Punch cigar store figure (circa 1885) soars to $37,290 at Philip Weiss Auctions A rare Punch cigar store advertising figure, cast in zinc and made around 1885 by William Demuth & Company, Mfrs., knocked down for $37,290 at a estate sale held March 1-3 by Philip Weiss Auctions.
percent of lots sold. Trains did well, too, as expected.”
Following are additional highlights from the auction. All prices quoted include a 13 percent buyer’s premium.
An original Charles Schulz Peanuts Sunday page, dated Feb. 9, 1964, went for $24,860. The fresh-to-the-market strip, measuring 17 inches by 23 ½ inches featured Lucy and Linus, with Linus complaining about a splinter in his figure. Philip Weiss Auctions has an uncanny knack for attracting original Peanuts strips to its sales, and they almost always command high dollar prices.
A cut signature of Nile Kinnick, the football Heisman Trophy winner who died young in a Navy flight training air crash in 1943 (making anything signed by him exceedingly rare) rose to $5,650. The 3 inch by 1 ½ inch card was signed in pencil, “Best wishes, Nile Kinnick” and came with a JSA certificate. Mr. Kinnick was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951.
A Lionel standard gauge five-piece 381E Green State toy train set went to a determined bidder for $6,498. The set included a 381E electrical engine and four passenger cars (412, 413, 414 and 416). The engine was graded in very good condition, while the cars were either very good or excellent. A small paint chip on one of the car’s roofs was the only discernible flaw.
Two posters did very well. One was an early, linen-backed aviation poster for the Donaldson Fair in Newport, N.Y., in 1913 (one of three offered in the sale). Measuring 28 inches by 41 ½ inches and depicting a plane, it soared to $4,068. The other was a “Keep Us Flying” World War II aviation poster, picturing one of the Tuskegee Airmen black pilots ($2,486).
Rounding out a list of just some of the auction’s top lots is a very rare 1911 blue felt pennant for the 1911 Vanderbilt Cup automotive road race. The pennant, 23 ½ inches long and depicting the race’s trophy with a race car in it, breezed to $3,390. In 1911, the Vanderbilt Cup Race was moved from Long Island to Savannah, Ga., and made part of the Savannah Grand Prix.
Philip Weiss Auctions’ next big sale will be a three-day, four-session extravaganza slated for April 19-21. The Thursday, April 21 session will feature stamps, coins and postcards; Friday, April 20, will be dedicated to toys, trains, toy soldiers and dolls; and Saturday, April 21, will be two sessions -- Disney (animation, toys, figurines) and Hollywood and rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia.
Philip Weiss Auctions is always accepting quality consignments for future sales. To consign an item, an estate or a collection, you may call them at (516) 594-0731, or e-mail them at phil@weissauctions.com. To learn more about Philip Weiss Auctions and the firm’s calendar of events, to include the upcoming April 19-21 sale, please log on to www.WeissAuctions.com.
