October 2002 Hotlines

The British have always been admired for their eccentricities, so we were a bit disappointed to see a list of their quirky collections in the August issue of Collect it!, the English magazine. On the list: milk bottles, birdcages, labels, locks and keys, chamber pots, shoes, pie crimpers, sardine labels, gardening tools, hunting and shooting memorabilia, and witchcraft. The collections seem normal to us.

A Steelcraft Caterpillar bulldozer with a GMC truck and trailer sold for $4,950 at the Collectors Auction Services sale reported in our September issue. The three-piece riding toy was the highest-priced pedal car in the auction.

Thieves stole two Maxfield Parrish murals from a Los Angeles art gallery in July. They cut a hole in the gallery’s ceiling, disabled the alarm system, and took off with the 7-by-8-foot murals, valued at $1.7 million and $2.5 million. The gallery owners say the murals were insured and that the gallery’s security system will be upgraded. Think about your house. Is there a rooftop or upstairs window or door that makes it too easy for a burglar to enter?

Look for old books on American gardening and cooking, fishing and hunting, medicine and science, the Civil War, abolition, and women’s suffrage. These are the subjects drawing the most interest among collectors of antiquarian books. (Country Home, September)

If you collect bobbin’-heads, watch your local gift shops. Hundreds of new figures are coming out this fall.

Titanic memorabilia will probably go up in price when James Cameron’s 3-D documentary, Ghosts of the Abyss, comes out next year. The Disney production will examine the sinkings of both the Titanic and the Bismarck, a German battleship that sank in 1941.

Pink gold watches are coming back into style.

Turquoise jewelry is fashionable and it’s sold in many upscale shops. But some stores still refuse to carry it-because it reminds people of touristy souvenir shops.

Toys “R” Us has a new site for collectors who want to order new or exclusive action figures, games, and dolls. Orders can be placed in advance at www.collectors@toysrus.com.

Some collectors interested in advertising and photographs are buying cabinet cards and cartes-de-visite for the photo studio ads on the back of the cards. These types of photographs were made from 1854 to the 1920s. (Antiques & Collecting)

Only 17% of die-cast cars and other toys are bought for children. The rest are bought for adults. (Unity Marketing)