Auctions | Railroad memorabilia to be sold

Travel along Cherry Lane in Wynnewood and you'll see a property whose entrance appears to be a railroad crossing with warning lights, even though no tracks are anywhere to be seen. The scene reflects the enormous collection of railroad memorabilia assembled over several decades by the estate's owner, Richard Reuss.

About 300 lots from that collection will be offered to the public today by Wiederseim Associates Inc. at the first session of its two-day midwinter auction, beginning at 5 p.m. at Griffith Hall, Ludwigs Corner firehouse, in Glenmoore.

Many of the items have Pennsylvania Railroad origins or other local connections, such as the Baldwin Locomotive Works. They include lamps, lanterns, station stop signs, locomotive bells, headlights, and engine number plates, many of them Pennsy items with the keystone logo in red and gold.

"In this region, Pennsylvania Railroad items are very sought-after," Ted Wiederseim says. A steam locomotive bell has a presale estimate of $1,000 to $1,500, according to the online catalog at www.wiederseim.com. A St. Davids Station stop sign is expected to bring $400 to $600.

The auction's second session, beginning at 10 a.m. tomorrow, will offer 400 lots of furniture, antiques and artwork, including a Lebanon, Pa., Federal tall-case clock with eight-day works (estimate: $10,000 to $12,000), a 1740 Philadelphia pine slant-front writing desk ($6,000 to $8,000), and a 1920s wrought-iron golfing weather vane from the Berkshire Country Club ($1,000 to $1,500).

Preview will be from 9 a.m. to sale time today and tomorrow at the fire hall, 1325 Pottstown Pike (Route 100). For more information, call 610-827-1910.

Scientific items. Freeman's, too, will feature a single-source collection at a sale next Friday: Le Cabinet Scientifique of Philip W. Pfeifer, long an antiques dealer in Frenchtown, N.J. The sale's 740 lots actually digress from the purely scientific and include Oriental items, corkscrews and walking sticks.

Among the scientific items are compasses, spyglasses, a half-dozen antique telescopes, and an early 19th-century Bates brass compound microscope expected to sell for $5,000 to $8,000, according to presale estimates in the auction catalog.

Previews will be from noon to 5 p.m. tomorrow and from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday at the gallery, 1808 Chestnut St. Information: 215-563-9275 or www.freemansauction.com.

Kamelot oddities. Tomorrow, Kamelot Auctions will conduct its winter sale beginning at 11 a.m. at the gallery, in the 4700 Wissahickon Ave. complex, and online at www.kamelotauctions.com. The 500 lots consist of furniture, mostly Continental; more than 50 lots of chandeliers and wall sconces; and accessories, artwork, Nippon ceramics, jewelry and sterling.

Most lots are expected to sell for three- to moderate four-figure prices, although a 60-inch two-tone bronze and marble rotary clock with winged cherubs holding a marble urn is expected to sell for $20,000 to $30,000.

The sale also offers some oddities, including a pair of contemporary cowhide lounge chairs expected to sell for $1,200 to $1,800, an iron fireplace done in the form of grapevines and bunches ($400 to $600), and a three-legged bronze and leather stool, with each leg in the form of a Victorian lace-up boot ($800 to $1,200).

Preview will be from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. today. Information: 215-438-6990.

Treasures in Chadds Ford. On Tuesday, William H. Bunch Auctions will conduct a multi-estate sale beginning at noon and offering more than 500 lots of furniture and artwork.

Among the top items: a Baldwin black-lacquer concert grand piano made about 1977 and expected to sell for $10,000 to $15,000; a bowed cherry bench made by Wharton Esherick about 1950 and expected to sell for $6,000 to $8,000; a shell-carved Federal tall-case clock made about 1815 by Jedediah Weiss of Bethlehem ($14,000 to $18,000); a 31-inch-tall bronze statue of a Puritan by Augustus St. Gaudens ($20,000 to $40,000); and a drypoint etching of a butcher shop by the Weimar Republic artist Otto Dix ($12,000 to $16,000).

Previews will be from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and from 9 a.m. to sale time Tuesday at the gallery, 1 Hillman Dr., Chadds Ford. Information: 610-558-1800 or www.williambunchauctions.com.