Belt Auction - Kovels Antiques News

Kovels Antiques News

Kovels Antiques: Coin-operated machines have a rich history Friday, July 15, 2011 @ 12:18AMNew slot machines and pinball games are designed to look modern and up to date. They have flashing lights and moving decorations and they make lots of noise.
Kovels Antiques: Wine Trolleys Began As Tabletop Items Wednesday, June 15, 2011 @ 3:09PMA trolley, according to an American dictionary, is a cart or wagon of several types that moves on a track or wire. But in England and other parts of Europe, the definition can include a wine trolley, a cart that was used to serve wine.
Kovels Antiques: Stars provide clues to ages of collectibles Friday, June 10, 2011 @ 12:18AMFlag Day was first celebrated on June 14, 1889, in a public school in Fredonia, Wis. The teacher thought the pupils should celebrate the 112th anniversary of the official adoption of the Stars and Stripes.
Kovels Antiques: Flags add touch of patriotism to toys from past Friday, June 3, 2011 @ 8:18AMMay is the month we celebrate a holiday that goes back to 1868, after the Civil War. Flags were put on soldiers' graves in the North, and Gen. John A. Logan of the Union Army declared May 30 to be "Decoration Day" for the nation. Twenty-seven states celebrated it that year.
Kovels Antiques: Mixed mediums offer bargains for collectors Thursday, June 2, 2011 @ 11:04AMToday's most famous designers often have the talent to create furniture, pottery, jewelry, paintings and even industrial items and architecture.
Kovels Antiques: Bars, cabinets for liquor often draw top dollar Friday, May 20, 2011 @ 12:25AMDrinks before or after dinner have been part of the ritual of dining in America since the 1800s. By then, the wealthy lived in houses that had a dining room, living room and perhaps a parlor or library.
Kovels Antiques: Porcelain once trumped gold as valued item Friday, May 13, 2011 @ 12:25AMGold is selling for very high prices today, but porcelain was more precious than gold in 17th-century Europe. Thin white porcelain was first made in China in the 10th century, but it wasn't seen in Europe until 1260, when some pieces were brought back by Marco Polo.
Kovels Antiques: Old carousel figures coveted by collectors Friday, May 6, 2011 @ 12:25AMCarousel 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.
Coffee table from '80s carries value Friday, April 15, 2011 @ 8:08PMIn 1980 I paid $500 for a hand-carved and inlaid coffee table that was a floor sample in an interior design company's Cincinnati showroom. The name "John Widdicomb" is stamped on the underside of the tabletop.
Kovels Antiques: Unusual articles of furniture often uncomfortable Friday, April 15, 2011 @ 12:25AMShould a chair be a "conversation piece" or be comfortable? Twentieth-century designers' chairs can be either, but they're rarely both.
Kovels Antiques: Collectors pay well for older garden gnomes Friday, April 8, 2011 @ 12:26AMGnomes have gone from kitsch to fabulous since they became animated movie stars in "Gnomeo and Juliet." But they have been used in gardens since the mid-18th century.
KNOW YOUR ANTIQUES: Puzzle Jugs Wednesday, March 30, 2011 @ 12:23PMApril Fool's Day is "celebrated" in most countries today, but historians don't know where or how it began.
Kovels Antiques: Old decorative bottles draw collectors' interest Friday, March 18, 2011 @ 12:25AMBottles can be labeled with paper labels, painted (pyro) labels, embossed lettering or, most unusual of all, labels under glass.
Victorian barbershop bottles used unusual under-glass labeling Thursday, March 17, 2011 @ 2:26AMBottles can be labeled with paper labels, painted (pyro) labels, embossed lettering or, most unusual of all, labels under glass. Bottles used "for show," like the fancy bottles used in a Victorian barbershop to hold Bay Rum or other hair tonics, were made in distinctive shapes and colors.
KNOW YOUR ANTIQUES: Bottles With Labels Inside Are Clearly A Collector Favorite Wednesday, March 16, 2011 @ 10:38AMBottles can be labeled with paper labels, painted (pyro) labels, embossed lettering or, most unusual of all, labels under glass.
Antiques: 'Show' bottles have unique labeling Saturday, March 12, 2011 @ 11:00PMBottles used "for show," like the fancy bottles used in a Victorian barbershop to hold Bay Rum or other hair tonic, were made in distinctive shapes and colors.
KNOW YOUR ANTIQUES: Dual-Purpose Furniture Had Its Day Wednesday, March 9, 2011 @ 2:08PMThe metamorphic library chair was patented in 1853. What an innovative idea for a chair. The skirt-like part peeking from the back of the chair can be flipped up to make a small set of steps. It is a chair to be used in a library when trying to reach books on a high shelf.
