May 2, 2011 - Auction Central News

Noel Barrett Auctions offers ‘Something for Everyone,’ May 21

Rocking horse composed from circa-1900 carrousel horse in all-original condition, featured in the book The Rocking Horse by Patricia Mullins, est. $4,000-$6,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

NEW HOPE, Pa. – As its title promises, Noel Barrett’s May 21 auction has “something for everyone” within its 714-lots, from fresh-to-market holiday items and antique games to coveted clockwork toys and salesmen’s samples. The Saturday event commencing at 10 a.m. at the Eagle Fire Hall in New Hope, Pa., will feature items from the collections of Philip and Ann Henderson, and Rex Horchem.

The eclectic array of treasures opens with a small selection of Christmas Dresdens and diecuts; Thanksgiving candy containers and decorations; and an extremely rare clockwork Halloween veggie man with moving eyes.

Auction company owner Noel Barrett commented that the early 20th-century papier-mache veggie man, which stands an impressive 16 inches tall, was quite likely used as a store window display piece, a k a sales stimulator. “This is only the second such vegetable man to have surfaced in recent memory,” said Barrett. “The other example had significant repair, including the fabrication of the missing left hand. This example has the complete, fully fingered hand, which needs only minor restoration.” The whimsically wide-eyed mechanical veggie man is estimated at $10,000-$15,000.

A colorful grouping of valentines to be offered at the auction runs the gamut of materials and styles, with a timeline from the late 18th century to the 1940s. There are early woodcuts, fold-downs with “honeycombs,” celluloids, lace-edged greetings, and dimensional cars, ships and architectural structures, among many other types. The 90-lot offering also includes some highly desirable crossovers, such as the circa-1861 Civil War valentine of heavy embossed paper with a hand-colored engraving of a soldier returning home to his wife and child. It is estimated at $250-$350. An additional ephemera highlight is a 1904 “Our Sailor Boy” mechanical calendar depicting a youngster in naval attire, with British and American flags in the background and a cannon in the foreground. The “smoke” emitted from the cannon is embossed with calendar pages from all 12 months and is retractable to fit back into the cannon. Estimate: $100-$200.

A broad mix of early games and puzzles – both German and American made – will keep bidders amused as they work their way through the many themes that were popular at the turn of the 20th century, such as transportation, military, sports and animals. An unusual entry that reflects how safety standards in toys have changed is the 1924 Zulu Blowing Game consisting of blow darts, targets and an instructions sheet extolling the game’s health benefits. “Develop the Children’s Lungs,” the paperwork encourages. Estimate: $300-$400.

Some very nice dollhouses, room boxes and shops will be auctioned, including two Gottschalk productions: an apothecary and grocery store; two German stables with figures, a confectionary shop and a kitchen plentifully outfitted with metal utensils, vessels, plates and other miniatures. Worth of special note is a Parisian perfumery stocked with various fragrances in glass bottles, as well as powders, soaps and pomades, all arranged on mirror-topped counters and on vanity shelves. The deluxe tableau is accompanied by a well-dressed bisque-head doll and is expected to make $2,000-$3,000.

Paper-litho on wood toys include seven boats by Reed and Bliss; two European toy theaters and four castle fortresses. A collection of Brownie toys comes from a consignor whose uncle originally amassed the items over a long period of time. A sales receipt found with the collection revealed that a set of antique McLoughlin Brownie Nine Pins had been purchased in 1954 for $17. At Barrett’s sale, the set is more likely to sell for $2,000-$3,000.

An exceptional 19th-century Lambert bisque-head “Bal Masque” dancer automaton is dressed in a lace-covered dress and stockings, and sits atop a fabric box that encases a 2-tune music box. When activated, the dancer kicks her crossed leg forward, lifts her black mask with one hand and shakes a tambourine with her other hand. In excellent, all-original condition, the automaton carries a $4,000-$6,000 estimate.

Another example of fine French artistry, a 24-inch-long articulated pull toy consisting of a team of four dappled composition horses and a bisque-head lady rider served as the inspiration for a painting by Jacques Millet. The actual 1976 painting of the antique toy is included in the lot, which is estimated at $4,000-$6,000.

The Americana and folk art section offers a charming Victorian child’s sleigh, salesmen’s samples and several rocking horses, including one that was crafted around a beautiful circa-1900 German carrousel horse. The elegant nursery steed is pictured in Patricia Mullins’s book The Rocking Horse, a copy of which is included in the lot estimated at $4,000-$6,000.

The folk-art lineup continues with a featured collection of more than 60 smoking stands to be apportioned into 34 lots. The varied figural shapes replicate butlers, maids, bellhops, black cats, an Indian chief, and comic characters such as Popeye, Mickey Mouse and Jiggs & Maggie.

