Halloween costume holding Jack-o-lantern, rare, one of only four original examples known, fabulous piece. BOOK EXAMPLE. Provenance: Jeanne Bertoia Collection 14 1/4" x 8 1/2". (Exc.-Pristine Cond.)
The lot has been estimated to sell for between $20,000-30,000. 

Vintage Paper Mache Cat Head Lantern - Candy Container? - Halloween

This is a fake. Authentic lanterns don't have such extended ears, do not have flat, unsealed bottoms, do not have such thick bales and don't have this coloration. The insert strips look to have been artificially aged. Don't waste your money. 

02/10 Update: Someone wasted $40.44 on this fake. 

vintage RAINBOW MAN candy container GERMAN 1930's halloween

This seller has been selling items that he purports to be from the 1930s for years. I have yet to see a Halloween item he has ever offered that I believe was made prior to 1995. These slant-hatted cylindrical things first began showing up around 2000. They have modest decorative value only, nothing close to what this poor soul paid. This seller, landerstoys, has long been one with whom I choose not to do business. 

Rare Vintage Metal Pumpkin Jack O' Latern Spooky Halloween Decoration

This is a recently made fake with faux aging. The seller jarringly and apropos of nothing writes that Mike Wolfe from History's American Pickers loves vintage items. As someone who has provided an on-camera appraisal of a truly vintage Halloween item for that program, I am confident in saying that Mike Wolfe would pass on this item. 

This bug-eyed JOL with its protruding tongue is a memorable design and would probably make a strong display presence, but it is not a vintage item. This began appearing about 10 years ago and has decorative value only. The thick bale is inconsistent with truly vintage items as are the over-sized clasps securing the candle holder to the bottom cardboard piece. Don't be fooled!

These light covers are offered periodically, often by the same seller. Another design frequently seen is a greenish cat face. These are not vintage items, unless you feel something first made around 1992 is vintage. These were sold in a set of eight and were made in Japan, although now they seem to be made in China. I bought a set in 1992 to decorate my then-new black Silvestri Halloween tree. 

I'm not sure what to make of this crude piece of junk. The same seller lists and relists this item, probably made in a middle school crafts class. The level of craftsmanship is laughably low, so few are being fooled by it. 

This is another fantasy item currently being produced in and imported from Germany. This has only the slightest decorative value. 

These three noisemakers were among the vanguard of fakes and reproductions that began assaulting our hobby in earnest in 1995. Blumchen's imported these from Germany beginning in 1995. These show up often and are frequently purchased. Unfortunately, I've seen them embedded in many collections. Although the artwork is based on vintage imagery, the noisemaker form is a product of the 1990s, hence these have no vintage value.