Tag: antiques

2011: The Year In Antiques & Collectibles

Antiques & Collectibles
Last year was an excellent year for collectors.

A plethora of television shows debuted on the subject, along the new seasons of the established favorites. I haven’t seem them all, but here are few mini-reviews of what I haven’t yet covered in full reviews here at Inherited Values:

It’s Worth What? managed to make it into the prime-time line-up at NBC in the summer. Though the horrible forced catch phrases were annoying, I really disliked the game show focus on monetary value. However, it should be stated, from a parenting and cultural point of view, that the money focus clearly illustrates our societal fascination with celebrity and luxury over history; food for significant thought.

History’s Real Deal has a concept I really like. Like Auction Kings, it shows the realities between estimate and actual prices realized at auction. This maybe it will, maybe it won’t, scenario is amplified against a backdrop of Las Vegas style gambling as deals for cold cash are negotiated as an attempt to avoid going to auction. However, Real Deal, even more than Auction Kings, suffers from a lack of cast or characters with enough quirk, drama or intensity to really hold interest.

Storage Wars spin-off, Storage Wars: Texas, seems to be holding up well. Perhaps the organic dynamic of rivalry in bidding, especially on camera, brings out a certain kind of person that makes the show work.

The popularity of collectibles and antiques in TV land is said to have “spawned an American collectible craze,” according to this article in USA Today:

Greg Dove of the National Flea Market Association, noting the reality-based programs have also helped level the playing field between serious collectors and the yard-sale set.

“It’s bringing in new faces, people from all economic strata,” says Dove. “We’re seeing more and more middle-class and upper-class folks coming to flea markets. Some are just curious, others are seeking collectibles and others are trying to stretch their dollar in a bad economy.”

Though no empirical data exist, Dove says the flea market industry, with estimated annual sales of $30 billion, has been energized by the renewed interest in antiques and collectibles.

I daresay this is also true for storage auctions.

The article continues:

Other venues are also benefiting from the uptick in demand for collectibles, however, namely online auction site eBay, which redefined the art of collecting when it went live in 1995.

In the third quarter of 2011, sales volume for its collectibles category reached $557 million, up 18% over the same three months in 2010, says Colin Sebastian, a senior analyst for Robert W. Baird & Co. asset management firm in San Francisco.

Its antiques and arts category posted sales of $263 million, up 17 percent over the third quarter last year; and coins and stamps hit $415 million, up 47% year-over-year (likely due to the skyrocketing price of gold.)

“It’s still a rough economy and I imagine there are still people trying to create some cash by selling things they have around the house,” says Sebastian, noting part of the category’s success stems from efforts by eBay to make its marketplace more appealing to buyers and sellers.

Those of us who have painfully been experiencing the snub of eBay’s nose regarding the lack of concern over the antiques and collectibles categories relish the numbers. Surely this will lead to better treatment, right? Don’t count on it.

Despite eBay’s own “Top Shopped” list for 2011 (a list, with an infographic, the company describes as “editorial in nature” and “focused on pop culture crazes”), eBay continues to move away from antiques and collectibles to it’s apparently preferred place as the Big Box Marketplace, catering to clients with contemporary inventory, big lots of identical new products, even if last year’s styles and lines. That’s not to say you can’t find a good deal there; it’s just that they are not going to focus on the needs of dealer and collectors of vintage and older items which are unique and certainly do have different requirements from the listing of multitudes of identical products.

I feel I must whine.

I just don’t understand eBay’s complete abandonment of what it was built upon: collectors and collectibles. We’re still here, in greater numbers even; why don’t you have our backs, want our bucks?

To illustrate my point, I draw your attention to this quote from eBay, Inc. covering the 2011 “Top Shopped” in more depth:

Retro Glamour: Between “Mad Men” and “Pan Am”, the small screen has never been so blessed with pitch perfect vintage style. And despite its mid-season cancellation, shoppers were still inspired by Pan Am, flocking to eBay to snatch up related items – 41,003 in total. Mad Men (30,378 related items sold) may have more seasons under its belt, but when it comes to memorabilia, the coolest fictional ad agency in the world can’t compete with the romanticism of 1960s air travel.

Clearly those seeking “retro glamour” want the actual iconic stuff from the past. (And, as a side note, Pan Am has not officially been cancelled… Fans like myself can hope!)

While eBay focused on pop culture, TIAS (The Internet Antique Shop) Hot List for 2011 focused on the old stuff. In this recap and interview with Phil Davies, you can see that vintage living and classic items for the home top the list.

All this seems to indicate that collecting is up and that collectors are looking for more places to buy their antiques and vintage collectibles — online and off. That tells us here at Inherited Values that we’ll need to focus more on helping you find the best places; so look for plenty of shopping reviews here in 2012.

Why Old Books, Antique Bookstores, Archives, & Book Collections Smell So Good

According to this post at Reddit, which appears to be a quote from Perfumes: The Guide (page 148, to be precise), there’s a reason the “old book smell” is so lovely:

Lignin, the stuff that prevents all trees from adopting the weeping habits, is a polymer made up of units that are closely related to vanillin. When made into paper and stored for years, it breaks down and smells good. Which is how divine providence has arranged for secondhand bookstores to smell like good quality vanilla absolute, subliminally stoking a hunger for knowledge in all of us.