Another handmade item that’s expected to set off alarm bells is a Seagrave Co. salesmen’s sample fire ladder wagon. “The quality of construction and accuracy of detail in this piece is a sight to behold,” said Barrett. “It is outfitted with an array of ladders, fire axes, extinguishers, lanterns, fire buckets and more. It’s one of the most amazing salemen’s samples we have seen.” Measuring 50 inches long, the piece had resided in a Bucks County, Pa., house, its whereabouts well known to Barrett for 15 years prior to its consignment. It is estimated at $7,000-$10,000. Also vying for the spotlight is a highly detailed, spirit-fired 21-inch-long, 32 lb. fire pumper model that appears to have all the necessary mechanical components required to be fully functional. A masterful creation, it is expected to fetch $6,000-$7,000.

Serious collectors of antique advertising would know the self-framed Marathon Tires sign depicting two couples in a red open tourer, navigating a narrow, craggy ledge. Printed by the famed tin sign maker Kaufmann & Strauss, it measures 22¾ inches by 19¾ inches. Estimate: $8,000-$10,000.

Barrett remarked that there has been “a lot of excitement and interest” over a promotional model of a Junkers F.13 promotional airplane model. “The real-life 1919 plane that inspired the model was the first all-metal transport plane. When I took the piece, I didn’t realize it was a promotional piece made for Junkers. Some German collectors who came to gallery were able to identify what it was.”

Several lots of highly desirable American painted-tin toys are consigned to the May 21 auction. Two of the best were attic finds. Discovered in California, a Fallows 1886 (patented) Buffalo Hunter on wheeled base is estimated at $2,000-$3,000. As the toy is pulled along, a design feature enables the pair of buffalo to rock back and forth, as though running. The top toy in the group is a George Brown horse-drawn omnibus stenciled “Broadway & Central Park.” In a white with maroon color scheme and fresh from a Long Island home, the toy will make its auction debut with an $8,000-$12,000 estimate.

The last of the toys from the celebrated Ward Kimball collection will be auctioned. A Hull & Stafford “America” clockwork tin and wood locomotive is estimated at $3,000-$4,000; while a George Brown “Niagara” clockwork locomotive, also of tin and wood, could earn $800-$1,000.

Certain to finish near the top of prices realized, a Marklin Central-Bahnhof train station #2651 is hand painted and has a fully outfitted, candlelit interior that includes a table, chairs and benches. Its details are superb: etched and stained-glass windows, doorway arches, canopy and ticket-queue rail. “An advanced collector who looked at this station said it is the best example he has ever seen,” Barrett commented. Its estimate is $10,000-$15,000. An American-profile Carette gauge 1 #2350 steam loco and tender may roll across the auction block in the $12,000-$15,000 range.

For information on any lot in the sale, call 215-297-5109 or e-mail toys@noelbarrett.com.

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

# # #

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Halloween clockwork vegetable man, painted papier-mache, 16 inches tall, est. $10,000-$15,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Examples of antique valentines to be auctioned, including (center) one that dates to the Civil War period. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Parisian perfumery room box stocked with various fragrances, powders, soaps and pomades; tended by a well-dressed bisque-head doll, est. $2,000-$3,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

McLoughlin’s Go Bang and The Game of Yankee Doodle, from a large selection of antique games. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Lambert ‘Bal Masque’ dancer automaton with tambourine, 17½ inches tall, est. $4,000-$6,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Fire pumper model, spirit fired and believed fully functional, 21 inches long, weighs 32 lbs., est. $6,000-$7,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Several examples from a large and diverse collection of figural ashtray stands known as “smoking butlers.” Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Marklin Central-Bahnhof train station #2651, hand painted with candlelit interior and furnishings, est. $10,000-$15,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

CIJ Alfa Romeo race car, enameled tin with knobby “Michelin” rubber tires, 21 inches long, est. $2,500-$3,000. Noel Barrett Auctions image.

Furniture Specific: Garbage in – garbage out

The use of linseed oil, both raw and boiled, as a wood finish has declined because it dries slowly and darkens over time. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers Archive and BK Super Auction Event.

I am lucky enough to be able to spend a fair amount of time on my computer learning about things that interest me. Google is a wonderful device. If I need to find some information on a piece of art I saw at an auction there are lots of sites online that will tell me something about the artist, the period or the genre – or maybe all of the above including information about the specific work. The same holds true for an unusual piece of orange FitzHugh porcelain that sold recently for a lot of money. I can learn about Chinese export porcelain from a number of sources. But then I go looking for information on a subject that I know a little bit about – furniture – and sometimes I am appalled at the amount of incomplete, misleading, inaccurate or just plain dead wrong information I come across. It makes me want to re-evaluate my research on subjects about which I am less well informed. Do these other subjects contain as much garbage online as the subject of antique furniture does?

Following are several examples of inaccurate or simply uninformed statements, suggestions, advice and products for the care and “feeding” of your antique wooden furniture. All of the sites I found will remain anonymous and they are not quoted directly but if you do your own searches I am sure you will have little difficulty locating them.

One product in particular caught my eye. It seems to feature many of the attributes of snake oil sold from the back of a wagon in the late 19th century in that it is a cure-all for whatever ails your furniture. One of the opening statements on the site notes that the finish on used furniture is in such poor condition that it requires refinishing but refinishing is expensive and the old finish is much more valuable than a new one. If you spend the money to refinish a piece you will actually reduce the value. Please note that this is stated as a fact without qualification. Apparently there is no difference between a true American antique and a 1930s Colonial Revival reproduction. I agree that in many cases the refinishing of a piece of furniture can lower its value but that is not always the case. It depends on what you start with. In some cases refinishing actually enhances the value.

