I was doing my morning rounds of the online auction sites, looking for an interesting Christmas gift for my Pa, when I ended up being fixated on a sale of unusual vintage toys made between 1850 and 1950. The auction taking place on BidSquare this weekend features some pretty eyebrow-raising playthings, including a wide variety of colonial dolls and imperialist accessories…
Lehmann tin lithograph clockwork Man Da Rin, starting bid $500.
Safari accessories, starting bid at $100.
Colonialist doll starting bid at $400; Arab chief starting bid at $1250
African drummer & chief, starting bid at $750 each (left, right).
Iron slave’s cabin mechanical piggy bank. Starting bid at $150.
French stationary playset, starting bid at $150.
Man riding alligator clockwork toy, starting bid at $200.
Playskool Pullman embossed tin train sleeper cars, starting bid at $100 each.
Lehmann tin lithograph clockwork, starting bid at $100.
Teddy Roosevelt Home From the Jungle board game, starting bid at $100.
German painted wood Colonialwaren (Colonial Goods) country store diorama with a store counter, starting bid at $75.
Forty German matchbox penny toys, starting bit at $150.
These last two items are pretty safe from imperialist undertones, I just think they’re awesome…
Nicolas and Keller French Maison D’Ecole schoolhouse classroom diorama, in original suitcase box, starting bid at $150.
Unusual newspaper kiosk with a large group of newspapers, starting bid at $200.
