Country French Interiors Historical Memorabilia

Offered is an absolutely stunning toy castle, it is a beautiful example of early 20th century trench folk art, German handmade craft. The architectural detailing in the crenellated t...

A good nickel plated WW1 British Officers Military Pocket Compass engraved on the lid with the war office crow's foot mark and dated 1917 The hunter cased pocket compass has an attr...

1980s vintage Italian pair of very rare lamps, entirely handmade in cast polished brass, uniquely decorated with carnival masks in different sizes, each different from the other, rai...

An authentic WWI-era Princess Mary box of brass. A stamped brass box, circa 1914, given as a thank you gift to all commissioned British troops at ...

Quirky Stick Stand, made with a WW1 Propellor This an attractive piece of early nostalgic memorabilia, the propeller is made in wood and originates from an early aeroplane, it is silver at the tip, it stands on a teak plinth...

The binoculars are clad in a lovely embossed leather remaining in excellent condition, now over 100 years old and a true antique. They have integral sun shades. When closed up they ...

A working British marching or sighting compass of brass with original leather case from World War I - made for military and civilian use. A handsome piece of militaria and a fine me...

Lot of 62 late 1960s-1970s toy soldiers, weapons and vehicles by Britains Ltd. Lot includes: 47 total soldiers (mostly plastic with metal bases, three all plastic, and two in Jeep metal), 13 guns / cannons / pieces of artillery (one by Crescent Toy Co.), one boat, and one Land Rover. "The "W. Britain" brand name of toy and collectable soldiers is derived from a company founded by William Britain Jr., a British toy manufacturer, who in 1893 invented the process of hollow casting in lead, and revolutionized the production of toy soldiers. In 1907 the family proprietorship, William Britain & Sons, incorporated as "Britains, Ltd". The Britain family controlled the firm until 1984 when it was sold to a British conglomerate, Dobson Park Industries. They combined the operations with an existing line of toys and renamed the company Britains Petite, Ltd. In the early 1950s Britains was associated with W. Horton Toys and Games which made the die-cast Lilliput ranges of small-scale, rather generic, cars and trucks and other vehicles. In 1959, Britains acquired Herald Miniatures which produced plastic figures designed by Roy Selwyn-Smith. In the 1950s, besides soldiers, a variety of vehicles began to appear, mostly in the military field. In 1966 safety regulations in the United Kingdom combined with rising costs halted the production of lead toy soldiers. Britains shifted most production of Herald plastic to Hong Kong from 1966. In 1971 Britains started Deetail plastic figures with metal bases that were initially manufactured in England but later outsourced to China. In 1973 Britains introduced New Metal models, which are die cast in a durable alloy. Initially these sets were aimed at the British souvenir market. In 1983 Britains responded to a growing collectors' market by introducing additional models and limited edition sets. In 1997, Britains Petite, Ltd was bought by Ertl Company of Iowa, a maker of die-cast toys. Ertl was subsequently bought by RC2 LLC, another American die-cast miniature and plastic kit maker. At this time, production of toy soldiers was moved to China. In 2011, Japanese-headquartered toy company Tomy acquired RC2 which included the Britains die-cast farm miniatures range. In 2005, the W. Britains brand was acquired by First Gear...

Tiara hair comb, in tortoiseshell, topped by an element, also in tortoiseshell, decorated with a sculpted chain motif sloping down from the center towards t...

We are delighted to offer for sale this very nice suite of antique military officer Royal Horse Artillery (1 Cannon - 1873-1901) 18mm ball button with Queen Victoria's Crown brass Mi...

Beautiful pair of mop and brass opera glasses dating from the beginning of the 20th century. Central wheel to move the view away or closer (turns with difficulty). For lovers of coll...

A visually striking smaller scale vintage WWII era maritime salvage ship's binnacle pedestal with compass by Sestrel Henry Browne & Son. circa 1940s The beautifully aged heavily patinated polished brass binnacle housing a high quality marine navigational instrument, having an enclosed brass bowl English Sestrel compass...