So much for the credibility of the hype. What about the product? One of the examples shown is how to repair a flaking varnish finish. By simply applying the product, waiting a few minutes and wiping it clean the original finish is claimed to be reattached and strengthened. That process is sometimes called “amalgamation” and is a common technique used by restoration artists. But it is almost always used in connection with a shellac or lacquer finish. Why? Because shellac and lacquer are “evaporative” finishes in which the original solvent, denatured alcohol or lacquer thinner, evaporates and the solids of the mixture combine into a film. This film can always be redissolved by the addition of the original solvent and the film will reform when the solvent evaporates again. However, varnish is a different animal. Varnish is a “reactive” finish. When the vehicle, the mineral spirits, evaporates the solids react with oxygen and form a solid film that cannot be redissolved by the original solvent. This is basic finish chemistry that apparently is unknown to the maker of the product. The product may have sealed over the flaking varnish but it did not reattach it to the wood. By the way, the product will also get rid of “alligatoring” and “crazing” in old varnish finishes, according to the claims.

To further reinforce the fact that the product is probably simply thinned out varnish is another use for it touted on the site. It states that if the finish is completely worn off two applications of the product will seal and smooth the surface. Sounds like a recoating product to me. Like most things that sound too good to be true, this probably is.

But by far the greatest area of opportunity for a variety of opinions and “facts” can be found on the subject of regular furniture care.

There are still products out there that claim they “feed” the wood. I previously covered this little myth fairly well in this space but the feeding frenzy continues. One product claims to be unique because it has blended beeswax, lemon oil and specially designed mineral oil to provide a combination polish and wood conditioner that is fed into the wood during application, providing a true wood feeder. That particular combination of ingredients has been in service for many years and I still have my doubts about whether it truly penetrates an intact film surface such as lacquer and shellac to provide anything at all to the wood, not that it actually needs anything.

Then there is the cleaner/polish/wax black hole that seems to spiral out of control on a daily basis. One site talks about a great general purpose cleaner/conditioner that you can make yourself. Essentially it is one part turpentine to three parts boiled linseed oil. Directions include rubbing the mixture briskly until the surface is dry and the oil soaks into the wood. The problem here is that the mixture will not “soak” into the wood. It can’t get through an intact finish. The turpentine evaporates and the linseed oil dries to produce a skin. Linseed oil is a “drying” oil that will form a hard skin over an original finish without actually bonding to the surface. That skin will then turn dark with age and at some point will have to be chemically or physically removed to restore the piece. Further instructions on the page suggest that new furniture should receive this treatment once a month for three or four months and then twice a year after that. To see what the American Institute for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works has to say about boiled linseed oil and furniture care in general check out this site:

http://www.conservation-us.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.ViewPage&PageID=629

One famous maker of furniture care products shows some of the products and has a short description beside each one. One tells us that lemon oil and other natural oils in the product give furniture a high luster shine and it replaces the natural oils in the wood, keeping the furniture moisturized while leaving no oily residue. How does it work without leaving a residue since it obviously hasn’t been absorbed by the wood? The next product contains beeswax to protect from scratches and stains and lemon oil to replenish the natural oils in the wood. Sound familiar both in recipe and in function?

One maker of an emulsified polish states that it is best used on glossy finishes. It is made from all natural ingredients and contains lanolin to moisturize a lackluster finish. Do you know what lanolin is? It is also known as “wool fat” or “wool grease.” It is a greasy yellow substance from wool bearing animals such as sheep. It is a mixture of cholesterol, esters and fatty acids found in the hair follicles of the animals. Commercially it is used as waterproofing and as a lubricant and I personally do not choose to put sheep fat on my furniture. Would bacon fat or butter work just as well?

A couple of final words of wisdom from the “net.” One site says never to use a damp cloth to clean your furniture because it will harm the wax finish. I thought wax was commonly used as a dressing, not as a finish. Then another site says that wax should never be used because regular use produces a wax build up that attracts dirt and smoke and some waxes may contain abrasives that will scratch the furniture. What to do instead? The site recommends polishes that contain detergents, emulsifiers and oils because the detergents clean the finish, the emulsifiers give it the body to work and the oils are left behind as a barrier to dirt and moisture. Is oil a barrier to dirt or is it an attracter of dirt? Use your own experience for the answer.

In the long run you can’t believe everything you read online. Most of the examples I have cited are from people or companies that want you to buy something and a few are from people who probably are sincere in their advice but are just uninformed. Your best bet is to accumulate the tidbits of information offered online and get someone who is knowledgeable in the business of the care and restoration of antique furniture to help you sort it out. Especially someone who is not trying to sell you something.

Send comments, questions and pictures to Fred Taylor at P.O. Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423 or info@furnituredetetcive.com. Visit Fred’s website at www.furnituredetective.com. His book How To Be a Furniture Detective is available for $18.95 plus $3 shipping. Send check or money order for $21.95 to Fred Taylor, P.O. Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423. Fred and Gail Taylor’s DVD, Identification of Older & Antique Furniture ($17 + $3 S&H) is also available at the same address. For more information call (800) 387-6377, fax 352-563-2916, or info@furnituredetective.com. All items are also available directly from his website.