This should apply to most paper ephemera too, right? (Provided the old paper isn’t stored in wet or humid places where mildew will overpower any other scent.)

What Do You Wear Antiquing & Why?

I found this retro advertising spot made to look like a column called Travel Talk From Kaymax Travel Agency published in the Tri City Herald, July 15, 1981.

In it, Joe Jackson offers motivation for antiquing abroad:

If you’re an antique buff, you’ll have the time of your life browsing in foreign countries. Let’s face it, most of them were in the business of civilization many centuries before Columbus stepped ashore here.

Along with recommending going to a “flea market” — and, yes, he puts that in quotes — there’s also a tip:

Don’t forget that bargaining is the name-of-the-game abroad, and the older the clothes you wear at flea markets, the better the price.

I never really thought about that before. Typically, we wear old clothes when we go picking for the sheer practicality; one never knows what they’ll have to carry, where they’ll have to climb or crawl, etc. We wear old clothes so we don’t ruin good stuff. And heck, we call it “going bumming” for a reason. *wink*

But I suppose that wearing newer or more fancy clothing may communicate that a person is a “newbie” to collecting. And less experience might mean that a person will be less familiar with an item’s rarity, pricing, etc., perhaps less comfort with bargaining too, which may lead a seller to think they’ll have the upper hand in negotiating — and get a higher price.

So there you go; your “going bumming” clothes may make you look like a bum, but that may help you clean-up at a flea market.

The New Year for Pick & Grin The collecting Couple

Pick & Grin, The Collecting Couple, Ready For The New Year

Grin: With the holiday season ending, I look forward to peace and quiet for the next few months.

Pick: Good luck with that thought. We have two antique shows booked and we need to start setting aside the goods we want to sell. One is high-end antiques and the other we do well selling advertising items, collectibles and indoor décor.

Grin: They better not be during football playoffs.

Pick: Goooood LUCK WITH THAT THOUGHT TOO!!  Check it out, I have the calendar marked with every weekend filled with speciality collectibles shows for the next few months.

Grin: Indoor shows I hope?

Pick: Yes!! Smarty Pants, Even if the weather has been superior, they will all be indoors, but I might leave you out in the cold.

Most of these shows are annual events and once you attend one you can get on a mailing list for the next one. The speciality shows bring together collectors/dealers with a certain niche.

They include advertising, soda bottles, breweriana, sports collectibles, depression glass, toys, dolls, firearms shows, a Scale Auto, Hobby & Toy show, a Red Wing show and one called a rec-room show dealing with everything Retro 60s.

The advantage to these shows is their limited scope, where a collector can truly see the wide choices of items in their special category. For me, it’s an education, I want to see what interests collectors, what’s hot at the moment and what price things are currently going for. I talk to these dealers to ask about trends and the current condition of their market.

Grin: How did you get such a list and how many will you force me to attend?

Pick: Our newspaper carries advertising for most of these shows in the classified section and our auction paper has ads also. And of course, I check the the net for shows within driving distance. And once I attend that show, I always check for flyers from other promoters left at the entrance door.

Grin: Makes good sense! Let’s look at your list and the calender to see how many shows we can attend,

Pick: That a Boy, now you have the spirit of the New Year!

 

 

Discovery, Show Us The Dirty Money

Dirty Money on Discovery

The Discovery Channel’s Dirty Money may seem like just another formulaic collecting reality TV show, complete with a cast of family members — but if you believe that, you’re wrong.

Sure, the show features brothers John and Jimmy DiResta, along with John’s son Matthew aka “Rat-Boy”, in pursuit of getting their junk on, dumpster diving & making deals in order to turn trash into treasure selling their fab finds and resurrected relics at Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market. And that may seem familiar — maybe even too familiar. But have you forgotten why you like to watch these shows?

Plus, Dirty Money has some aces up its sleeves…

First of all, the show starts with a bang. There’s a parental advisory which suggests that in order to avoid the not-for-kids language and humor on the show, adults should put their kids out in the car. It’s not that the show is wildly inappropriate or even overly risque, but the boys talk like, well, boys. And I happen to find them to be pretty funny. The show should be funny, for in researching to write this post I discovered that John is comic John DiResta, “the funniest human being that ever lived.” I like humor with my collecting, in case you hadn’t noticed. *wink*

Perhaps most importantly, Dirty Money succeeds where shows with promise, like American Restoration, Cash & Cari, and even Picker Sisters has failed: It realistically brings to life the joy of transforming vintage and found objects into something collectible and coveted.

The DiResta Boys

It’s not a true step-by-step “how to” show, but with an authentic creative builder in Jimmy DiResta, Dirty Money does focus more on the process and pitfalls of restoration, recycling and other projects. And in an affordable way, for both collector and creator. Examples: An antique Gramophone turns out not to be worth the money & effort to restore, but is revitalized as a beautiful decorative, functional, and affordable player any record lover would want. And a vintage kid’s bike, also not worthy of an authentic restoration, is turned into a chain-saw powered, Evel Knievel-esque bike.

