RINKER ON COLLECTIBLES — Column #1517

Copyright © Harry Rinker, LLC 2016 

Questions and Answers

QUESTION:  I have a cast metal, brass finished, single wing, front propeller airplane that measures three inches across (wing tip to wing tip).  A police badge-type shield with the text “NEW / CONVENTION HALL/ ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.” and a relief image of the building sits atop the center of the plane.  What can you tell me about it and what is its value? – SN, West Lawn, PA, Email Question

ANSWER:  The Atlantic City Convention Hall, now known as Boardwalk Hall, is a National Historic Landmark building.  Mayor Edward L. Bader (1924-1929) led the efforts to build a major convention center on the Atlantic City boardwalk.  The architectural firm of Lockwood Green designed the building.  Construction began in 1926 and ended with the dedication of the building in 1929.  Mayor Bader did not live to see it finished.

The main hall measures 456 feet by 310 feet with a vaulted ceiling that measures 137 feet at its highest point.  The building contains a pipe organ, reputed to the world’s largest musical instrument, consisting of more than 33,000 pipes.  The console has more than 1,000 stop keys, seven manuals, and 64 foot-stops.

The building is best known for housing the Miss America Pageant from 1940 to 2006.  The pageant returned in 2013.  Other events held at the Atlantic City Convention Center include the 1964 Democratic National Convention, several boxing bouts, and a host of post-season college football games including the 1964 Liberty Bowl.  In addition to a 1964 Beatles concert, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Phish, Brittney Spears, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, and The Who also performed at the Convention/Boardwalk Center.

Although there are no markings on the plane, it closely resembles Lindbergh’s “Spirit of St. Louis,” which made the first historic solo transatlantic flight in May 1927.  Following Lindbergh’s return, he visited 92 cities in a three-month long tour.  He landed at Bader Field in Atlantic City on October 19, 1927.  He was greeted by a crowd of over 5,000 people.

Your souvenir plane with the Convention Hall shield dates from 1929 or the very early 1930s.  Its value is regional, worth $25.00 to $30.00 to a New Jersey or an Atlantic City collector.  Outside this region, its value is less than $15.00.

QUESTION:  I have a “HILLSON’S CHINESE GAME KNOWN IN CHINA AS MA CHEUCK” made by The Hillson Company of Boston.  The box is eight and one half inches wide by 6 inches deep.  The set appears to be complete, has the wooden racks to hold the tiles, and an instruction book and other literature.  What is it worth? – PJH, Reading, PA

ANSWER:  According to the website www.mahjongmuseum.com, the Hillson “Ma Cheuck” set was made in China circa 1923.  The set consists of boxwood tiles, green cardboard counters (6 with 5 blue dots, 33 with 1 blue dot, 24 with 10 blue dots, and 37 with two blue dots), the ideographs on the Dragon tiles translate to “Center, Prosperity,” the ideographs on the Green Honor tiles translate to “Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, Chrysanthemum,” and the ideographs on the Red Honor tiles translate to “Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter.”

Although I could not find a specific history of The Hillson Company, I did find a reference to an Owens Brothers – Hillson Company located in Boston, Massachusetts, that operated between 1905 to 1938.  The firm published black and white, color lithography, and monotone postcards. Cards featured actresses, artist signed illustrations, Blacks, comics, and national views.  The company had offices in Berlin and Leipzig.  I suspect this is the same company that distributed the Ma Cheuck set.

Given the mahjong revival, I expected to find the value for a Hillson set to be over $75.00.  Much to my surprise, the values were much lower.  A set on www.mahjongmuseum.com has an asking price of $30.00.  WorthPoint.com reports a set sold on eBay on March 14, 2014 for $15.00.  These prices suggest there is minimal collector or reuse interest in this set.  A dealer might ask $20.00 to $25.00.  Even at these prices, it would be a tough sell.

QUESTION:  I have two cast iron, hand painted four-man bobsled team toys.  The riders are made from a hard plastic.  Both bobsleds are painted green – one with an American flag decal on the front and the other with a Swiss flag decal.  The American team has blue sweaters.  The Swiss team is wearing tan sweaters.  There is a plastic piece that resembles a ladder holding the four men in place.  When the ladder-like piece is unscrewed, "Germany” is visible on the sled.  The toys appear never to have been used.  When were these bobsled toys made, who made them, and what is their value? – Appraisal Clinic, Wilkes-Barre, PA

ANSWER:  My first thought was your bobsled toys were Olympic related.  The 1936 Winter Olympics were held at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.  Given the political climate of the times, the bobsled toys seem out of place.