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Japanese police end nuclear art stunt

TOKYO (AFP) – An anonymous painter in Japan at the weekend added an image of the stricken Fukushima atomic plant to a public mural about the horrors of a nuclear explosion by the late abstract master Taro Okamoto.

The clandestine add-on image – painted in a style mimicking that of Okamoto’s “Myth of Tomorrow” on display at a busy Tokyo train station – created a stir on Twitter before police took it down Sunday evening.

The small wooden panel – which shows black smoke billowing from reactor buildings resembling those at Fukushima – was attached to the wall without causing damage to the original 30-meter-long (100-foot-long) wall painting.

Okamoto, who was born 100 years ago and died in 1996, is one of Japan’s best-known modern artists. Strongly influenced by Pablo Picasso, he is known for his abstract paintings and sculptures, including his “Tower of the Sun” erected for the Osaka Expo in 1970.

“Myth of Tomorrow,” created in Mexico in 1968-69, went missing for years but was rediscovered in 2003, returned to Japan and finally installed at a pedestrian overpass at the capital’s busy Shibuya railway station in 2008.

The non-profit organisation that is the guardian of the painting was quoted as saying by local media: “It is an outrageous prank and we are troubled.”

An official with the group said “it is problematic to create a link when many people are suffering” between the horror of an atomic bomb explosion and the crisis at the tsunami-hit nuclear plant, the Tokyo Shimbun reported.

Japan’s massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11 destroyed the cooling systems of the Fukushima plant, causing explosions and fires. The plant has since leaked radioactive substances into the air, ground and sea.

# # #

Street artists in Benghazi take aim at Gaddafi

Still frame depicting a caricature of Muammar Gaddafi from a YouTube video about the slain graffiti artist Qais Ahmed Al-Hilali. Courtesy Repubblica Radio TV, TM News and YouTube.

BENGHAZI, Libya (AFP) – Muammar Gaddafi pumping petrol into a winged camel, Gaddafi with the tail of a snake and a forked tongue, Gaddafi as Dracula.

The flamboyant Libyan strongman is fueling a flourishing cartoon caricature scene in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi. Those are just a few of the themes produced by a group of young artists who reached not for their guns but for their colored pens and spray cans when Libya’s revolution kicked off in mid-February. One of them paid for it with his life, gunned down by secret police.

The group now goes by the name of their dead colleague, Qais al-Halali, and continues its work from a ramshackle office in a makeshift media centre next to the rebel headquarters on the city’s seafront.

“We draw caricatures here and then distribute them around the city. We give them to people to show at demonstrations or hang on walls,” said Akram al-Bruki, 32, who uses the moniker Kimo to sign his work.

Bruki took out two commemorative posters of Halali, one showing a picture of his fresh-faced late colleague, the other showing the bruised and bloodied head of a dead man.

“He got a message to stop,” delivered by Kadhafi’s forces before they were chased out of the eastern city. “But he didn’t stop. When we started doing this we swore that no-one would stop us.”

The secret police finally caught up with Halali in late March, shooting him dead as he drove up to a checkpoint, said Bruki.

Bruki and his three colleagues vowed afterwards to step up their production to play their part in trying to bring about the downfall of the man who had ruled their country since before they were born.

“We didn’t go to the front. We fight with pictures and words,” said Ahmed Ahreb, 33, who writes captions and speech bubbles for the cartoons his friends make.

The walls of their office and of the whole media centre were jammed with their pictures and nearby buildings are daubed with graffiti and grotesque depictions of Gaddafi.

On the wall behind Bruki was a picture of Hosni Mubarak, the ex-president of Egypt who was ousted in a popular uprising in February, presenting a tray of drinks to Gaddafi.

“Take some Red Bull to help you fly,” says the speech bubble above the Egyptian.

“I’m not the kind who flies. I’m going to stay,” replies the Libyan.

Bruki said that the eccentric Gaddafi, with his jowly face, bushy hair, colourful clothes and penchant for glamorous female bodyguards, was an easy target for satire.

He pointed to his own favourite caricature on a wall in the media center corridor.

“Gaddafi Cats” was the slogan above a drawing of the strongman snuggled up between two buxom women bodyguards in green army uniforms and red berets.

Bruki produced a folder with several drawings he had just finished, which he said were being sent to Egypt to figure in an exhibition there before going on to another show in Qatar.

He also proudly took out his mobile phone to display a photo of himself spray-painting a cartoon of the leader he hates on the wall of an army barracks in central Benghazi.

“It was really dangerous to do this at the time because the secret police were in the streets,” he said.

He said he was convinced his group’s work not only boosted morale in rebel-held areas but that it also unnerved Gaddafi, whose forces control the western half of the country.

“Gaddafi definitely sees them and they make him nervous. Many journalists have come here and filmed us or wrote articles about us, and he will see that on the television,” he said.