Plus, Dirty Money shows the realities of what happens at flea markets, i.e., you don’t always get the money you’d like — but you will meet some great characters!

However, the best characters are the cast. It’s clear that the humor and antiquing skills are hereditary; they’ve got “the sickness,” the love of other people’s junk, from their father, who is known as the “Lord of the Fleas.” It’s not just a name. When John & Jimmy’s dad shows up at their flea market booth with a suitcase full of “chum” (smalls items for the boys to sell), the Lord of the Fleas then takes his now emptied suitcase out into the flea market to fill it back up again. I love it!

I wish Dirty Money had a regular set schedule. Not only does it make it hard to find an episode to watch, but such things lead to rumors that the show’s been cancelled. I hope the show lands a steady, stable spot on Discovery.

PS It should be noted that both brothers have another show on HGTV, Hammered With John & Jimmy DiRestia. Dirty Money is produced by Vidiots.

Vintage Model Train Collection Photographs

Speaking of model trains, here’s a lovely set of five vintage photographs which show off a vintage model railroad collection. Each photograph measures 3 by 4 inches; dated August 1967 on the back.

Images from Lynnstudios.

Traveling Abroad Antiquing? Some Help Requested

A reader of Inherited Values is in the beginning stages of planing an antiquing trip abroad and has asked me about travel insurance. Since I’ve, unfortunately, not yet left the country for this sort of thing, and never even considered what happens if you get ill overseas (I shudder to think of it now!), I thought I’d ask here and see if any of you savvy antiquing travelers have any advice on the subject. Obviously, some of this depends upon what health or medical coverage you have in general, and where you are going, but I think what she really wants to know is, is it a big gamble to go without it?

She specifically asked about travel health insurance, saying she thinks she has covered all the other angles — but please feel free to add tips about traveling and antiquing, such as packing and shipping things back, etc.

Cajun Pawn Stars: Spin-Off Or Rip-Off?

Cajun Pawn Stars

Last night, History debuted it’s latest collectibles reality television series, Cajun Pawn Stars, in the now familiar two back-to-back half-hour episode format. (I don’t know why these guys haven’t yet just committed to the full hour episode yet.) The commercials for the show made it seem like a blend of Pawn Stars and Oddities, seasoned with a dash of Swamp People. Is that what the show is really like?

After watching just the first two episodes, it’s clear this show is modeled after the wildly popular (and deservedly so) Pawn Stars. Set in the Silver Dollar Pawn & Jewelry Center, a well-established, 25 year old pawn shop located in Alexandria, Louisiana, Cajun Pawn Stars is also focused on three family members in this family-owned business: owner Jimmie “Big Daddy” DeRamus, Jimmie’s brother, Johnnie DeRamus, and Jimmie’s daughter, Tammie DeRamus. Here too are the trivia questions wrapped ’round the commercial breaks, the little facts and history notes in the corners, the outside experts brought in to authenticate and educate. Also part of the packaging and branding emulating the formula of success, the staff here wears matching polo shirts: Cajun Pawn Stars Purple, instead of Pawn Star Black.

It’s obvious that the producers of this new collecting show have realized that the audience is drawn to more than just the triad of ownership talent. Like Pawn Stars, which learned fast that Chum was a star and has been increasing the exposure of other staff members, Cajun Pawn Stars starts off right away including other pawn shop staff: Tina Journet, Fred (Yankee) Howell, Walt Piper, and Robie Friend. Like Oddities, the show also has realized the shop regulars are also likely to gain fans and followers, so Cajun Pawn Stars offers info on these folks who, it seems, will make semi-regular appearances on the show.

Of course, none of this is by accident or purely copying either; Cajun Pawn Stars is produced by Leftfield Pictures, which also produces Pawn Stars and Oddities. These folks know what they are doing. Which means if you like those shows, you should like Cajun Pawn Stars. I do. And, speaking frankly, Sunday night TV stinks; so this is most welcome!

The biggest “twist” involved in this spin-off seems to be organic to the pawn shop itself. A large part of their business includes animals, including farm animals, and the first two episodes featured a herd of donkeys as well as a pygmy goat. And gun laws are looser in Louisiana, so it seems gun lovers will see even more gun sales mixed in with the historical objects, pop culture artifacts (such as the first Jerry Lee Lewis recording from 1952), collectibles and other items.

I’ve only seen partial episodes of Swamp People, so I can’t say if there’s anything in common with that show besides location and accents; but, despite some mean-spirited shows, Cajun Pawn Stars doesn’t seem to be mocking the store, staff or residents — well, some of the regulars, perhaps… But not because of their location or any Southern-stereotype. These quirky guys seem to be aware of their humorous status. They are, as I say, a hoot and they know it. No harm done.

Overall, I’m looking forward to seeing more of Cajun Pawn Stars. It’s not a rip-off, but a well-done spin-off.

