Dear MMDs,  As a whole, the large auction on Sunday Dec. 9th in
Chartres was a success -- nearly 400 lots sold, and more than 5 hours!
Many thanks to Robbie Rhodes, who put the catalogue on the MMD web
site, with some help from Joyce Brite, Jody Kravitz and Bob Fitterman
for the technical aspects.

 [ See http://mmd.foxtail.com/Auctions/Chartres0112/index.html ]

Here is a short report, in the order of the description I made for the
MMD before the auction, in the Nov. 29th and 30th MMDigests.  Prices
are given "at the hammer".  Add ca 11% for premium and taxes.  Prices
are in French Francs.  1000 FF = ca 135 US$, or 152 euros.

The auction room (an old gothic chapel) was full of people, with many
buyers from outside France (American, Dutch, Belgian, British ...),
without mentioning those bidding on the phones.

Very few lots were unsold.  Music boxes are difficult to sell as soon
as they have technical problems (one tune runned, broken teeth, etc.),
but when they are in good condition, they sell very well!  Pianos do
not fetch high prices as they are cumbersome, heavy and costly to
repair well.  Good automatons are always in demand.

First, two rarities :

1.  A very rare New Century 47 cm disc music box, with 6 discs, sold at
72,000 FF.  Like the Sirion, each disc may play 2 tunes (or 1 tune and
its variations).  At the end of the first tune, the center of the disc
moves slightly aside, and a new set of pins (or projections) acts on
the combs.

2.  A large 4-tune 212-teeth Alexandre Soualle cylinder music box, sold
at 44,000 FF.  Soualle was, with L'Epee, one of the two main French
music box makers in the XIXth century, and his boxes are usually good.
This one (ca. 1860), beautifully restored, is excellent !

Now the other items :

 - There were no large fairground organs this time, but many organettes
(from 14 to 32 keys), and, from the first half of the XIXth century,
three cylinder chamber organs (needing restoration : ca 7.000 FF each),
and a serinette by Voirot Aine a Mirecourt (previous restoration
needing completion), 4500 FF.

 - There were organinas Thibouville 16, 24, 36 keys (ca 10/13.000 FF
each), American organettes, Gem Roller organs (a 20 notes, perfectly
restored, sold at 6500 FF), etc.

 - A special mention for a beautiful blue-clothed "necessaire" with a
singing bird attributed to Bontems, ca 1870/80, which fetched 155,000
FF, the most expensive piece in this auction.

 - The Magic Organa from 1931 in perfect restored condition was not
sold (it is strange, because it is very pleasant and spectacular to
play), whereas a recent (1980's) and good Odin 27 keys portable organ
using books of music was sold at 38,000 FF.

 - The good Black Forest organ clock was not sold, although it is a
very interesting one : it is the keyframe which moves to change tunes,
and not the cylinder.  But people want Black Forest organ clocks with
automatons, and that one had none !

 - Several fine musical boxes, either cylinder boxes (reeds, bells,
automatons, etc.) or disc boxes (Polyphon, Symphonion, Harmonia, etc.),
and many small items with musical movements.  A large orchestral music
box (not interchangeable) on a table sold for 62,000 FF, whereas a good
8 tunes Lecoultre with 3 levers did not sold more than 10,000 FF.
(There is always this actual disinterest for technical or early music
boxes because of their very plain cases, even if their music is very
good !).

 - A good very classical sublime harmony box, 33 cm cylinder, 8 tunes,
by Baker Troll, made 16,500 FF -- the type of box every amateur dreams
to find at an antique shop.  Several tabatieres sold rather well,
between 3500 and 5000 FF, two of them depicting on their metal cases
typical "Dutch" scenes.

The "Musee des Arts et Metiers", in Paris, bought for their exhibition
room, "Theatre des automates", a fine coin-operated vertical 40 cm disc
Polyphon for 37,000 FF.

- Several barrel or pneumatic pianos (between 5000 and 10500 FF),
amidst them a Gaveau grand with Ampico A system, 28,000 FF; and a
Piano Melodico by Racca (large 73 keys model) needing some restoration,
26,000 FF.  Also a Melotrope by Carpentier (to be put on a keyboard),
was disputed until it reached 6000 FF.

 - Many books (even in English!), by Bowers, Buchner, Bulleid,
Ord-Hume, Webb, etc.; usually they make quite high prices at Chartres,
but this time, buyers were very reasonable (perhaps because many of
these books were written in English ...).

 - Christmas time is approaching : small music boxes (tiles, photo
albums, clocks) were much in demand.

 - No exceptional automatons this time, but some good items sold well :
A young girl with a cage, by Lambert, for 105,000 FF; the banjo player
on the catalogue cover, for 50,000 FF, and a Negro female playing the
harp, by Roullet Decamps, 76,000 FF.

- There were more than 150 lots of phonographs (a good Lioret no. 2
fetched 60,000 FF), amusement machines (sorry, I am no specialist in
these) and fairground artifacts.  It appears that a pig (16200 FF)
is slightly more expensive than a cow (15500 FF), and both much more
expensive than a lion (5400 FF) who is nevertheless supposed to be the
king of animals ... There is no more respect for "His Highness the
Lion"!

I hope these comments will be of some help.  The next auction in
Chartres (France) will occur mid May 2002.

Best regards,

Philippe Rouille  (Paris, France)
http://www.cnam.fr/museum/musica_mecanica/