Excitement in the Swiss Lego scene. As the Tages-Anzeiger (subscription) reports, a few days ago, while clearing out an estate, the Uster bankruptcy office came across a huge Lego collection: an estimated 600 Lego sets, most unopened and brand new, some extremely rare, are hidden in hundreds of boxes in a large basement room. In an initial phase, 150 sets of these can now be auctioned on the curators’ website.
“There are some sensational sets in there,” says Pascal Schafflützel, assessing the offers for Watson. “You can safely call it a find of the century.” Schafflützel knows what he’s talking about. The Lego expert himself runs the Lego store Gallusbrick: “Some sets will probably be sold for 2,000 to 3,000 francs,” says the St. Gallen resident. However, he won’t reveal who he was thinking about.
Stefan Bommeli is more specific. The member of the Swiss Lego Association (SwissLug) and scene expert from the Zurich Oberland thinks that the monorail will raise the highest amount: “The monorail is an absolute stunner. This set reaches prices of up to 3300 euros on the European market. I think this auction will also go to this region.”
The game, which could be purchased for 120 francs in 1987, is currently offered for 1,110 francs. The rail parts in particular are special. “As individual components, these fetch incredible prices at the fairs. A single rail can cost about 20 francs. Also in poor condition. Or from a smoking household,” Bommeli explains the rarity of the monorail. “Yet you still see systems of 20 square meters at trade fairs. These collectors simply bought everything together.”
The royal castle from 1984 is also already in the four-figure range, despite the slightly damaged packaging. Bommeli estimates that this price will multiply: “There are small deductions due to the dented corner. This set will probably cost about 2,500 francs.”
More difficult is the assessment for the “Garage” set from 1956. There is no comparable offering in the world. That is why you can be particularly enthusiastic about this auction price. It currently amounts to over 370 francs.
Six of the 150 sets have already been bid for more than 500 francs – a windfall for Fuchs Liquidationen GmbH, which has taken over the entire collection from the Uster bankruptcy office. ‘Acquiring’ is not the right expression. The sales price has not yet been determined: “We have agreed with the bankruptcy office that we will meet again after the auctions,” business protector Fuchs explains to Watson. Ultimately, a fair price is reached. A win-win situation.
There’s a good reason why the final purchase price is still pending. Uster’s plastic treasure was spread across hundreds of banana boxes and crates in the basement. The other containers contained worthless junk, files, old magazines and Swiss timetables. More than six tons of material had to be sorted and removed: “A serious assessment was initially not possible,” Fuchs explains, “later we searched the boxes for hours.”
In fact, the curators still don’t know what other gems are in their Lego collection. Each set must be registered and checked separately. With this amount, this is a huge achievement for a small company. That is why 150 sets are now being sold. “We have not made a selection,” explains Fuchs employee Kerstin Hartung. One thing is certain: another 150 boxes will be auctioned before Christmas and a third wave is planned for spring 2024. “We don’t know yet whether a fourth phase will be necessary.”
And even more good news for Swiss Lego fans: foreign AFOLs are excluded from the auction (aboring Fbee OF Lego – adult fan of Lego). If you want to bid, you need a Swiss address. This circumstance will probably keep prices somewhat lower. There are currently no plans to open it to the international market.
It is not yet known whose collection will go under the hammer. “Even in the Lego scene, people puzzle over the mysterious deaths,” explains Schafflützel from Gallusbrick. The Swiss Lego scene has a good network with fan clubs, various exchanges, exhibitions and a Discord server. The deceased was clearly a loner. All that is known so far is that he was (to a small extent) in debt – and had heirs. The bankruptcy office is not allowed to reveal how many there are. But one thing is clear: they exist. And they turned down the inheritance, presumably unaware of the treasure in the cellar.
They should still be able to enjoy some of Lego’s assets. Whatever the bankruptcy office earns from collections goes first to the creditors. Afterwards, the heirs have their say despite the rejection of the estate.
Bidding on the auctions of the first 150 sets is possible until November 13 at 1 p.m. The online catalog can be found here.
If you want to check the quality of the goods, you can do so on Thursday, November 9 between 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM in Otelfingen. However, advance registration is required. Information about this can be found here.
If you want to know the market value of Lego sets, you can do so with the help of Brickeconomy. Thanks for this tip, go to Stefan Bommeli.
Source: Watson
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