PS Note in the background, the Silver Dollar Pawn sign which features “Uncle” Pennybags, the guy from Monopoloy. I wonder how much that cost?

The State Of Affairs In Model Railroad Trains

Back in November, I heard WDAY making the promo for that night’s broadcast — an alarming headline about model trains. I don’t recall word for word, but it was so alarming that I indeed remained glued to the station and watched the news especially for that report. While the headline sounded far more drastic (implying that something was preventing the manufacture of model trains or something), the segment (video here) was about the decline in model railroading membership and a decreased interest in model trains themselves. While it wasn’t particularly surprising, it was saddening… Even though we do not yet own a model railroad set.

Through the serendipity of the collecting gods (what some might call “luck”), we found ourselves days later in Wisconsin, visiting family, and there we discovered that the Lionel Railroad Club Of Milwaukee was having an open house — we transported ourselves there asap!

There were so many things to look at… Not just the trains, the engines and cars, but all the figures, cars, animals, and details in the layout. So much to take in, that even though there is a raised look-out spot for engineers and others to get a great “aerial” view, you really have to walk around — several times — to try to see everything.

And then you’ll need to make at least one more trip looking at the vintage railroad engines and cars displayed on the walls and on the side of the layout!

There’s an impressive 28-foot long, 250 pound, model of New York’s Hell Gate Bridge which spans above your head. You can see more photos and details on how it was made here.

The bubbling oil rig lights that look like vintage bubble light Christmas tree ornaments were a complete surprise.

The kids fell in love with the aquarium. I myself was completely smitten with the Lionel Madison Hardware Shop model — there was a miniature model train set in the miniature store window! Yes, the mini train worked too! Here’s a closer look:

As a family we greatly enjoyed the huge model train set-up. Being there just confirmed all the reasons why we want a model train set. It’s not just the rush of the choo-choos, the excitement of their woo-woos, but the chance to build the whole miniature world! I’m a girl who loves miniatures. And hubby’s a man with some model building experience — small toys and larger theatrical sets too. For both of us it’s a chance to get really creative!

The price of a model train set can seem steep. New, vintage, or antique, it’s not cheap. But if you consider the years you can take to build and grow your set, it’s achievable to do it piece by piece. And affordable when you realize this is a true hobby. Not to minimize collecting in any way (How could I?!), but model trains and railroads are about building, expanding, playing; these are not shelf-sitters.

The husband and I have wanted a train set for a long time; since visiting the railroad club open house we’ve grown not only more wistful but determined to make it a goal for ourselves. (Yes, you can expect more model railroad articles!) I’m sure the kids will climb on board once they see the train in action.

Last Minute Gifts For The Antique Lovers, Collectors & Genealogists On Your Holiday List

Vintage Christmas Tree Decorating

OK, so you waited around, hoping just the right thing was going to pop up at eBay or some other site, and now, as the shipping delivery window narrows, you’re starting to worry that all you can do is go with the obvious eBay gift card or get something lame. Gift certificates, from eBay, your local antique mall or online dealer, aren’t bad ideas. But here are a few other options you might wish to consider…

Gift Idea #1 Newspaper Archives is the largest online newspaper archive, with over 100 million pages, covering more than 400 years, from more than 10 countries — and growing! I know that as a collector and researcher, having an online database of old newspapers to search through is one of the most awesome things ever. Let me repeat that: One of the most awesome things ever.

This isn’t just a great gift idea for collectors, history nuts, or those obsessed with research; it’s a great tool for genealogists too. While genealogy sites offer lots of information, old newspapers help fill in more of the stories… Not just information on people and events, but it’s a great way to find photographs of buildings, family businesses, and other places long gone.

Gift Idea #2 Magazines, such as Antique Trader, The Magazine Antiques, and other collectible publications as well as genealogy magazines can still be subscribed to online at Amazon — and even though it may take 6 to 10 weeks for the first issue to arrive, you can have a gift notice sent to the recipient!

1.) Add the magazine to your cart,
2.) On the next page mark the “this will be a gift” box
3.) Enter your gift recipient’s address during the checkout process.
4.) After placing your order, look for the “Send Magazine Gift Notification” link on the order confirmation page, or go directly to the Magazine Subscription Manager to manage your gift subscriptions.

Gift Idea #3 Maybe you’ve already settled on a gift card, but aren’t sure how to present it? How about a nifty greeting card that’s also a bookmark? In My Book® is a line of 15 cards which are perforated, so tearing along the perforations changes the greeting card into a bookmark!

These novel gifts and cards in one are printed in Pennsylvania, shipped from Brooklyn, New York, and cost just $3.95 (plus shipping) each. (I’ve interviewed the creator, Robin Blum, here, having met her at the first annual Bookmark Collectors Virtual Convention.)

Related: Practical, Yet Thoughtful, Gifts & Stocking Stuffers For Collectors.

Image credits: Christmas tree in Sydney’s 2UW radio station, Christmas Eve, 1937; via.

