No Strings Attached
The lucky vendor of this cello was surprised to find that it was worth exceedingly more than he had bargained for. The cello was priced between 120,000 and 160,000 GBP in a London sale at Brompton’s. The final price landed somewhere in the middle of the asking price, and the vendor walked away with 20% of 145,000 GBP.
This cello was residing in Rome for the past 100 years in the Giovanni Grancino household. The son of a well-known maker of stringed instruments, second only to a Stradivari, Giovanni is credited for creating this rare and beautiful specimen.
Luckier still was the bow that was nestled inside the cello case that fetched 28,000 GBP. It was a rare find and a beautiful example of 1870s Parisienne designer, Francois Nicolas Voirin. The bow is accented in gold with tortoiseshell mounting.
Vagabond Violin
From cellos to violins now, and one from the Charlie Chaplin movie, The Vagabond (1917). This violin features heavily in the movie and is a central part in many scenes. It was gifted to Chaplin’s chauffeur by the late actor’s wife and bears an inscription from his good friend Cecil E. Reynolds that reads:
To my dear friend Charlie Chaplin/ (who by much suffering attained to great wisdom and feeling) from your admirer Cecil E. Reynolds.
Charlie Chaplin memorabilia always fetch a good sum at auction, and this violin will likely follow suit. Chaplin’s cane recently sold for almost $25,000, and several years ago, his famous bowler hat (and another cane) sold for more than $62,000. For diehard Chaplin fans, be sure to check out the Charlie Chaplin museum in Switzerland that opened this year.
It’s All In The Cards
One fortunate family is now a million dollars richer thanks to their late great grandfather, who was very keen on the Detroit Tigers and Baseball Great, Ty Cobb. This California family discovered the cache in a old, brown paper bag, when they were sorting through their great grandfather’s house. The cards are dated between 1909 and 1911, and it is estimated that only 15 others remain in circulation. For cards that are over 100 years old, they’re in excellent condition.
"Whoa, take 'er easy there, Pilgrim!"
John Wayne fans will delight at the sight of this famous cowboy hat. The remarkable thing about this stetson is that it didn’t come from the costume department, nor did Wayne go out and shop for it. It was passed on to him at a cocktail reception from the previous wearer, after Wayne complimented the man for his impeccable taste. The previous owner was reported saying:
"You like it, you can have it!"
In his lifetime, the award-winning actor starred in 142 movies in total, 83 of which were Westerns.
The Return of Pokemon
In case you missed it the first time, Pokemon is back and more high tech than ever. Which is good news for collectors. All those Pokemon Cards you collected back in the 90s are now worth money (depending on their condition, that is).
According to the buzz going around the Internet, here’s a breakdown of who’s worth what:
Alakazam will magically transform into $200 at auction, provided you have a first edition "shadowless" card.
Charizard – this fiery hot character from the Red and FireRed game editions is rumoured to be worth $2,600 for an original holographic card.
Jigglypuff is not worth a jigglybit, but his super-charged successor, Wigglytuff is proving more collectible. First edition holographic cards can reach upwards of $18.
Krabby is only valuable if you possess an original card containing a printing error. One collector in possession of such a card is claiming his card is worth $5,000 and counting.
Pikachu stamped with gold is the card that collectors are on the lookout for. The card in question is a reprint of the original, but for one little difference – it has a gold foil stamp of a ‘W’ on it that makes it highly collectible.
Poliwrath – a meaner cousin of Poliwhirl – will fetch around $135 for a 1999 first edition holographic card.
Venusaur – you won’t make a lot of money on these cards, but you will make a few bucks. So, if you have any lying around the house, now’s the time to put them up for auction.