# # #

Click here to view a YouTube video of a Repubblica Radio TV/TM News Italian-language news story about Qais al-Halali, a graffiti artist who was executed by Libya’s secret police for his unflattering portrayals of Muammar Gaddafi:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=doP81BDuDXg

Venice turns to floating barriers to ward off flood threats

A picturesque canal scene in Venice. Image courtesy of DanieleDF1995. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

VENICE (AFP) – Flood-prone Venice – home of the art world’s revered La Biennale di Venezia – has launched an ambitious plan to build mobile barriers at the mouth of its lagoon and protect the city from rising sea levels.

About 3,000 people are involved in the “Moses” project, which costs 5.4 billion euros ($7.9 billion), and is scheduled for completion in 2014.

“Once finished, the system will protect Venice from high water levels of up to three metres,” said architect Flavia Faccioli from the Venezia Nuova consortium, grouping some 50 companies involved in the project.

“We’re on schedule so far. We have already carried out three billion euros worth of works and will be carrying out the first test next July,” Faccioli told AFP.

The 78 giant box-shaped barriers will be divided into four sections at the head of the three inlets that link the lagoon with the Adriatic Sea. They will be inserted into immense tanks on the sea floor. Should high waters threaten the city, pressured air will be pumped into the barriers, raising them up on hinges to block the tidal flow. Once the danger has passed, the air will be expelled and the barriers would fill with water and sink back to the sea floor.

“We are building 11 crates at the same time,” Enrico Pellegrini, the head engineer at one of the building sites, told reporters as they inspected the ongoing works at the Malamocco inlet.

Special cement and non-oxidizing steel have been used for the 60-meter-wide girders which, at 27 metres high, are as tall as a seven-storey building.

“The biggest girders weigh 22,000 tons and will be transported, like the others, by wagons specially designed for the purpose by Norwegian company. Each can take up to 350 tons, the equivalent of a Boeing 747,” he said.

It will then take up to three days for a “syncrolift” system – usually used to help ships dock — to transfer the tanks to the sea bed.

“It’s a remarkable project, one of the most important in Italy and the world,” Venice’s mayor Giovanni Orsoni said.

Venice, which sank by 23 centimetres (nine inches) in the last century, is hoping that the “Moses” project will help it preserve its buildings and rid its majestic squares of floodwaters once and for all.

# # #

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Change of dates for Dallas Int’l. Art, Antique Jewelry Show

Irving Convention and Visitors Bureau in the Greater Dallas suburb of Irving, where the Dallas International Art, Antique Jewelry Show will be held. Image courtesy of RMJM Hillier Architecture. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license.

DALLAS – In response to numerous requests from dealers, the Palm Beach Show Group is changing the dates for its Dallas International Art, Antique Jewelry Show to Nov. 2-6, 2011. The original show dates, Oct. 27-31, 2011, presented a conflict with the San Francisco Fall Antiques Show and would have forced many dealers to make a choice of one or the other. Accordingly, the Dallas show was moved back by one week.

“After careful consideration, and since a vast majority of exhibitors currently committed to the Dallas Show liked the change, we have made the decision to move the dates…” said Scott Diament, president and CEO of the Palm Beach Group.

The Dallas International Art, Antique Jewelry Show will be held at the new, state-of-the-art Irving Convention Center at Las Colinas and will feature more than 100 top-tier international exhibitors. More than 100 categories will be on view, including fine art, antique and estate jewelry, furniture, porcelain, Asian antiquities, American and European silver, glass, textiles, sculpture, contemporary art and more.

The show will take place Nov. 2-6, 2011. Show hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, Friday, Nov. 4 and Saturday, Nov. 5; and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 6. Tickets are $15 daily and $25 for a 4-day pass. For more information about the show, visit www.dallasfallshow.com or call 561-822-5440.

# # #

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Kovels – Antiques & Collecting: Week of May 2, 2011

The frog from the book ‘Wind in the Willows’ probably inspired the look of this carved wooden carousel animal. It may be the only figure on an old carousel dressed in human clothes. It sold in February 2011 at a James D. Julia auction (JamesDJulia.com) in Fairfield, Maine, for $11,900.

Carousel figures, made mostly in the early 1900s, sell for high prices today. Carousels probably were first made in the 1700s to train spear-throwers, not as enjoyable rides for children. A horseback rider would ride toward a hanging ring and try to put the spear through it. By the late 1700s in Europe, there were small, light, moveable carousels that traveled from city to city. The modern carousel was introduced in the United States in the 1860s. Gustav Dentzel started a company that made carousel figures and parts. Some of the company’s carvers were trained in art; some were European immigrants who had carved tombstones and woodwork in their home countries. At least 13 U.S. companies were making carved carousel figures by 1915. American carousels were more imaginative, more elaborate and more beautiful than those made in Europe. Another famous carousel maker was Herschell Spillman Co., founded in North Tonawanda, N.Y., in 1900. The company made horses and at least 18 other animals for carousels in the “old” style. Each animal was carved with special features, flowers, saddles and masks, and was painted in bright colors. A rare frog figure made about 1910-’15 by Spillman sold recently at a James Julia auction in Fairfield, Maine, for more than $10,000. The frog was wearing shorts, vest, a white collar and bowtie, and sported a perfect coat of paint. Today, carousel figures that are not part of a working carousel are collected as folk art. Other animals were made in smaller numbers than horses and sell for higher prices. There are 100 vintage working carousels in the United States today. If there is one near where you live, take a ride, admire the hand-carved horses and bring back memories of your childhood.

