A few examples of appraisal values for
AUTOMATON

• An automaton of a child with a hoop
  An automaton of a child with a hoop emerging from a basket 38cm (15") high and an automaton of a juggling bear Label (may not be original): 1897 Exposition Automata of Art Dinantas
• Automaton bird in gilded cage,
  Automaton bird in gilded cage, marked "Made in France", 11" h, mechanics work, no chirping
• AUTOMATON OF MUSICAL BAND,
  AUTOMATON OF MUSICAL BAND, MONTREAL, EARLY 20TH C.An automaton of a musical band with articulated composition characters. Montreal, early 20th century. Mechanics in place, untouched used condition. H: 26"; W/L: 33"; D/P: 16". FRANCAIS: Automate d’une composition d'un groupe musical articulés. Montréal, début du 20e siècle. Mécanique en place, état tel que trouvé.
• A late 19th Century French
  A late 19th Century French automaton of a girl holding a needlework, wearing a lace embellished dress, under a glass dome, 54cm high
• AUTOMATON OF A STANDING
  AUTOMATON OF A STANDING MANAUTOMATON OF A STANDING MAN, wearing a mismatched suit and felt top hat, holding a hand mirror, atop red velvet base - h:29w:9d:9in. Provenance: Private Collection
• AUTOMATA.Maskelyne, John Nevil.
  AUTOMATA.Maskelyne, John Nevil. Automata. London: Magic Circle, 1989. Number 389 of 400 copies. Gilt-stamped leather. Illustrated. 4to. Accompanied by a ticket and menu to the Magic Circle Foundation lecture and luncheon issued at the release of Automata.
• AUTOMATON BIRD IN CAGEAUTOMATON
  AUTOMATON BIRD IN CAGEAUTOMATON BIRD IN CAGE, French or German, 19th century, spring wound action with key, 18.5"H.
• SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
  SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST AUTOMATON.Survival of the Fittest Automaton. England: Neil Hardy, 2004. Electrical automaton with rotating informational displays on four different animals (whale, cheetah, alligator, and gorilla) some with moving heads, jaw, and limbs; at the conclusion, the lighted compartment underneath opens to reveal another animal, the “couch potato” – a man at a recliner drinking from a can. Wooden base. Working condition, with handwritten sheet detailing repairs by another party performed in 2009. Approx. 19 x 19 x 21”.
• GEISHA GIRL AUTOMATON.Geisha Girl
  GEISHA GIRL AUTOMATON.Geisha Girl Automaton. Paris: Pierre Mayer, ca. 2002. Handmade wooden automaton with exposed works. The Geisha raises the cup to show a ball underneath. As the crank is turned, the cup descends, and she waves a fan, the cup is then raised and the ball has vanished, reappearing on her shoulder. Hardwood and metal construction. 6 x 3 x 7”. Working, with element controlling appearance of ball on shoulder out of sequence, in need of repair or adjustment. Custom Plexiglas case.
• SELF-LEVITATION
  SELF-LEVITATION AUTOMATON.Self-Levitation Automaton. Paris: Pierre Mayer, ca. 2000s. Wooden and metal mechanical hand-cranked automaton with exposed works, depicting a man with a cigar who levitates from his stool with no apparent connection. 10 x 6 x 3 ½”. Working.
• 19TH CENTURY MUSICAL AUTOMATON
  19TH CENTURY MUSICAL AUTOMATON Wood, cloth doll with bisque heads.
• TOY AUTOMATON - Austrian Musical
  TOY AUTOMATON - Austrian Musical Automaton Rabbit in Cabbage having glazed fabric leaves over papier-mache frame (with concealed battery pocket for light up eyes) wind-up action had real-fur rabbit rising out of head of lettuce with leaf in mouth his h
• MUSICAL AUTOMATON BY RZEBITSCHEK OF
  MUSICAL AUTOMATON BY RZEBITSCHEK OF PRAGUE 19th c., Czechoslovakia, papier mache, music student and teacher dressed in silk costumes, with original wool wigs, seated before a paint-decorated piano raised on a decorated rosewood music box, paper label to underside listing melodies, 10"h x 13"l x 7"w
• MUSICAL DOLL PUPPETEER AUTOMATON
  MUSICAL DOLL PUPPETEER AUTOMATON Circa 1900. Boy is dressed in period fabric costume with fine lace work and puppeteering a marionette. Head and hands are made from porcelain with realistic features. The figure is standing on a square plinth base containing the musical automaton mechanism. Comes with winding key. Watch Video
• A mid 19th Century French walking
  A mid 19th Century French walking Polichinelle clown automaton, beating a drum and symbol, in original clothes, 30cm high, now under a glass dome
• FRENCH AUTOMATON OF A TURKISH
  FRENCH AUTOMATON OF A TURKISH SULTAN First quarter, 20th century or earlier; figure of sultan lavishly dressed in silk clothes seated on elaborate cushion and pillows with small table nearby. Wood base covered in floral print cloth. When wound, sultan will drink and fan himself; with music box accompaniment, approximately 12 in. H., 10 in. W.
