Monster sale of film special effects

Auctioneers John Nicholson’s of Fernhurst have secured a consignment of 35 lots of film material from the personal collection of the late film special effects master, Ray Harryhausen for their October 17th General and Fine Antique sale.

The collection includes his cameras and camcorders; a bronze mask from his famous ground-breaking stop motion film Clash of the Titans; a mock-up of a cast list from Clash of the Titans with alterations 1981 – the cast included Harry Hamlin, Maggie Smith, Claire Bloom and Ursula Andress; a small plaster cast of Frankenstein and a poster from Sinbad Eye of the Tiger.

Various illustrations, oil paintings, pictures and other artefacts are included, with estimates ranging from £25 to £200.

So great was Harryhausen’s influence on even modern filmmakers that in the 2001 Pixar film Monsters Inc the swanky restaurant that all the top monsters go to is named Harryhausen’s.

“Ray Harryhausen was the doyen of film animation, a man who pioneered many of the special effects that dominated films from the late 1940s onwards. It is no coincidence that he won a special effects Oscar while still in his twenties,” said auctioneer John Nicholson.

“In 2010 his foundation decided to hand over his whole collection of around 50,000 items to the National Media Museum in Bradford, so this opportunity to acquire a memento of the great man is rare indeed, especially since it includes items from his landmark film Clash of the Titans.”