Antique Rug Shuttle Needles

Like I said, I’m becoming a resident vintage and antiques expert at Listia. Recently I was helping identify an item listed as “Tell Me What This Is” — headlines like that will always pull me in. *wink*

I immediately knew what it was, as I own several of these items myself. It’s a rug making shuttle or a rug shuttle needle. I know because the box on my Betsey Ross Rug Needle tells me so!

I just had to have this one because of it’s ties to women’s history, the fact that it had it’s original box, and the wicked looking nature of the tool itself.

Since then, I’ve been able to identify the other old wooden ones that I’ve ignorantly wound-up with over the years, being in auction box lots of old sewing and things.

I’ve not put any of mine into use yet, but it’s rather simple — the wooden “shuttle” pushes or prods the metal piece which pushes or prods the fabric strips through material backing, such as burlap, etc. It’s rather easy to see the process in these photos of my old wooden 1100 Kirkwood Of Des Moines shuttle.

Rugs including rag rugs made this way are often called “proddy rugs” for this prodding action.

While in my original comments at the auction at Listia I focused on the proddies (the strip of fabric in the Listia auction photo “prodded” me into thinking of those *wink*), these are also used to make “punch needle” style rugs too. Punch needle rugs are much like rug hooking, only you punch the thread or fabric through the back of the canvas rather than using the latch hooks most hobby kits have today.

Here’s what the Betsey Ross, ATK Product, box has to say:

Directions:

Thread as shown, push needle point through canvas and operate handles up and down, keeping the bottom of one of the handles on the canvas at all times and move toward the right. The length of the stitch can be regulated by bending the needle in for short stitches and out for long stitches, always be sure to have the yarn or rag free from tension so the loops will not pull out when the needle point is raised up and down. To get a chenille effect clip the loops with scissors. With a little practice beautiful rugs can be produced with this needle.

Rug shuttles like this may still be made; but I prefer to use older items myself — makes me feel like I’m part of the tradition and closer to the women who crafted this way. I’m no Betsey Ross, either in historic terms or crafting proficiency, but just owning this makes me feel closer to her and generations of women who once had such skills. My hands sweat where another’s once did. Or, rather, mine will once I find the time to sit down and give rug making a try.

I probably need to stop writing about antiques and collectibles to find that time, huh? *wink*

For further reading, I suggest quilt and hooked rug restorer Tracy Jamar‘s article A Few Loops Of Hooked Rug History and this basic page on hooked rugs at Red Clover Rugs.

Of Pinups & POWs & Dealers Of All Sorts

Sometimes dealers and other sellers of antiques and collectibles get a bad rap — OK, a lot of times they do, and I’m not going to go into all of that, but…

As a collector there are times when your auction lots runneth over and you end up with more than you want (or can even house). So it seems only natural to trade or sell a few things here and there… That’s pretty much what a dealer is, you know; someone who deals or trades in antiques and vintage stuff, with the most agreed upon fair trade equity being money, honey. So it’s all good, right? Right.

Anyway, there’s another time a collector becomes a seller. Such as when they find themselves in the possession of something they feel someone else would value so much they feel guilty holding onto it. That’s how I feel about this particular item.

I do collect vintage pinups and I’ve been paring down my collection (making more room in my house and wallet), but this particular vintage matchbook struck a chord…

On the front of the vintage matchbook it reads:

Greetings From Joe Gorenc
Skat Trounament
Every Wed. & Third Sun.
Ice Cool Eights
Any Time
2413 Calumet Drive
Sheboygan, Wis

Despite the condition issues, this is cool enough for the pinup and the reference to the old Skat tournament games too — but, you see, I know that there was a Joe Gorenc who was a POW in WWII. He did live in Sheboygan after the war, until his death in the 1950s, and I just feel like someone else should have this. So it’s up for sale, in my listings at eBay.

And I don’t think it’s unfair to charge for it.  After all, I did pay for it — and I’ve kept it safe another decade or so before realizing what I had and then carefully describing it, making it available for the person or persons searching for it.

In most cases, this is what dealers do. It’s what collectors do, sooner or later.

And it’s not dirty. It’s a good thing.

We do it for love. And money. Not necessarily for the love of money.  But there’s no reason we can’t lovingly spend the time to make sure things are preserved and available in the marketplace.  After all, as collectors, we are there putting our time and money back into that marketplace.  Usually at a hugely disproportionate rate. *wink*

Antique Advertising In Japanese Travel Guide

More scans from that antique, turn of the century, Japan travel guide; these are advertisements found in the back of the book.

S. Nishimura, “one price silk store,” founded in 1604.

K. Kawata, another silk vendor ad, this one targeting “Ladies desiring Embroideries or Drawn Work.”

K. Tamamura, “the leading photographer of Japan.”

K. Kimbei, a photographic studio promoting magic lantern slides, among other items.

An ad for the Nagasaki Hotel.

The top half of this ad is for the Batchelor’s Hair-Dressing Rooms, “Ladies’ Department under the sold supervision of Mons. Mogaillard, a clever Parisian Artist.” (Note that cigars are also available — for gentlemen only, I’m sure!) The bottom half is for C. & J. Favre-Frandt, an import-export shop.