• THE AUTO-QUARIUM AUTOMATON.The
  THE AUTO-QUARIUM AUTOMATON.The Auto-Quarium Automaton. American, ca. 1990s. Electric aquarium automaton featuring wooden fish swimming in laps, a crab lunging with its claws, and a school of fish circling a reef plant. Wooden cabinet with open sides. 18 x 12 x 15”. One crab claw detached.
• AUTOMATON FIGURE - Carved Wood &
  AUTOMATON FIGURE - Carved Wood & Polychrome Figure of a Gypsy Fortune Teller circa 1890 from a fairway coin operated novelty with moving arms and eyes 17'' tall 12 1/2'' x 8'' lacking internal mechanics.
• CHAPUIS, ALFRED. AUTOMATA: A
  CHAPUIS, ALFRED. AUTOMATA: A HISTORICAL AND TECHNOLOGIC...Chapuis, Alfred and Edmond Droz. Automata: A Historical and Technological Study. Two editions, publisher's cloth, being the English (New York, 1958) and French (Neuchatel, [n.d.]). Color plates, illustrations. 4to. Fine.
• Automaton Birds in Cage 20th
  Automaton Birds in Cage 20th century two automaton birds in a brass cage. When wound the birds open their mouths and move their tails; cage ht. 10 in.
• ANTIQUE BOY MAGICIAN
  ANTIQUE BOY MAGICIAN AUTOMATON.Antique Boy Magician Automaton. French, late nineteenth century. Incomplete and non-functional automaton figure, originally depicting a Hindu boy magician at a table, vanishing and producing a ball. Parts of head, forearms, legs, and body preserved, exposed mechanism at rear. Collection of Michael Woolf (Wellington, New Zealand), sold with his file of reference photos of similar automata, and clippings from the Wellington Evening Post on his unfulfilled quest to restore this rare piece. Clarification - Dec. 6, 2017: The base of this automaton is modern and contains no clockwork or other parts.
• PHALIBOIS WOLF AUTOMATONPhalibois
  PHALIBOIS WOLF AUTOMATONPhalibois Wolf Automaton, a fanciful dressed wolf lady at her dressing table ladden with jewels and make up, the clockwork imparting a series of motions starting with her right hand and arm that raises a powder puff toward her face with a few rapid tap-tap motions, the head then turns to look into the hand mirror being raised by the left arm. All under the maker's typical arch with silk flora, wood base, and glass dome, 23" h., 19" w. Condition: Some melting to silk on skirt and sleeves, but otherwise a noteably clean example, lower jaw needs small repair, otherwise motions appear to function properly, key is incorrect and does not quite fit properly.
• "Automata" automaton reference book
  "Automata" automaton reference book by Christian Bailly; 1987 Sotheby's publication, autographed by author. 12 3/8" x 9 5/8". Very good condition, minor roughness on dust cover.
• THE ECONOMIC CYCLE AUTOMATON.The
  THE ECONOMIC CYCLE AUTOMATON.The Economic Cycle Automaton. N.p., ca. 2000s. Electrical automaton, accompanied by a plastic title placard (“The Economic Cycle”), depicting a bicyclist and a circus clown, each with other riders at the front or rear, on a rubber treadmill nicknamed “the road to recovery”. 21 x 17 x 11”. Not tested.