Kovels Antiques: Collectors still enamored by water droppers Sunday, March 6, 2011 @ 12:26AMWriting by hand took time and skill long ago, before letters were written with pens dipped in ink, with fountain pens or typewriters, or via e-mail on computers.
Kovels Antiques: Simple, stately country styles are still popular Tuesday, February 15, 2011 @ 11:50AMWhere to put clutter? How to store extra dishes or clothes or memorabilia? These are questions that have been asked only since the beginning of the 20th century.
Know Your Antiques: Country Cupboards Fetch Premium For Original Paint, Hardware Thursday, February 3, 2011 @ 3:04PMWhere to put clutter? How to store extra dishes or clothes or memorabilia? These are questions that have been asked only since the beginning of the 20th century.
Black Forest clocks feature bear, bird carvings Tuesday, February 1, 2011 @ 5:40PM‘Black Forest” is a term used to describe the elaborate, realistic wood carvings that were thought to be made in the Black Forest region of Bavaria, Germany.
'Black Forest' carvings are easy to identify Saturday, January 29, 2011 @ 12:04AM"Black Forest" is a term used to describe the elaborate, realistic wood carvings that were thought to be made in the Black Forest region of Bavaria, Germany. In the 1980s, new research proved that the carvings were done in Switzerland, most by the Trauffer family.
Dentistry items very collectible Friday, January 21, 2011 @ 5:02PMIs there any interest in vintage dental things? My brother recently retired as a dentist. He has several pieces of furniture and equipment that belonged to an associate who retired when he was over 90 years old.
Antiques: Galle pottery cats among most popular Saturday, January 8, 2011 @ 11:00PMGalle pottery is not as well-known as Galle glass, and it is rare. Collectors today like all Galle pottery, but most intriguing are his many figures of cats, each about 10 inches long.
Santa has gone through a ho-ho-whole lot of changes Sunday, December 19, 2010 @ 5:09AMSanta Claus hasn’t always been a jolly fat man with a beard and a red coat. He hasn’t even always lived at the North Pole.
5 Best Worthless Christmas Collectibles Thursday, December 16, 2010 @ 10:34AMBOSTON (TheStreet) -- Christmas collectibles are out of the attic and basement, and the value of most of them will never match what they'll be worth to their owners during the next week or so. If a lucky Christmas reveler got a $300 ounce of gold as a present nine years ago, they could cash it in today for nearly five times the price -- close to $1,400. If someone's eccentric art-collector aunt ...
Antiques | Collectors flip for topsy-turvys Saturday, December 4, 2010 @ 2:51AM"Topsy-turvy" designs, sometimes called "upside-down" or "two-faced portraits," were a clever idea that found favor in the 1870s and later. Plates, cups, pitchers, advertising mirrors, advertising cards, vases, comic strips and even books could be made that way.
untitled story Sunday, November 21, 2010 @ 5:40AMPrices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States.
Weird Antique Items Can Elicit Smiles — And Big Bucks Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:33PMSometimes a vintage or antique item is so unusual, it's hard to figure out what it represents or how it was used. At a recent Morphy auction in Pennsylvania, an item was offered as a "Halloween foot lantern of substantial size."
Halloween Objects Are Tricky Treats For Collectors Thursday, October 28, 2010 @ 4:15PMThe idea of Halloween can be traced back to some ancient Celtic and early Irish celebrations. But it was not until the early 1900s that Halloween images began to evolve, especially for postcards. Modern collectors consider Halloween postcards made between 1900 and 1920 to be the "best." Their designs were cute, romantic and funny. Halloween back then was an adult holiday featuring parties and ...
Antiques | Cigar-store Indian prices smokin' hot Saturday, October 23, 2010 @ 2:15AMWooden Indians have been displayed at tobacco stores since the 19th century. Store signs at that time were pictorial, because many customers could not read.
Tobacco Store Wooden Indians Fetch High Prices Friday, October 22, 2010 @ 12:15AMWooden Indians have been displayed at tobacco stores since the 19th century. Store signs at that time were often pictorial because many customers could not read.
More On Antiques: Bohemian Ceramics, Cleaning Tooled Leather Tuesday, September 14, 2010 @ 6:30PMQ: We inherited a ceramic plaque that hung on my grandmother's wall for decades. It pictures three Japanese women having tea and one woman holding a baby. There is a religious picture hanging on the wall behind them. The plaque is signed "Jos. Zasche Vienna." Can you tell us something about it?