Q: Was there such a thing as a dunce chair? I have read about them in books and seen some in TV movies, but was there really a chair in the corner for a dunce in school?

A: Educational ideas have changed throughout the centuries. In the 19th century and perhaps earlier, a child who misbehaved or did not study or do homework often was shamed in front of classmates. A seat in the corner and a pointed dunce cap were really used. The dunce chair could be a high stool or chair. It was made so that the child could not put his or her feet down on the floor. Perhaps that was to make the chair seem more confining. We have seen old wooden chairs with long legs as well as high stools sold as “dunce chairs.” The name and the idea seem to make buyers more interested.

Q: I inherited a metal sculpture that has been in my family since the 1930s. Counting the wooden base, it’s 26 1/4 inches high. The sculpture is of a man carrying fishing gear. It’s titled “God Fishing” and is signed “Mestais.” What can you tell me about it?

A: Mestais is a listed sculptor who worked in France around the turn of the 20th century. Not much else is known about him. Your sculpture is made of spelter, an inexpensive zinc alloy. And you’re reading the title wrong. It’s called “Cod Fishing,” not “God Fishing.” An identical sculpture sold at auction in England last year for $32. That seems less than you should expect if you sold it here.

Q: My husband has eight Bond Bread labels picturing Hopalong Cassidy that his mother saved for him. They are more than 58 years old. Each one is numbered. Can you give us any information about them?

A: Hopalong Cassidy first appeared in stories written by Clarence E. Mulford in 1904. Since then, he has been featured in novels, radio shows, movies, television and comic strips. More than 60 movies featuring actor William Boyd as Cassidy were made from 1935 to 1948. Boyd bought the rights to the Hopalong Cassidy name from Mulford in the 1940s, and later bought the rights to the movies. In 1949, the old movies, edited for television, became the first network Westerns. The Hopalong Cassidy TV show ran from June 1949 to December 1951. His radio show was broadcast from 1950 to 1952. Bond Bread was one of Hoppy’s sponsors. A series of bread labels that could be collected and pasted into an album was offered as a premium in the early 1950s. Three series of 16 labels each were made, as well as a “Hang-Up Album” for each series. Single labels sell for about $10-$12.

Q: A friend gave me an old sterlingsilver filigree pin. The interesting thing about it is that on the back, it reads “Made in Palestine.” Is that a clue to its age?

A: Since your pin is marked in English, it’s likely that it dates from the years when much of the geographic region historically referred to as Palestine was under British Mandate. That means your pin was made between 1923 and 1948 – most likely in the 1930s or ’40s. Some artists who live in today’s Palestinian territories mark their pieces the same way, but filigree work in silver was more popular 60 or 70 years ago than it is now.

Q: My old Homer Laughlin platter is marked “H32N” on the bottom. How much is it worth?

A: The Homer Laughlin China Co., still in business in Newell, W.Va., dates to 1873 but was incorporated in 1896. The “H32N” mark is a date and plant code. Your platter was made in August (designated by the “H”) 1932 at Homer Laughlin’s Plant “N.” Most early 1930s Homer Laughlin dishes sell individually for prices ranging from $1 to $50, depending on rarity and condition. The company’s most popular dinnerware, the solid-color Fiesta, sells for more.

Tip: Lusterware requires special handling because it can wear away if it is improperly washed. The ware should be washed in warm water with a mild soap or detergent. Do not rub too hard, or you will remove the luster glaze.

Need prices for collectibles? Find them at Kovels.com, our website for collectors. More than 84,000 prices and 5,000 color pictures have just been added. Now you can find more than 900,000 prices that can help you determine the value of your collectibles. Access to the prices is free at Kovels.com/priceguide.

Terry Kovel answers as many questions as possible through the column. By sending a letter with a question, you give full permission for use in the column or any other Kovel forum. Names, addresses or e-mail addresses will not be published. We cannot guarantee the return of any photograph, but if a stamped envelope is included, we will try. The volume of mail makes personal answers or appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, Auction Central News, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.

CURRENT PRICES

Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.

