On March 25, a lucky bidder rode off into the sunset with a one-of-a-kind original stagecoach offered by Heritage during its two-day Disney Theme Parks auction. The Art of Disneyland: From Stagecoaches to Monorailsand More! spanned the parks fascinating evolution and brought in $1.8 million, with 100 percent of lots sold and some significant results for rarities from Disneyland, Disney World, Disney Stores and more. This Heritage Disney event, the first of 2023, follows last years record-breaking $2.2 million Art of Disneyland auction, and it just happened to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Walt Disney Company and the 50th anniversary celebration for Walt Disney World. This event showcased every aspect of the parks, says Jim Lentz, Heritages director of Animation Art. More than 850 lots spread over two full days offered collectors precious slices of Main Street, Frontierland, Adventureland, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, and more. The most unusual lot yielded the top result at $84,000; it reached back into Disney Parks history with something that kicked off Disneyland itself: the original full-size, nine-passenger Overland Stagecoach that evokes the Rainbow Mountain Stagecoach ride from Disneylands earliest years. This real stagecoach (its last run was from Tombstone, Ariz., to Sacramento, Calif.) belonged to a friend of Walts, fellow Anaheim businessman Ben Hathaway, who owned Tiffys restaurant originally located in the Disneyland Hotel. Very few authentic frontier stagecoaches still exist, making this a rare piece of Americana as well as the inspiration behind the iconic Disneyland attraction of the 1950s; the Stagecoach ride defined Disneylands opening years and preceded the famed Monorail. This authentic frontier stage harkens to Disneylands early portrayal of Americas past and the ultimate transition towards a vision for the future, said Lentz. The winning bidder of this remarkable piece of American history instantly attained exclusive bragging rights. Another top lot on the move: An astonishing Autopia Mark VII car from Disneyland, professionally restored to drivable condition, sold for $48,000. Autopias vehicles were designed by Bob Gurr, who fashioned this car with a front inspired by the Corvette Stingray and the back inspired by an Opal GT. Another Autopia car in this event, a Mark VI park-used vehicle body, went for $26,400. Also from Disneyland, the Skyway ferried guests over Disneyland for some excellent views, and Heritage sold an exceptionally rare original Skyway gondola from the era of Tomorrowland, with its iconic rounded design, for $48,000. From Disney World and its famed Monorail, an original Mark IV Monorail cabin sold for $36,000. This particular cabin hummed into service at the park in 1984; its doors still open and close. Also from Disney World, this park-used vehicle from Snow Whites Scary Adventures (its Dopeys car!) sold for $33,600; the ride took guests through the dwarves diamond mine and cottage, crashed through the castles walls, and made an escape through the forest. An impressive published original painting by Disney legend Charles Boyer titled The Disney Evening Post, a parody of a 1956 issue of Saturday Evening Post, sold for $45,600, and a nostalgia-soaked Disneyland Main Street bench sold for $18,600. In 1987, the first Disney Store opened in Glendale, Calif., and by 1997 more than 700 Disney stores had opened globally. The thought was to bring a bit of the Disney Theme Park experience to your local shopping mall, remarked Lentz. The rafters, walls, and entrance displays were decorated with large fiberglass statues created by Disney artists for the stores. The statues were so popular people constantly asked to buy them, which led to the creation of Disney Big Figs as collectible large-format versions of your favorite Disney characters. Big Figs popularity exploded and were available at Disney Parks, Stores, via mail order and eventually Disney online auctions. This Heritage auction offered the single largest collection of actual character figures used to decorate the Disney Stores, as well as Big Figs. A Big Fig that performed particularly well was a life-sized Mickey Mouse selling for $20,400. A Disney Store set of display figures of Scrooge McDuck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie also went for $20,400. Another charming one-of-a-kind lot that soared well past any estimate was a pairing of life-sized Sully and Mike from the movie Monsters Inc. These incredibly detailed character displays bring the dynamic duo right into a lucky winners home, and sold for $15,600. This just scratches the surface of the Heritage Disney sale. Complete results can be found at www.HA.com/7314.