Pope & Co. worries that you’ll perish from hunger on trips to the interior! The small print mentions tinned goods, but the large print mentions wines, liquors and cigars. The next page is a continuation of their ad which meantions specific champagnes, whiskey — and Schlitz Beer!

Antique Japan Travel Guide For Westerners

There are many charming and antiquated things of note in this antique travel book titled The Club Hotel, Limited: Guide Book of Yokohama, Tokyo and Principal Places in Japan and I thought I’d share a few of them before this book and map sells.

Printed at the “Box Of Curios,” No. 58, Main Street, Yokohama, Japan, there’s no copyright or publication date; but it’s circa 1880s to 1910s. This antique book with blue cloth boards and gilt lettering contains all you’d expect in a guidebook, including hotels, excursions, tea rooms, shopping, bars, geisha, libraries, museums, churches, temples, etc. — including black and white photos, ads for businesses, AND, neatly tucked in the built-in pocket in the back cover, a fragile but pristine color map! (Map opens to roughly 12 1/2 by 8 1/2 inches, so it would not fit completely on the scanner.)

I’ve never longed to travel to the Orient, but if I could travel back in time, perhaps I would change my mind for the book says, “One can go all over Tokyo at any hour unarmed and unannoyed, which one certainly could not surely do in London, Paris, Vienna, or other Western Capitals.”

Apparently, The Club Hotel, Limited was an actual place as there are photos of the building, the entrance, the dining room, and the bar.

According to the text, The Club Hotel, Limited was located “near the landing place (English Hatoba).” More details are found on this page:

Despite The Club Hotel, Limited being a real hotel, this book has ads for many other places rather than really promoting the The Club Hotel, Ltd. (The ads must have paid for the printing, me thinks.) In fact, the first ad in this book, right inside the front cover, is for The Hotel Metropole, “the only hotel in Tokio under European Management.”

Here are some interesting (if racist due to the times) things of note from the text’s Preliminary Remarks:

The Japanese will be found pleasant mannered people. Treated politely, they are invariably polite, and as a rule very kindly disposed towards foreigners. Many of them are incorrigible procrastinators. It is always “to morrow” with them. Hotel servants, however, are often very quick, as well as good and attentive, and seeing so much of foreigners they understand foreign requirements.

The people who stamp about the streets playing a double whistle are blind Shampooers, i.e. “Massage” operators by trade.

Japanese baths are generally heated with charcoal, and it is well to be careful of asphyxia from the fumes. The bath-houses with men and women bathing in full sight of each other, are a curiosity to Europeans.

Geisha or Singing girls, which could be ordered through the tea-house, and are listed on the same page as Japanese Wrestling, Public Libraries, Museums, Places Of Worship, etc. (The scan below also includes the small map of the Temples of Shiba.)

But, of course, the collector in me is most intrigued by all the discussion of “curio shops,” which are heavily advertised in the back of the book.  (Note how the chapter begins promoting the European Curio Shops of Yokohama.)

Most notably, Kuhn & Komor, No. 37, Water Street, Yokohama, which asks you to kindly note the company’s trademark “Stork and Sun” used as a sign board on all their branches.

A few other interesting old ads I’ve scanned will be posted soon!

Your Cash Is No Good Antiquing In Louisiana

This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private.

I shared this link on Facebook, but I thought it was interesting enough to note here as well… Louisiana Bans Using Cash In Sales Of Second-hand Goods:

In a new law that could put every trading post, Goodwill, flea market, garage sale and Craigslist merchant in the state of Louisiana out of business, a bipartisan group of elected representatives has opted to ban all cash payments for the buying and selling of used goods.

Though House Bill 195 was intended to make it easier to track the sales of stolen goods by giving police a paper trail to follow, the unintended consequences could be much more widespread. Namely, the law requires second-hand sales be made paid for with credit cards, paper checks, electronic transfer or money orders. Cash is prohibited.

It was signed into law on July 1, but flew so far under the radar that practically nobody in the media noticed until this week, when Louisiana’s KLFY Eyewitness News 10 put a spotlight on the new rules and their likely impacts on local business.

The law also requires second-hand sellers to obtain personal information about each buyer — information like names, addresses, driver’s license number and even, if applicable, their license plate number — and turn it over to state officials.

The prohibition on cash sales is confusing on its face, and appears to contradict the very text on each Federal Reserve note in circulation. “This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private,” U.S. dollars plainly state.

In a published opinion piece, attorney Thad D. Ackel, Jr. suggested that lawmakers have decided to sacrifice “individual privacy, economic, civil liberty and freedom” in the name of law and order.

My concerns are that this idea will travel to other states and be used to further sales tax collections, reporting, etc. as well. Thoughts, anyone?

Image Credits: Wikipedia.

You Know You’re A “Pig” For Collecting When…

You accept a vintage pottery pig as payment for your work.

I happily received this vintage cold-painted piggy bank as my fee for consulting work. I adore her sweet face and the red roses that decorate her — butt but it’s the curly tail that charmed me the most. So this little piggy came wee-wee-wee all the way home with me.