Prom dress, off-the-shoulder short sleeves, sweetheart neckline, black-velvet bodice, two tiers of ruffles, short skirt, black, white and gold gingham check, 1980s, $40.
Suzy Smart doll, plaid skirt, nylon socks, rubber shoes, hair band, with desk, Deluxe Reading Co., Newark, N.J., 1960s, 25 inches, $200.
Staffordshire plate, dark-blue transfer, Commodore MacDonnough’s victory, grotto shell border, impressed mark, circa 1815, 9 inches, $235.
Eagle, pine, spread wing, root perch, “Live and Let Live” banner, carved, W.C. Bohley, mid 1900s, 17 x 48 inches, $320.
Squirrel cage, tin, house shape, sliding door, large wheel, red paint, 1890s, 13 x 26 inches, $560.
Custard glass dolphin candlesticks, opalescent, petal sockets, circa 1850s, 9 1/2 inches, pair, $585.
Tiger maple daybed, scrolled arms, turned legs, beehive finials and arm supports, 1800s, 23 x 68 x 24 inches, $690.
Pieced and appliqued quilt, hand-stitched, 16 squares in “Whigs Defeat” pattern, paisley design in multiple borders, circa 1880s, 98 x 97 inches, $805.
George III silver salver, oval, engraved band of fruit, acorns, flowers and wheat, scroll feet, marked, 1799, 12 x 9 inches, $805.
Bennington pottery poodle, holding fruit basket, flint enamel, coleslaw fur, circa 1850, 8 1/2 inches, $3,290.

The best book to own if you want to buy, sell or collect. Kovels’ Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide, 2011, 43rd edition, is your most accurate source for current prices. This large-size paperback has more than 2,600 color photographs and 42,000 up-to-date prices for more than 775 categories of antiques and collectibles. You’ll also find hundreds of factory histories and marks, and a report on the record prices of the year, plus helpful sidebars and tips about buying, selling, collecting and preserving your treasures. Available online at Kovelsonlinestore.com, by phone at 800-303-1996, at your bookstore or send $27.95 plus $4.95 postage to Price Book, Box 22900, Beachwood, OH 44122.

Edgar Allan Poe’s dorm room due for renovation

Edgar Allan Poe’s room is one of the most visited sites at the University of Virginia. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – An honor society that bears the name of one of Edgar Allan Poe’s major works is planning to renovate the room where the renowned poet and mystery writer lived during his short stint as a student at the University of Virginia.

The Raven Society won a $15,500 grant from an endowment established by the University of Virginia Alumni Association to refurbish Poe’s room at 13 West Range. Work is to begin this summer as part of a broader renovation of a handful of nearby student rooms at the Charlottesville school.

Clark Herndon, who just ended his term as the society president, said the project includes refinishing the room’s wood floor, painting, upgrading the lighting, installing a small mantel around the fireplace and replacing a decades-old sound system that plays a recording for visitors about Poe’s 10-month stay at the university in 1826.

After the renovation is complete, Raven Society members will work with U.Va.’s preservation experts to determine the historical accuracy of the room’s furnishings, which include a bed, a small writing desk, a washbasin and a bust of Pallas – a reference to where Poe’s talking bird perches in The Raven.

“The leatherbound foot locker, for example, may be replaced with a wooden chest,” said James Zehmer, U.Va.’s historic preservation project manager. “And there’s a chair or two that might not be quite accurate.”

The Raven Society was founded in 1904 by 12 original members. After the election of new members each semester, the society conducts a ceremony in Poe’s room that includes the reading of a stanza of The Raven, Herndon said. It’s the only time people are allowed in 13 West Range – visitors typically must view the room through a glass door.

The honor society acquired the duty of maintaining 13 West Range in 1907, and the room has undergone changes over the years to make it resemble student rooms when Poe lived there. The room was renovated again in the 1950s to remove a mantel and closets that were added after 1826.

Poe enrolled at U.Va. in February 1826, not long after Thomas Jefferson founded the school, and professors quickly recognized his academic excellence. At the time, there were 177 students, and their rooms all lined the university’s Lawn and Range, U.Va. officials said.

The 17-year-old student became active in university life, including becoming a member of the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society, and entertaining friends in his room with dramatic readings of short stories that bore the hallmarks of his later writings. But his time in Charlottesville didn’t last, as he was plagued with financial difficulties caused in part by his foster father’s refusal to cover all his expenses, and in part by heavy gambling. He withdrew permanently from the school that December.

He published his first works, Tamerlane and Other Poems, in 1827.

Poe is credited with writing the first modern detective story, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, which appeared in 1841 in Graham’s Magazine, where Poe worked as an editor. It became the template for other writers’ mystery stories, including the Sherlock Holmes works.

Other Poe works include The Tell-Tale Heart, The Fall of the House of Usher and The Pit and the Pendulum, which have frightened generations of readers and reflected his struggles with depression, difficulties with drinking and the loss of key figures in his life. Those struggles worsened, and he died at the age of 40.

Today, the Poe room joins the Rotunda as one of the University of Virginia’s most-visited sites.

AP-WF-04-28-11 1925GMT

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

National Portrait Gallery opens series of Civil War exhibits

Elmer E. Ellsworth, the first Union officer killed in the Civil War, was an associate and friend of Abraham Lincoln. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington is opening the first of seven exhibits to mark the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

On Friday, the museum opened “The Death of Ellsworth.” It features a historic painting of Col. Elmer E. Ellsworth, who was the first Union officer to be killed in the Civil War. Ellsworth commanded a volunteer regiment that invaded northern Virginia in 1861.

Ellsworth was killed by a local innkeeper in Alexandria, Va. The death made national headlines, and Ellsworth was made a martyr to inspire the North during the war.

Objects on view include the painting, Death of Ellsworth, by Alonzo Chappel, as well as memorial lithographs produced in Ellsworth’s honor.

