06/12/2024 General News
Christmas is a time when children hope to find the latest toys under the tree, but the festive season is also a time when adults look back nostalgically at their own childhood, writes Emily Ayson.
Most of us love to hark back to more innocent times, and this is the reason for the surge in demand for vintage toys and games, as buyers seek to own toys they loved in their younger days – or ones that they aspired to own when they were young, but didn’t manage to.
So it is entirely appropriate that keys final sale of the year (apart from our Christmas Poultry Sale on Friday 21st December) is a Vintage and Modern Toys, Dolls, Games, Video Games and Computers Sale in which some 469 lots offer grown-ups of all ages the chance to rediscover their childhoods.
One of the highlights of the sale is a huge collection of over 600 Dinky toys, amassed by one North Norfolk enthusiast during the course of his life (he sadly recently passed away), is set to go under the hammer at Keys this month. The collection spans the whole post-war history of the Dinky brand, which was arguably the most successful range of die-cast vehicles ever made, pre-dating other popular ranges such as Corgi and Matchbox.
Whilst the rarest Dinky Toys can sell for upwards of £4,000, the majority are more accessible. Older models will make between £80 and £100 at auction, and more modern, more common examples are even more affordable than that. As ever, condition is vital – but even ‘well-loved’ models in ‘played with’ condition will still find a buyer.
Alongside model cars, one of the most collectable types of toys is model railways, and our sale includes well over 100 lots from top manufacturers such as Hornby, Bachmann and Heljan. Amongst the lots are several rare limited edition pieces, including a boxed limited edition 00 gauge R2684 4-6-2 Mallard A4 Class Locomotive, produced in 2008 to mark the 70th anniversary of that locomotive achieving the steam traction world speed record.
Whilst Frank Hornby was a leading light in the British toys industry, it was Germany that led the way in manufacturing toys in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. Tinplate toys were very popular, and one of the biggest names in the business was Ernst Paul Lehmann Patenwerk in Brandenberg, which operated from the 1880s through to the 1930s. We have a number of Lehmann pieces in the Sale, which are sure to attract serious collectors from around the world.
But for all the innovation in the UK and Germany, it was in Denmark that one of the most enduringly successful toy brands was created. Founded in 1932, the name Lego is an abbreviation of the Danish words ‘leg godt’, which means ‘play well’. The company is still owned by the Kirk Kristiansen family, descendants of Ole Kirk Kristiansen, who came up with the concept nearly a century ago.
Who amongst us didn’t play with Lego in our childhood? That is one of the reasons it continues to sell well at auction, particularly the limited edition and rarer kits. Our December Sale includes a vintage boxed Lego 6783 space set, first released in 1986, as well as a collection of late 1970s Lego, and a 1960s wooden Lego storage box.
Keys’ Vintage and Modern Toys, Dolls, Games, Video Games and Computers Sale takes place on Wednesday 18th December at its Aylsham salerooms and live online. Full details, including an online catalogue, at www.keysauctions.co.uk.