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| | From:  FWCatie (Original Message) | Sent: 1/3/2008 5:59 AM |
Happy New Year to one and all.
Realizing that January is a month of recovery for most of us, we’ve decided not to have our usual Archive Auction this month (We will resume the Archive Auctions in February). Instead we are taking this beginning of a new year to celebrate another beginning. The beginning of the Martin Perry Marble Resin Box Figurines. Most of you remember either knowing or hearing about the days when Martin Perry was casting Netsuke Reproductions for museum shops. He was also casting Animal Piles and trying out new marble resin products on his mould designs as well as the designs of some of his friends (including Peter Calvesbert). However, the Original Box Figurine, as we know it, was a very limited edition of a collaboration by Martin and Corinna. When all of this was beginning, Martin and Corinna were wandering through a fabulous market place in London called Portobello Road. (Certainly one of my very favourite Sunday strolls.) Portobello Road was the place where one could find everything from 16th Century Sterling to yesterday’s left over produce. The “treasure�?that caught their eyes that day was a tortoise shell that reminded them of their pet Traddles. (Now, unfortunately, long departed.) The body of what would become the Original Box Figurine was actually modelled not by Martin, but by Corinna. Martin then used the shell and Corinna’s body to cast a small number of copies and the Marble Resin Box Figurine was born. ( Of course I mean the body of the tortoise, not her body  )The only one I have heard of surfacing was sold on a brand new site in 1996 called eBay. It was sold for a collector by a very much missed dealer named Karen Gilbert of Whimsical Wares, for the unheard of sum of, if memory serves, $5600.00. If anyone out there remembers the exact amount, we would be very grateful to be corrected. Also, if anyone out there has or knows of anyone who has one, we would also be grateful for that information. After making a small number of these wonderful boxes, using the shell as the mould, Martin gave the original to his older brother. That original and two others are now in my possession and we are offering them to three very lucky collectors. The actual shell is to be offered on eBay in a private auction where the names of the bidders will not be published. This auction will begin very shortly.The other two will be offered in our usual blind Archive Auction to begin, with no reserve and no minimum opening bid, as soon as the eBay auction ends. Once again, if you have any questions about how the Archive Auctions work, please feel free to contact me either via email or by phone at [email protected] and/or 757 722-1943. The three boxes have been signed by Martin and have been assigned a number by him. The original shell, of course, being number One. We will not disclose the bids nor the bidders. If any of the winners want to disclose their win, that will be entirely up to them. I will post pictures later today. |
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| | | From: FWCatie | Sent: 1/3/2008 6:06 AM |
Please feel free to copy this announcement to any other board that HK collectors might read. It would be a shame if there is a collector out there that doesn't find out in time that these extremely rare turtles are available. Martin is so very pleased to be able to offer them after all these years. They were well hidden and he had no idea that they existed. (Except for the one his brother so kindly agreed to part with) |
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| | | From: danno | Sent: 1/3/2008 11:44 AM |
Awesome News! Traddles the turtle is the rarest of the rare! |
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| | | From: FWCatie | Sent: 1/3/2008 10:53 PM |
The purchasers of the Traddles sold by Karen Gilbert were Ron and Lauren Atlas. They were, at one time, major players in Harmony Kingdom. I haven't heard much about them since the Clair de Lune days. They may still be heavy hitters, but staying in the background as so many do. Thanks to another oldie but very, very goodie for this information. It would be so wonderful if some of the really old gang were to start posting here again. They have so much information and so many greyt stories. Well, I'd better get going on those pictures. Sure wish Joe McF were here. I'm way out of his league when it comes to picture taking!  |
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| | | From: FWCatie | Sent: 1/4/2008 2:14 AM |
Traddles is about 4" long and about 3 1/2' wide and about 2 1/2 " tall..He has a magic feel to him. This is one I really wish I were able to bid on! |
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| | | From: Emmy~ | Sent: 1/4/2008 3:18 AM |
Thanks, Catie, for this wonderful info and opportunity. Surely you will let us know when the auction begins, right?? |
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| | | From: FWCatie | Sent: 1/4/2008 7:35 PM |
The auction on eBay for the Original Traddles will begin at 7PM Pacific time this evening. That's so that it will end at a reasonable time on both coasts. i.e. 10PM Eastern, 7PM Pacific.. It will be harder across the Pond, but I can't make everyone happy. I'm guessing that most of the final bids will be snipes anyway. Usually in this sort of auction the main interest is watching the last few minutes as eBay tries to keep up with the jumping amounts in the last minutes. (right Emmy?? ) I'll be sure to post the final link at 7.... Good luck to all! And...keep watching...I'm hopeful that it will be, as Mr. Sullivan used to say, "a really good shew" |
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| | | From: FWCatie | Sent: 1/5/2008 3:23 AM |
The auction is up and the address is: I have posted further information regarding the whereabouts of two of these elusive beasties..... as I should have realized, Jay Mohan, DisneyCat, does have one of them. Many of you will remember Jay as the man with the absolutely most fantastic collection and the finest photography of a collection I've ever seen. Ron & Lauren Atlas are the couple who bought the one that Karen Gilbert sold on eBay in '96 and there is one in England owned by a collector who would rather not be named and who, if you can believe it, for many years was using his as a door stopper! Now that he knows what it is, he now has it displayed properly. So, with the three that I have here and the three accounted for above, we can now say that there are at least 6 in existance. |
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