The museum will mark each year of the war with rotating exhibits.

AP-WF-04-29-11 1203GMT

Old-time occupations provide livelihoods in 21st century

Nostalgia for antique clocks keeps skilled repairmen busy. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers Archive and Rich Penn Auctions.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) – In a high-tech world, some of the old ways persist.

Jobs like clock repairman and farrier still require a personal touch, as well as steady hands and eyes. Mostly, they require a love of the work.

The “tick-tock” is constant in Mike McCord’s backyard clock shop, punctuated by the occasional “cuckoo!” Clocks of all types line the walls of the Clock Boutique in Hope Mills, in various stages of repair and disrepair.

Repairing clocks has been McCord’s vocation for more than a dozen years, not long after he retired from a 26-year career in the Army.

“It’s just a constant flow of clocks that come in here all the time,” McCord said. That includes everything from towering grandfather clocks to the fireplace mantel variety.

In 1997, McCord bought a clock repair business in Westwood Shopping Center. He later moved the business to Hope Mills. McCord said he picked up mechanical skills from his father. He learned a lot of what he knows about clock repair from the late David Horne of Stedman.

McCord, 65, works closely with Glenn and Erika Stockwell, owners of The Mill antiques and collectibles in Hope Mills. When a customer brings in an old clock in need of repair, they call McCord.

In an age when most people can tell the time by glancing at their cell phone or their car dashboard, McCord said old clocks are still special to people.

“Most of them are sentimental – it was momma’s clock, or what have you,” McCord said. “It’s amazing how many clocks come out of attics, barns and cellars.”

___

When Pam Kelly lost her job as a computer programmer after almost 20 years, she turned to her first love. That was spinning, knitting and basically anything to do with turning raw wool into clothing and decorative items.

Today, Kelly creates her works out of a small storefront on Anderson Street in downtown Fayetteville. She opened Sunflower Fibers there last August. Kelly, 59, said she discovered knitting when she was 12. She remembers taking her allowance to the five-and-dime in her hometown of Aurora, Ill., and buying a starter kit.

Kelly spun and knit as a hobby while she pursued a career in computers. Her job brought her to Fayetteville a couple of years ago, but she was let go last year, she said. “I didn’t know what to do,” Kelly said. “Somebody said, why not do what you love?”

Kelly sells her creations as well as fabric and other items in her store. She also teaches classes in spinning and knitting and attends shows and workshops. Kelly’s husband, Jim, also weaves fabric and makes some of the looms and other tools Kelly uses in her work.

It’s a far cry from the corporate career Kelly once pursued, but she said she wouldn’t change a thing.

“It’s a passion,” Kelly said, “and I’m living it.”

___

Woodworking is a family tradition for Antonio Gonzalez. Both his father and grandfather plied the trade in Gonzalez’ native Dominican Republic. Now, Gonzalez creates custom cabinets, doors, tables and other furniture from his workshop in downtown Fayetteville. “I love my work,” Gonzalez said. “I try to do it the best I can.”

Gonzalez came to the United States in 1990, first moving to New York. He found a job making picture frames, but it wasn’t his true calling. In 1998, Gonzalez came to Fayetteville and found work driving a forklift. It wasn’t long before he got back in the woodworking game.

Gonzalez walked into Zimmerman Millwork and Cabinets looking for a job. Bill Zimmerman, who has run the shop for more than 25 years, said he wasn’t looking for help at the time.

“He kept coming back. He couldn’t speak very good English,” Zimmerman remembers. “He said, ‘I want to work here.’ He finally wore me down.”

Today, Zimmerman calls Gonzalez his protege and praises his woodworking skills.

Gonzalez, too, is proud of his work, much of which can be seen at various businesses and homes in downtown Fayetteville. Some customers bring in pictures of what they want and ask Gonzalez to recreate it.

“I don’t advertise,” he said. “People just know me.”

___

“HOOFWORK” reads the license plate on farrier Jackie Blackman’s truck. That neatly sums up Blackman’s job. He spends his days shoeing horses and trimming their overgrown hooves.

Blackman, 55, has worked as a farrier for 23 years. For 17 years, he shoed the horses for the Fayetteville Police Department until it eliminated its mounted patrol. Now, Blackman travels throughout eight counties caring for horses’ hooves.

“Some of them are boarding barns, some are training barns,” Blackman said. “Some are people who just have horses they ride.”

Blackman carries the tools of his trade in his white Ford truck: an anvil, drill press, band saw, gas-powered kiln and more.

On a recent afternoon, he was at North Star Veterinary Hospital in Parkton, trimming the hooves of a quarter paint pony named Haley.

North Star employee Jessica Fair held the horse’s reins while Blackman filed down the hooves. “Just like trimming your fingernails,” he said.

Haley was calm throughout the procedure, but Blackman said some steeds get antsy. One time, a police horse stepped down so hard on Blackman’s foot that it broke two of his toes. Injuries, Blackman said, “happen to every farrier. It doesn’t happen too often.”

AP-WF-04-30-11 0914GMT

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Sign up for daily highlights by email