• "THE COURT JESTER" AUTOMATONin a
  "THE COURT JESTER" AUTOMATONin a glazed wooden case with plaque inscribed "The Court Jester / 1810", with winding key; Condition: in working condition; 24 inches high; the case 19 1/2 inches wide; 18 inches deep; 29 1/2 inches high Condition:
• A 20th Century automaton of two
  A 20th Century automaton of two singing white birds in a cage and another singing bird automaton
• SELF-LEVITATION AUTOMATON. PARIS:
  SELF-LEVITATION AUTOMATON. PARIS: PIERRE MAYER, CA. 200...Self-Levitation Automaton. Paris: Pierre Mayer, ca. 2000s. Wooden and metal mechanical hand-cranked automaton in which a man with a cigar levitates with no apparent connection between himself and the stool. 6 x 3 _ x 10 _Ó. Fully functional but for movement of figure's arms up and down.
• AUTOMATA: THE GOLDEN AGE,
  AUTOMATA: THE GOLDEN AGE, 1848—1914.Bailly, Christian. Automata: The Golden Age, 1848—1914. Sotheby’s, 1987. Gilt-lettered decorative cloth, pictorial dust-jacket. Illustrated, color plates. 4to. Fine.
• SATYR HEAD AUTOMATON.Satyr Head
  SATYR HEAD AUTOMATON.Satyr Head Automaton. Findhorn: Michael Start, The House of Automata, 2011. Lifelike figure composed of papier-mache, plywood, and metal, having glass eyes and wind-up spring-driven clockwork motor, producing from its mouth cards selected by audience members. Original locking plywood box, accompanied by wind key and deck of playing cards, instruction booklet with maintenance and technical information. Signed and dated by the maker on the underside base, noting repairs performed in 2012. Approx. 19 x 7 x 7”. One of the finest modern re-creations of a classic piece of nineteenth century parlor conjuring, only a few examples of this piece were built by Start, an expert restorer of antique automata who served as automaton and horological adviser on Martin Scorsese’s film Hugo (2011).
• FRENCH CLOCK WITH AUTOMATON Late
  FRENCH CLOCK WITH AUTOMATON Late 19th century. Musical with birds.
• THE GREEN BALL MACHINE
  THE GREEN BALL MACHINE AUTOMATON.The Green Ball Machine Automaton. Stithians, Cornwall: Paul Spooner (designer) and Matt Smith (builder), 1993. Depicting a washing girl who rubs vigorously to the top of a washing machine until a ball spurts out and into the basin at the foot of the staircase. As the ball emerges, the girl looks up at the viewer and her ponytails flare out. Mounted to wooden base with electrical mechanics underneath, accompanied by screw-on mirror-backed Plexiglas case. Working condition (tested with manual crank only). Approx. 18 x 12 x 16”.
• CLOWN WITH VANISHING HEAD
  CLOWN WITH VANISHING HEAD AUTOMATON.Clown With Vanishing Head Automaton. Paris: Pierre Mayer, ca. 2006. Hand-painted wooden automaton with exposed works. Depicting a clown holding a fan in front of his face; as the crank is turned he lowers the fan, showing that his head has disappeared. The head reemerges from a die at his feet before returning to its original place. 11 ½ x 6 x 3 ½”. Movement of first element (fan and head) slightly abbreviated.
• BLIND, ADOLPHE. LES AUTOMATES
  BLIND, ADOLPHE. LES AUTOMATES TRUQUŽS [AUTHOR'S COPY]. ...Blind, Adolphe. Les Automates TruquŽs [Author's Copy]. Paris, 1927. Publisher's wrappers with illustration of Ajeeb the chess-playing automaton laid down, as issued. Portrait frontispiece. Illustrated with plates and drawings. With the author's bookplate. 8vo. Near fine.
• THE CHICKEN COOP AUTOMATON.The
  THE CHICKEN COOP AUTOMATON.The Chicken Coop Automaton. England: Neil Hardy, ca. 2000s. Wooden automaton depicting a “secret” chicken coop, in which a group of scientifically-minded chickens hold a race to find out which came first – the chicken or the egg. Main mechanism working, some elements may need adjustment. 20 x 14 x 6”.
• French automaton of singing bird in
  French automaton of singing bird in a gilded cage, circa 1900 11.5"H; 6"D
• AUTOMATON BUTTERFLY. American
  AUTOMATON BUTTERFLY. American late 19th century pine. Box with felt fronting and a yellow felt covered butterfly with cast iron body. In the box is a spring and pendulum mechanism that moves the butterfly's wings. Worn. 19 1/2''h. 15''w. 5''d.