The sale of Petroliana and Automobilia at Richard Edmonds in Chippenham on October 18 includes this unusual fusee wall clock promoting the merits of Warwick Tyres, the letters of which take the place of numerals. Estimate £600-800.
This First World War 02 Pattern tunic, worn by a soldier of the Devon Regiment, comes complete with some moth holes and combat staining.
“Overall this tunic is a wonderful time capsule which has really seen some action on the Western Front,” concludes the cataloguer at C&T Auctions. It carries an estimate of £600-1000 at the militaria sale in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, on October 18.
In Japanese folklore kappa – water demons – are usually troublemakers whose actions range from looking up women’s kimonos to the kidnapping of children.
This boxed 1950s battery operated plastic, tin and cloth toy by Asakusa is less harmful. Pull the string as instructed and the eyes light up, he moves as if laughing and makes a squeaking sound.
Estimated at £500-800, Pleasant Kappa, Funny River Monster forms part of the Mike Stockwell collection of tinplate toys to be sold on October 24 at Hansons in Etwall, Derbyshire.
Over the course of 40 years, Stockwell, a retired toy shop owner, amassed close to 1000 vintage tinplate toys which were shown in display cabinets at his home near Chesterfield. Post-war tinplate automatons were a favourite.
He attributes his adult fascination with mechanical toys to childhood austerity. “These Japanese and German toys were a week’s wages. Ordinary families like mine couldn’t afford them.”
The sale of Fine Photographica & Instruments of Science and Medicine at Flints in Reading on October 18 includes this American Civil War-era field surgeon’s set.
The various implements, including a large amputation saw, are marked for Herman Hernstein of New York, a firm established at 393 Broadway by 1855 that became a major surgical instrument supplier in the civil war but went out of business soon afterwards.
Estimate £500-800.
