Model Kit From ‘50S Worth $100

* Dear Collector: What is the current value of this car-designing toy? All the parts are in the box.

This “Design-A-Car” kit, made by Pyro in the mid-1950s, is worth over $100. The user can design and build thousands of plastic model cars (one at a time) from the contents of this single box using a slide-rule like device to match the parts together.

* Dear Collector: I have a set of 50 bronze coins that was a giveaway from Shell Oil back in 1969. Each coin designates a state, when it entered the union, its capitol, state flower and bird, and important landmarks. Any value?

Many of these premiums are still around, along with a similar set focusing on U.S. presidents. If your coins are in the original cardboard holder, it’s worth $25 to $30.

* Dear Collector: I have had a Titanic luncheon menu in my possession since 1982. Please tell me if it has any value.

This is a reproduction of the menu from the last meal served aboard H.M.S. Titanic. Printed in vast numbers since the 1912 sinking (along with other ephemera: tickets, boarding passes, etc.), these menus are worth at most a few dollars. Other ships that have met similar, dramatic ends, like the Luisitania and Andrea Doria, have also spawned their own faux collectibles.

* Dear Collector: We have a complete collection of “The Harvard Classics,” copyright 1910-1914, and are interested in knowing if they have any monetary value.

A compilation of all the great writers, from Plato to Twain, and known as the “Five Foot Shelf of Books,” this staple of early 20th American households actually had 51 books, the last being a volume of lectures. It’s difficult to find the whole set now, and if one does come across a complete series, then it’s not unusual to see it wearing a price tag of $600 or more.

* Dear Collector: Any value to my 1944 Filipino 50-centavo coin that has the “United States of America” on one side?

The first Filipino coinage struck after the liberation of this then-island Commonwealth by MacArthur and his troops; this piece, in mint condition, now sells for $8 to $10.

* Dear Collector: My mother was English, and I’ve inherited some of her things, one of which is a woman’s compact marked “Stratton, England.” I would love to hear from you on what the age and value of this compact might be.

Without more information, I can’t answer your question. Perhaps the following book will be of help: “Compacts, Powder and Paint” by Frances Johnson.

* Dear Collector: I have an old pitcher, pale gray with a triangular marking on the bottom (there are numbers and letters in each corner of the triangle). Can you tell me when it was made?

Deciphering the “English Registry Mark” gives us a date of June 3, 1854.

* Dear Collector: I own a book titled “The Story of the Trapp Family Singers,” second edition, copyright 1949 by Maria Augusta Trapp. It is signed by the author inside the cover.

The story of the von Trapp family (the title was dropped upon their arrival in America) was the inspiration for the Broadway play, “The Sound of Music,” which was later made into a multi-award winning motion picture. A signed first edition, in good condition, should fetch $40 to $50. Since your copy is a second edition, the value will be slightly lower.

The Collector welcomes new staff member Mary Medici.