Figurines and prints were the “photographs” and “news” of past centuries before the invention of the camera. Famous people, especially royalty, religious leaders, actors and actresses, criminals, heroes and unusual people and scenes of everyday life were modeled in ceramics.
Sometimes the figurines show a forgotten activity like “grappling” (wrestling to the death while tied together) or a boy standing on one leg while holding the other off the ground (a common punishment for the “dunce” who is failing in school).
Thousands of different figurines were made and collectors like to concentrate on a special area like sports, dogs, wild animals, cottages or religious themes. A rare figure of a young Jewish boy was made by the Capo di Monte porcelain works. He has a beard and is wearing a frock coat, yarmulke (skull cap), spats and has a dagger. The 33/4 inch figure of a boy has the underglaze blue crown and N mark used by the Italian firm. It was estimated at $4,000 to $6,000 at a 2014 Kestenbaum &Co. auction in New York City.
Q: My mother had two bedroom chests of drawers that date back more than 100 years. The remnants of paper labels read “American Walnut, Atlas Furniture Co., Made in Jamestown, New York.” One is 31 inches high by 48 inches wide and the other is 40 inches by 37 inches. Both are in great condition. Do they have any value?
A: Atlas Furniture Co. was formed in 1883 as the Swedish Furniture Co. by Swedish immigrants Lawrence Erickson and Gustave Holmberg in Jamestown, New York. The name was changed to Atlas in 1871. Furniture was Jamestown’s biggest industry by the end of the 1800s. Atlas advertised itself as “Manufacturers of Bedroom Furniture,” making “better” grades of bedroom furniture, including dressers, chiffoniers and toilet tables from walnut, mahogany and other woods. By 1920, Atlas was the second largest maker of bedroom furniture in the U.S. At the beginning of the Depression in 1929, the company was 100 percent employee owned and every employee and officer of the company was a stockholder. Atlas closed in 1941, when the once-booming furniture industry of Jamestown was in decline. Your chests would sell for $50 to $100 each.
Q: I have a cast iron toy bank that was given to me when I was very small, probably around 1940. It’s a zeppelin with large wheels on the front and small wheels on the back. There is a slot for money on the top. It’s about 8 inches long and says “Gray Zeppelin” on the side. Does it have any value?
A: The letters may be worn and hard to see. Your bank is a “Graf Zeppelin” pull toy bank made by the A.C. Williams Company in about 1934. The Graf Zeppelin, a German hydrogen-powered airship, carried passengers from 1928 to 1937 and many companies made toy zeppelins. A.C. Williams Company was originally a manufacturer of flat irons, tools and stoves in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. It moved to Ravenna, Ohio, after a fire destroyed the factory in 1892. It made models of company products as salesmen’s samples, and began producing banks and toys about 1893. In the 1920s, the company was the world’s largest cast iron bank and toy manufacturer. Production stopped during World War II, and banks were not made again. Cast-iron toys were made after the war until 1977. A.C. Williams Company made a version of this bank without wheels that sells for about $115 to $230. The version with wheels is rarer and sold recently for $440.
Q: I have a round label picturing the profile of an Indian chief with a feathered headdress. It reads “The Sleepy Eye Mills, Sleepy Eye, Minn.,” “Highest Patent Flour,” and “Sleepy Eye Cream.” What is Sleepy Eye Cream?
A: Cream is a brand of flour made by the Sleepy Eye Flour Milling Company. The company started out in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, in 1883. It went into receivership in 1909, reopened in Minneapolis in 1914 and closed permanently in 1921. Sleepy Eye flour was packed in barrels. Original round barrel labels are stone lithographs. Reproductions have been made using printing presses or computer printers that show dots. Most round 16-inch in diameter labels found today are reproductions and sell online for $3 to $20.
Q: My vintage tortoiseshell comb is carved to look like a crocodile. It has seed pearl eyes across the top. The legs are movable and there are two flags with 14 stars on the back. This inscription is on the front: “Viva el Salvador. Recuerdo del 6 de Agosto, de 1904. La Union.” The design and wording is gold wire imbedded into the shell. What does this celebrate?
A: The Feast of San Salvador is a religious and national holiday celebrated in El Salvador on Aug. 6 each year. Feasts, processions and fairs honor the country’s patron saint, San Salvador. The inscription on your comb translates roughly to “Long live El Salvador. I remember Aug. 6, 1904. La Union.” The 14 stars on your comb represent the 14 departments (regions) in El Salvador. La Union is the name of one of the departments and also is the name of the capital city of that department.
Tip: Remove all photographs from a room that is being painted and wait about two weeks before putting them back in the room. Paint fumes can damage photographs.
Write to Terry Kovel and Kim Kovel at Kovels, The Herald, 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.
Judaica, Torah pointer, olivewood, brass hand portion, Yehuda Heshkowitz &Co., box, c. 1960, 9 inches, $90.
Jade, figurine, phoenix birds, green &white mottled, carved standing on rock outcropping, wood stand, Chinese, 8 5/8 inches, pair, $310.
Rack, fly swatter display, countertop, Jackson Fly Killer, wood, stenciled, holds six swatters, 2 x 12 1/4 inches, $315.
Fountain, figural, mermaid and dolphin, sitting on lily pad, stone, England, 31 1/2 inches, $800.
Popeye on rooftop, dancing jig, Olive Oyl playing accordion, sitting on box of spinach, tin lithograph toy, Marx, 9 1/2 inches, $430.
Rug, Persian runner, blue ground, stylize floral pattern, cream border, 10 feet 10 inches x 5 feet, $715.
Clock, tall case, Luman Watson, cherry, mixed woods, broken arch pediment, four baluster spindles, painted face, eagle, shield crest, chip carved detailing, bracket feet, early 19th century, 95 x 19 x 10 inches, $1,080.
Baccarat, champagne flute glass, Jasmine, animals, birds, vines, etched mark, 1947-61, 8 1/4 inches, 12 pieces, $1,415.
Chaise, modern, woven cane, matte chromed steel, foil label, Poul Kjaerholm, c. 1965, 34 x 60 x 26 inches, $5,000.
Silver plated cocktail shaker, lighthouse shape, stamped “Meriden S.P. Co.”, c. 1930, 20 x 7 1/4 inches, $5,940.
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