Morphy’s hits a high note with $2.3M sale of renowned Henri Krijnen collection of mechanical music machines
Owner of Florida toy museum pays $350,550 for auction’s top lot: a massive 1963 Belgian dance organ with robot musiciansDENVER, Pa. – A trio of robot musicians with a captivating, toe-tapping sound led the parade of mechanical music machines and automata at Morphy’s $2.3 million sale of the Henri Krijnen collection, and according to the buyer, the Space-Age combo’s next stop will be a museum or related attraction in Florida. Top lot of the sale: Gebroeders Decap dance organ with robot musician figures, Belgium, 1963. One of only three made in 105-key configuration. Purchased by Ozzie Bilotta, who is opening a private antique toy and sci-fi collectibles museum this fall in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Sold for $350,550 against an estimate of $100,000-$200,000The Sept. 9-10 auction featured 541 lots of dance organs, orchestrions, slot machines and a myriad of other antique coin-operated novelties amassed over 50 years by the late Mr Krijnen, a Dutch businessman who made his fortune in the gambling and entertainment industry. The robot dance organ, created by Gebroeders Decap (Antwerp, Belgium) in 1963, was known to be one of Krijnen’s great favorites. It is one of only three that were made in a 105-key configuration, and was originally installed at the Hotel Eemland in Soest, Netherlands. Later in its lifetime, it was professionally restored to perfection by AC Pilmer Automatic Music of Ossett, England. Members of the robot band are programmed to play drums, a saxophone and brass horn, respectively, and the latter two even stand up for their “solos.” At one corner of the stage, a smaller robot of similar composition smiles and reminds patrons to tip the performers. Against an estimate of $100,000-$200,000, the delightful robot dance organ attracted 31 bids before selling for an astonishing $350,550. The buyer is Ozzie Bilotta, whose private museum of