Antique German Halloween Noisemaker Witch Cat Devil Jack O' Lantern Rare & Fine

This rattler is indeed rare as the seller states. It was produced in Germany during the early 1930s. By that time, the Germans were producing far fewer exported novelty items in smaller and smaller quantities as their political leaders' attentions drifted toward war. Although I've seen this tin litho noisemaker a handful of times, I've not seen it in this nice of condition. This is truly an item for which it will be worth ponying up some bucks. As of this writing it would sell for $60 with over four days remaining. I expect it to go much higher. 

08/28 Update: $675.99 - WOW!

VINTAGE HALLOWEEN 2 OLD- NOISE MAKERS AND A LANTERN AS FOUND

The best item in this trio is the tambourine. I've been looking to add one to the collection for years but cannot find one in good enough condition. (There is another iteration using a different color scheme that you can see on page 216.) Made by an unknown US manufacturer during the 1930s, the simplicity of the design is compelling. SGV is $225. 

RARE ANTIQUE NOS TIN LITHO HALLOWEEN WITCH BLACK CAT NOISE MAKER

What's rare about this is that it is purported to work. Most of these no longer make a sound at all, or a strangled one at best. 

05/01 Update: This sold for $155.50. 

Vintage Halloween Witch Pumpkins Tin Noise Maker w Red Wood Handle T Cohn Nice!

This 1930s tin litho noisemaker is fairly common. What makes this example of this T. Cohn item different and somewhat more desirable are the colors. This is normally seen in black, orange and white. The use of green is powerful and really makes the design pop. SGV for this item is $25, but I could see this bringing somewhat north of this price point. 

04/08 Update: This sold for $29.99. 

ANTIQUE 1906 CHEIN HALLOWEEN NOISE MAKER CLACKER. EXCELLENT BLACK CATS

These early Chein tin litho clanger noisemakers are desirable, but haven't been bringing strong dollars for many years. This auction listing pulled in strong dollars indeed! Although the lithography is commonly seen, what makes this desirable is the form. It is a large-panned clanger with a double-layered handle that prominently displays the patent date. This form is the earliest and wasn't made for more than a season or two before the form shrunk and the handle became single-layered. It is good to see these early tin noisemakers regaining some of their deserved luster. 

Vintage Halloween Witches Cat Owl Bell Tin Noise Maker w Black Wood Handle 1920s

This clanger uses the same lithography of the ever-elusive cymbals shown at the bottom of page 207. Sustainable Guide Value for the cymbals is $450. Although this noisemaker form surfaces much more often than the cymbals do, I think the opportunity to make an offer on the BIN price of $100 is good. Even with its seemingly dull patina (or is it just dirty?) I feel an offer of ~$70 is reasonable. 

Vintage Halloween Orange & Black JOL /w Tongue Noisemaker / Clicker

Generally, vintage Halloween designs from Japan are derivative and forgettable. Not in this case! This tin litho clicker design is energetic, fun and just plain weird. This was produced sometime during the 1930s. Right now, the bidding is at $51 with over six days to go. I've seen some of the better Japanese designs go for ~$100. It'll be fun to see where this ends. 

03/01 Update: This great clicker made in japan sold for $153.50. 

Halloween Tin Litho Clapper Noisemaker Witch, Owl, Bats, Cats & Skull

Although a regular reader wrote that another one of these sold last year for around the same amount, I don't recall ever seeing this particular design before. (I must have missed the listing.) I was the prevailing bidder. I like the boldness and the cartoonish quality of the graphics. It reminds me of something Bugle would have produced. I'm looking forward to receiving it. 

VINTAGE RARE TIN HALLOWEEN NOISEMAKER WITCH BLACK CAT CLAPPER

This is a rare tin litho noisemaker, made by an unknown manufacturer during the late 1920s. The graphics are great. The handle and the noise making mechanism are rendered rather primitively. The first time I saw one I immediately bought it for the collection. The ornateness of the disks contrasted with the plainness of the handle caused me to wonder if it was incomplete. However, during the last two-plus decades I've seen this 3-4 times. They all have the strangely plain handle and guts, so one should bid on this with confidence. It is actually in very nice condition. 

10/22 Update: This sold for the stratospheric price of $442, well in excess of SGV of $275. 

Vintage Halloween Clapper Germany

This seller offered several rare tin litho German noisemakers for a song - $39 each. This particular listing ended less than 8 minutes after activation. I wish I would have seen these listings. (This is a busy time of the year for me.) Another example of why one should use an auction format unless there is an excellent handle on current pricing. 

Antique, Vintage Halloween Tin Litho Metal 1920's Lid, Top, Witch, Cat, Owl

The seller of this fine cymbal visited me at the A Bewitching Fete show held this past Friday evening and Saturday in Pleasanton, California. (It is the one show at which I sell during the year.) The show was crowded and my table was routinely busy, probably because I was the only seller deeply stocked with vintage items. The seller wondered what I thought the ending price would be. I said it should bring no less than ~$150, which seemed to pleasantly surprise her. She must be over the moon with this result. 

Vintage Halloween Tin Litho Tambourine Noisemaker T. Conn

This seller obtained very nice results across the board for his tin litho offerings, a genre that has been flickering back to life. This tambourine is quite rare. I've been wanting to acquire one for the collection, but this one escaped my scrutiny as I was traveling. Produced by T. Cohn during the 1930s, this design has that motion and energy the best Art Deco designs were meant to convey. 

Vintage Halloween Ratchet Noisemaker Tin Nice Witch MAKE OFFER

The buyer made a solid purchase scooping up this rare variant of a T.Cohn tin litho ratchet for a mere $18. I don't know if I've ever seen this design with its very pleasing inclusion of green. I love it and will keep an eye out for one for the collection. 

Vintage Halloween Noise Makers lot of 4

Someone got a solid deal buying this lot. The star is the round Kirchhof rattler/clanger combo, a form I've not seen before. Kirchhof made that noisemaker, as well as its companion piece that can be seen on page 204, for one season only in the early 1930s. Its RSIN is 1, so you know it simply doesn't surface often. When you do see them, they are almost always in poorish condition - faded, scuffed, dented. (I don't know why.) SGV for that item alone is $325, so bravo to the prevailing bidder. 

Witch flying Goose tin Tambourine noisemaker Halloween decoration J. Chein 1930'

Chein produced this tin litho tambourine during the 1920s over many seasons. Toward the end of the production run, the dies were worn enough that the goose's eye is either quite small or missing altogether. Given the prominent eye and the crispness of the imagery overall, I know this noisemaker was made quite early in the run. Is there a value premium with this early-run item? Yes, in that those with less crisp graphics suffer a 20-25% decrease from SGV of $225.