I was told she was made by Hull, but it could be Shawnee… The piece of pottery is not marked and the style looks like other Shawnee pottery pigs I have seen too. The piggy bank is huge — roughly 13 inches long! And this little piggy bank still has her original cork stopper on the belly.

Anyone else work for vintage or antiques? *wink*

License To Pawn: Behind The Scenes Of Pawn Stars

When Hyperion, the publishers of License to Pawn: Deals, Steals, and My Life at the Gold & Silver (by Rick Harrison, of History’s Pawn Stars, and Tim Keown, a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine) offered me the chance to receive a review copy of the book, I jumped at it — I’m a huge fan of the show!

License To Pawn isn’t a “how to” in terms of opening or running a pawn shop, but the book contains more information on the business side of things than I had previously known or even thought of before; it takes a lot more than money to invest to enter and remain in the business.

License To Pawn isn’t a “how to” for collectors, dealers or buyers, but there are tips on how to negotiate, what affects the antiques and collectibles market, etc. Like the show, Rick bluntly lays down the realities.

Yes, there are stories about interesting objects (and persons) who come into the shop (most of the stories about objects are those already seen in show episodes), but that’s not what License To Pawn is really about either.

What License To Pawn really is, is the stories of the men behind the counters at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop. And that’s far more entertaining and inspirational than even I, a huge fan, thought!

The book focuses on Rick, but even if Big Hoss, The Old Man, and Chumlee didn’t have their own individual chapters, which they do, each is included in Rick’s stories; it’s a family business, after all. However, Rick (even without my serious girl crush) remains the focus of the book.

While I am a fan of the show, I’m not one who stalks, even in terms of internet reading and media stories about celebrities so I had no idea that Rick suffered from epilepsy (grand mal seizures) as a child. This led to his belief that he wouldn’t survive to adulthood — and an eventual drug problem. But those seizures, which he eventually did outgrow, led to something else wonderful.

[The seizures] altered my life in nearly every way.  Whenever one hit, I would be out of school for as long as ten days. The muscle pulls were so painful and severe that ai could do nothing but lay in bed with ice packs on my hamstrings and quadriceps.

It was there, in that bed in our suburban home in the Mission Valley section of San Diego , that my life changed again. I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t move more than a few inches without pain. I didn’t have a television in my room. Video games and iPads hadn’t been invented. I was left to my own devices.

So I read books.

A lot of books.

…I have a very analytical, mathematical, calculating mind. I know I’m not supposed to believe in things like karma. But certain things have happened in my life that can’t be explained by simple coincidence. How else can you explain the sequence of events and circumstances that led to me turning those bedridden hours — which should have been the worst hours of my life — into something that would provide a foundation for a life of curiosity and fun?

That’s what happened. That’s how profound the discovery of books was in my life. I didn’t like school, but I loved books. Reading has been the basis of just about everything that came after. In that bed, I fell in love not only with books but with knowledge. The experience tapped into something I might never have found without the trying circumstances that led up to it.  So much of the enjoyment I’ve gained from life has stemmed from a book — either researching some arcane item or reading to learn how to do something practical with my hands.

(Is there anything sexier than a man who loves to read — and research yet!)

And then there are the Horatio Alger-esque stories of each member of the Pawn Stars cast’s rise from humble backgrounds to lives of security and comfort through hard work and determination. Passion and skills into profit, yes; but even more than that, the stories in this book are about finding yourself even when you do your very best to get in your own way. Overcoming obstacles — internal and external — with responsibility for personal accountability, education, and a dedicated pursuit of goals. There’s even a “be careful what you wish for” story; now that the show’s made the cast and the store so popular, Rick can’t be out on the floor, doing what he loves. All things worth reading. Even if they weren’t mixed in with stories about antiques and collectibles — and the unique individuals who buy and sell them.

I only have two complaints about this book…

One, Hyperion is often noted for their “strike while the iron is hot” approach to publishing. This makes sense, but I couldn’t help but feel that this book would have benefited from at least one more round of editing; there were several awkward phrasings, etc., which would have been simple fixes to make the book a bit more polished. And I do mean editing — this is not a slight towards Rick or any of the Pawn Stars themselves (or even Keown); another pair of professional editor eyes would have caught the small problems. Something that bothered me more than a bit for Rick, the reader!

Two, my kids are a fan of this show and while I think there are incredible personal stories my children would benefit from reading, I don’t feel comfortable giving them the book to read due to one adult joke. While reading about prostitutes across the street is certainly less shocking than the plethora of police and crime shows on mainstream prime-time television (not to mention song lyrics on the radio), a joke about oral sex is a bit too much for me to feel comfortable letting the 11 year old read the book.

Overall, License To Pawn is easy to read, charms with great stories, and offers an entertaining look at the world of pawn shops as well as the cast of the show and the cast of characters and objects one is likely to find at pawn shops.  It’s definitely worth the read.

For another take on this book, check out Inherited Values semi-regular writer, Cliff Aliperti’s review.