Karl Heusser, Munich, Germany, made your HELA BOB toys in the late 1950s.  The 1960 Winter Olympics were held in Squaw Valley, California.  I doubt if the HELA BOB was exported for sale at the event.  If it was, the survival rate would have been higher.

A detailed description of a two-man HELA BOB with accompanying literature, unfortunately the print is too small and blurred to read, appears on http://www.guidetozscale.com/html/hela-bob.html.  The two-man HELA BOB has three decals.  The first contains the words: “Hans Killian,” “Parkhotel Alpenhof, Garmisch-Partenkirchen,” and “3 Facher Bob-Weltmaster.” The other decals are for a German organization and the Garmisch Sports Club.  Hans Killian (May 2, 1905 -- April 17 1981) was born and died in Garmisch- Partenkirchen.  He participated in three Winter Olympics and won two medals: 1928 five-man bobsled and 1932 four-man bobsled.  He also won seven medals at the FIBT World Championship in the 1930s.  According to the individual posting the information, the sled was acquired by the person’s godmother during a trip to Austria in 1959.

Karl Heusser made two- and four-man HELA BOB toys.  Multiple paint scheme variations are found.  Internet illustrations of the four-man bobsled show painted sleds in green, red, and white.  Sweater combinations on the crews include blue, red, tan, and yellow.  Decals exist for other countries besides Switzerland and the United States.

Dakota Paul Gallery has a listing for a four-man bobsled priced at $450.00.  See: http://www.dakotapaul.com/items/showitem.asp?iid=3997.  The listing suggests the figures are made of Bakelite and the toy is dated 1910-1936.  The figures are a hard plastic, but I am not certain they are Bakelite.  The date is incorrect.  The plastic ladder-like device holding the figures in place definitely dates it to the middle to late 1950s.

Liveauctions.com reports that Stanton Auctions sold an example on January 5, 2010 for $175.00 during Part 2 of its sale of the Creager collection of antique toys.  An example of an American four-man HELA BOB, with the steering wheel missing and a portion of the leg broken on one of the riders, sold for $169.00 on November 27, 2015, on eBay.

Given the condition of your examples and since they are a pair, pair/set value comes into play.  Individually, your two sleds are worth between $175.00 and $200.00 each.  As a pair, add another $100.00 to the price, thus raising the value to $500.00.

QUESTION:  I have a postcard titled “‘City of San Francisco” crossing Great Sale Lake on S.P. Lines.”  A rainbow hue sunset is in the background.  A bag of salt is attached to the card.  Postage instructions note the card can be sent for one cent.  If the bag of salt is attached, the postage is three cents.  What is the value of my card? – R, Lehighton, PA

ANSWER:  This is just one of many 1940s/1950s scenic view Salt Lake City postcards that had a miniature bag of salt attached.  Other titles include: (1) Arrival of Train at Great Salt Lake Station; (2) Interior of Mormon Tabernacle; and (3) Seagulls on the shore of the Great Salt Lake. Examples of this type of novelty Salt Lake City postcard sell between $4.00 and $6.00.

Harry L. Rinker welcomes questions from readers about collectibles, those mass-produced items from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.  Selected letters will be answered in this column.  Harry cannot provide personal answers.  Photos and other material submitted cannot be returned.  Send your questions to: Rinker on Collectibles, 5955 Mill Point Court SE, Kentwood, MI 49512.  You also can e-mail your questions to harrylrinker@aol.com. Only e-mails containing a full name and mailing address will be considered.

You can listen and participate in WHATCHA GOT?, Harry’s antiques and collectibles radio call-in show, on Sunday mornings between 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM Eastern Time.  If you cannot find it on a station in your area, WHATCHA GOT? streams live on the Internet at www.gcnlive.com.

SELL, KEEP OR TOSS?: HOW TO DOWNSIZE A HOME, SETTLE AN ESTATE, AND APPRAISE PERSONAL PROPERTY (House of Collectibles, an imprint of Random House Information Group, $17.99), Harry’s latest book, is available at your favorite bookstore and via www.harryrinker.com.