A BIZARRE collection of porcelain half dolls will go under the Charterhouse hammer in a two-day collector auction in Sherborne and are expecting to sell for tens of thousands of pounds.

There are nearly 800 porcelain half dolls in the unusual collection, which took years of scouring auctions, antique shops and antique fairs to accumulate, but the owner has now decided that it is the right time to let other collectors enjoy them.

Charterhouse Auctioneers director, Richard Bromell, said: “It is up there with some of the quirkiest collections I’ve seen and as a collection it is up there with how impressive they are.

“In a normal auction you might have two or three of them. We are expecting people to travel for it.

“Some will be sold individually, or in twos or threes and some in lots. As an auctioneer we are quite pessimistic, but we are looking at about £20,000 to £30,000.”

Dating mostly from the early 20th century and Art Deco period, the dolls are made of porcelain in Germany and the values depend on their complexity.

“They would have been very expensive the more complicated they are,” Richard continued.

“When you have arms waving and birds and clothes with detail, they are expensive.

“Most of them are the size of a finger. They are small and very fiddly little things, so you want to keep them in cabinets.

“When you see a collection like this you want to collect it yourself because you see things and learn things. They may not be your cup of tea, but they are someone’s.”

Viewing for this auction of porcelain half dolls, coins, medals, stamps, clocks and other collectors’ items is on Wednesday, December 11 and Thursday, December 12, or you can view all the lots on www.charterhouse-auction.com where live internet bidding is also available.

For further information regarding these specialist auctions, or to arrange a home visit, contact Richard Bromell and the team of experts at Charterhouse on 01935 812277 or email info@charterhouse-auction.com.