LATEST COLLECTIBLES ARTICLE______________________________

Ghosts, Goblins, and More
by Bob Brooke

As Halloween approaches, collectors seek out antique Halloween collectibles. These treasures embody the nostalgic spirit of the holiday and provide a glimpse into how Halloween enthusiasts celebrated in the past. From spooky decorations to eerie costumes, Halloween collectibles can be both valuable and captivating. Unlike modern mass-produced decorations, antique and vintage pieces have historical significance, craftsmanship, and most importantly—rarity.

By the beginning of the 19th century, small cottage workshops had begun to make paper skeleton die-cuts to hang in windows. Later, others began producing chalkware figurines of witches or ghosts, wood and tin noisemakers, ghoulish board games, papiér-mache pumpkins to hold candy or candles, and elaborate costumes and masks.

But the trick-or-treating tradition wasn’t widespread in the United States until the 1930s. Though sugar-rationing in the 1940s put a damper on many Halloween parties, the celebration bounced back in the 1950s with a focus on children, cemented by Walt Disney’s short film, “Trick or Treat,” in 1952. Generally, vintage Halloween collectibles range from the 1920s to the 1960s.

Vintage Halloween collectibles came in several categories—masks, decorations, candy containers, noisemakers and rattles, embossed die-cut decorations, chalkware, party decorations, postcards, papier-mache lanterns, and costumes and accessories. The items in these categories sell for anywhere from $20 to over $300 while some of the rarer ones can sell for thousands. The most valuable Halloween decorations are, believe it or not, papier-mache Jack-o-Lanterns. These German-made lanterns have become the most popular Halloween collectible. .

Halloween Masks
Vintage masks are one of the most sought after Halloween collectibles. People in the 1950s often made these masks from papier-mâché, rubber, or latex, making them popular collectibles. Collectors look for intricate designs, original paint, and unique features that reflect the style of the time. They especially value masks from well-known manufacturers like Ben Cooper or Collegeville.

Early Halloween Decorations
Antique Halloween decorations offer a glimpse into how people celebrated it in the past. Early decorations made from materials like cardboard, crepe paper, or tin are popular with collectors. They particularly like lanterns, garlands, and window silhouettes that feature classic Halloween motifs like witches, ghosts, and jack-o’-lanterns. Condition and rarity both affect their value.

Halloween Candy Containers
Celebrating Halloween is synonymous with candy. Manufacturers produced containers made of papier-mache, composition board, and plastic. Often designed to look like pumpkins, witches, or ghosts, candy containers add a touch of whimsy to Halloween decor. People used these containers, originally made from tin or cardboard, to hold candy and often brightly colored them with distinctive designs. Rarity, condition, and the intricacy of their design determines their value.

Tin Noisemakers and Rattles
Tin Halloween noisemakers, made from the 1920s to the 1950s, feature colorful lithographic designs that captured the artistic style of the mid 20th century. They came in a variety of forms and many different styles featuring the usual Halloween themes and symbols–devils, witches, black cats, ghosts, pumpkins, owls, and more. Noisemakers range from paper to metal. Earlier examples of metal noisemakers featured wooden handles, later replaced by plastic ones. Most vintage noisemakers sell for $15 to $75, with some commanding prices into the hundreds depending on scarcity, age, style, images, and manufacturer.

Embossed Die-Cut Decorations
Beistle Company’s embossed die-cuts represent some of the most recognizable vintage Halloween imagery. These three-dimensional decorations featured classic motifs like skeletons, witches, black cats, and grinning pumpkins. Die-cuts prices range in price from $20 to an astonishing $6,850, a world record paid for a rare Beistle piece.

Halloween Chalkware
Made out of plaster of Paris, manufacturers produced chalkware to create inexpensive versions of Halloween decorative objects such as figurines. Some used molds to form chalkware pieces taken from Staffordshire and other popular figurines. Other makers carved them. In either case, the chalkware was painted most of the time, usually with a water-based pigment. It chipped easily, and its fragile colors sat exposed on the surface of the pieces rather than being fired like a glaze, thus their beeswax or varnish coatings gave them little protection. Very few pieces from the early 19th to mid-20th centuries, the heyday of the material, have survived without dings and scratches. Because it’s so fragile, chalkware essentially cannot be cleaned, so even pieces that have survived unscathed often look dingy and careworn. In the United States, two of the main centers for chalkware production were German-dominated Lancaster and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, although the pieces themselves were almost certainly the work of Italian artisans.

Halloween Party Decorations
Halloween party decorations include a lot of paper ephemera—suckerholders, candy boxes, garlands, diecuts, table decorations, centerpieces, plates, cups, napkins, treat bags, bridge tallies, nutcups, doilies, invitations, placecards, kitchenware, signs, candles and candle holders, party books, and so much more.

Between the early 1900s to the 1930s, German manufacturers made the finest papiér-mache items before World War II disrupted production. German toy companies produced a variety of Halloween candy containers.

Collecting Halloween Memorabilia
The most important thing collectors need to consider when purchasing Halloween memorabilia is rarity. Pre-1960s Halloween items command premium prices because so few have survived. These delicate decorations—crafted from paper, cardboard, and early plastics—were meant for temporary seasonal use, not long-term preservation.

Limited production runs have added to this scarcity effect. When Beistle Company produced their iconic embossed die-cut decorations in small batches during the 1920s to the 1940s, they unknowingly created the most sought-after collectibles.

Condition is crucial when evaluating the value of antique Halloween collectibles. Well-preserved items, with minimal damage or wear, are far more valuable. Collectors should look for collectibles with original paint, intact materials, and minimal restoration work. Halloween collectibles that have historical significance or are associated with notable manufacturers or designers can be especially valuable.

Halloween collectibles offer a fascinating glimpse into the history of Halloween celebrations and provide a tangible connection to the past.

< Back to Collectibles Archives