As noted above, I received a free review copy from Hyperion; this did not affect my review or even guarantee publication of my review.

When To Wear Gloves To Protect Antiques & Other Objects

Have you ever watched one of the antiques and collectibles shows, or history shows, and screamed, “Put on your gloves!” Not the work gloves worn when picking (though we’ve gone that too lol), but the archival gloves worn to protect objects from skin oils etc.? Hubby and I do, so we were thrilled to see one of our favorite shows, PBS’s History Detectives, address this issue in a recent (but recorded) episode.

The clip is below; but please watch all of it, because it’s sort of telling the story a bit backwards, saying “they respect the rules of the institutions and organizations they are at,” before explaining why some preservationists do not want gloves or other precautions taken…

Watch the full episode. See more History Detectives.

Big Game Hunting In Books

It drives me nuts when appraisers, auctioneers et al. dismiss books (along with magazines and ephemera) as having “little no value” — unless, of course, they are ultra rare first printings of first editions, signed works, manuscripts and journals from historic persons or covering historic events, contain original art, etc. I mean, a-duh! These things are not so much valued for the works themselves, but really are coveted and collected for other reasons; i.e. a signed Hemingway book is collected for the signature, not-so-much the book itself. So at best, I call those works cross-collectibles which benefit from higher prices due to a competitive audience across collecting genres — especially from those non-book collectors.

The sad fact is, the experts are right. Most books, magazines and ephemera have little monetary value because fewer people are collecting them, keeping the prices (the value that matters to most decision makers of popularity) low. This is why you rarely see these items on the collecting shows. *sigh*

I obviously do not agree. Not only with the limited and inaccurate definition of “value” (which is why I started this site), but I believe there is real value in old books, magazines, and other printed works.

What makes me rant about all of this again?

Roosevelt's Thrilling Experiences in the Wilds of Africa Hunting Big Game

I spotted this antique copy of Marshall Everett’s Roosevelt’s Thrilling Experiences in the Wilds of Africa Hunting Big Game up for auction at Heritage Auctions.

The fine folks at Heritage give an auction estimate of $1. One friggin’ dollar! Oh, and a neatly tacked on “- up”, which I presume to mean “and up.” (Though, the “- up” also means the mandatory Buyer’s Premium, 19.5% of the successful bid with minimum $14 per lot.)

It’s not that Heritage Auctions is wrong in their estimate (or their buyer’s premium; it’s their business and someone should get paid for posting info online so people like me can rant). The auction closes in a couple of days and the antique work is still at $1.

But here’s the kicker.

I’ve actually sold a few copies of this book. It pained me to do so each time. Not only because it’s hard for me to let go of things, but because they sold for like $29 to $45 — something I thought rather an insult for such an old, richly illustrated book. I consoled myself then that eBay wasn’t where the really big book collectors and history lovers were; that bigger legitimate auction houses would reach a wider audience, fetch more appropriate — bigger — bids for such books. But if Heritage can’t do it…

I should clarify a few things. For both my peace of mind and accuracy.

I sold my copies of this book (in the exact blue cloth boards with photo inset) on eBay nearly a decade ago; the prices on eBay haven’t changed much though — if the book actually sells, it’s at a higher price than the one at Heritage. (So if you’re interested… *wink*)  And I sold copies I found because then, as now, I sell so that a person just longing for that item can have it, rather than it being less loved and sitting on my shelf.  At least there I succeeded.

If there’s a moral to this little story, it’s this:  Books, magazines, etc. don’t have the monetary value they ought to; but that means those of us with less money can afford to collect and enjoy them.  And, collectors shouldn’t make assumptions that “the big auction houses have higher auction prices.”  Even with the buyer’s premium, the antique Roosevelt hunting in Africa book is 50% cheaper than on eBay.  So whether you’re new to collecting or an old hand at it, include the big auction sites in your hunting and see what killer deals you can make.

Two Lobby Cards From Lost Silent Film The American Venus

These two vintage (nearly antique!) lobby cards from The American Venus are to be auctioned off at Heritage Auctions.

The American Venus was directed by Frank Tuttle, and starred Esther Ralston, Ford Sterling, Edna May Oliver, Lawrence Gray, Fay Lanphier, Louise Brooks (in her first credited role as Miss Bayport), Kenneth MacKenna, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. The film was released by Paramount Pictures in 1926 and is considered a presumed lost silent film.

Below is the official auction listing description — with a helpful link provided by me:

The American Venus (Paramount, 1926). Title Lobby Card and Lobby Card (11″ X 14″).
Much has been written about the silent film legend Louise Brooks and her influence on 1920s New York and Hollywood, right down to her trademark “bob” that became widely emulated by ladies of the day. This rare title card and lobby card are from her second film, in which she appeared as a contestant in an Atlantic City beauty contest. Due to its immense popularity, the movie toured the U.S. for two years, along the way making Brooks one of the most noted female cinema stars. Though the borders of both cards have been trimmed and replaced, the restoration was expertly done and the cards present nicely. Very Good.