Antiques & Collectibles: Sewing paraphernalia is a top collectible Friday, September 10, 2010 @ 8:05PMThis woven wicker sewing basket was made c. 1900 to be kept on the floor near a seamstress. It is 28 inches high. Although rare, it sold for only $75 at a Jackson’s auction in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Salt Chairs Are Elaborate Rarities That Predate Shakers Friday, September 10, 2010 @ 2:15AMEating too much salt is a health problem today, but in past centuries salt was considered an important ingredient to be treated with reverence. It was traditional to put a large container of salt near the head of the table, where the most important person sat.
Covered Rectangular Dishes Once Held An Expensive Delicacy: Sardines Thursday, September 9, 2010 @ 11:59AMThe foods we favor have changed as technology has changed. A method of preserving food in glass containers was developed in the late 17th century. Canned food became available by 1813. Fresh salads were not a winter food until the early 1900s, when refrigerated train cars could carry lettuce from California to the East Coast. Peas, beans, corn and more were brought to snowy states during winter ...
More On Antiques: Hoosier Cabinet, Berry Dishes, Toy Stove, Recent Prices Thursday, September 9, 2010 @ 11:58AMQ: I have a countertop painted tin pantry that includes a clock, several towers with lids, several drawers and a few bins. It is marked "Portable Pantry Company, Cincinnati, Ohio." Do you know how it was used?
Old furnishings might be for pies, jellies or sugar Sunday, July 11, 2010 @ 4:41AMGo to an antiques show and you might see a pie safe, a jelly cupboard or a sugar chest.
Antiques & Collectibles: How to differentiate cupboards Thursday, July 8, 2010 @ 3:16PMButternut wood was used to make this pie safe in about 1830. The star designs in the punched tin give it added value. It sold this year at Cottone Auctions in Geneseo, N.Y., for $1,955. Photo: Contributed Photo / The News-Times Contributed
Terry Kovel Shares Five Lessons on Collecting and Selling Wednesday, June 30, 2010 @ 9:13AMWhen you and I first got interested in antiques and collectibles, we had a head start. I, for one, went with my parents to garage sales and flea markets. And all of us had price guides to tell us what brands were considered "rare," and that provided estimated prices or many brands and models.
Antiques & Collectibles: Milliner's heads now more collectible Friday, May 28, 2010 @ 8:34PMThis early-20th-century French papier-mache milliner’s head has original paint with some crazing. Her name, “Dorothee,” is written on the front. It sold in March at Garth’s Auctioneers in Delaware, Ohio, for $646. Photo: Contributed Photo / The News-Times Contributed
Toy circus parade is popular with collectors Friday, May 21, 2010 @ 5:56PMIt took $19,000 to buy this Hubley toy calliope at an RSL auction in Oldwick, N.J. It is in mint condition and has the original box, which adds to the value. Circus toys are very popular.
Terry Kovel: Matt Morgan Pieces Date To Origins Of Art Pottery In U.S. Friday, May 14, 2010 @ 2:24AMArt pottery was first made in the United States by a group of women in Cincinnati who had seen the pottery exhibits at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876. Several groups were making pottery by the 1880s.
Predicting value of item at auction can be difficult Sunday, May 9, 2010 @ 5:40AMSometimes it's impossible to find another collectible just like yours, so how can you learn what yours is worth?
Antiques: Pricing the truly unique Sunday, May 9, 2010 @ 3:03AMQ. Sometimes it is impossible to find another collectible just like yours, so how can you learn what yours is worth? While checking Internet auctions, I came across a strange cast--iron clock shaped like a hatchet stuck in a block of wood. The clock face was in the center of the hatchet blade surr...
Late 19th-, Early 20th-Century Kids Loved Fairylike 'Brownies' Thursday, April 22, 2010 @ 7:17PMThe Brownies, drawn by Palmer Cox, are almost unknown to anyone younger than 80 today, but they were favorites of children from 1883 into the 1930s. The Brownies were tiny fairies, all male, who each night cleaned and fixed things for humans, that is, if they weren't exploring or playing tricks.
KOVELS ANTIQUES Monday, April 5, 2010 @ 1:56PMDid you know Abercrombie & Fitch made line dryers for fishing lines? Did you know there was even a need to dry your fishing line? At a recent auction by Lang’s Sporting Collectibles, which specializes in fishing items, a wooden line dryer sold for $590.
More On Antiques: Owen Sound Chair; Ceramic Heating Stove; Bohemian Porcelain; Recent Prices Friday, April 2, 2010 @ 1:52PMQ: I bought an oak buffet from a neighbor who moved out of state. The label in the back of one of the drawers pictures two Windsor chairs and says, "Windsor Chair Shop, The Owen Sound Chair Co., Ltd., Owen Sound." The bottom corner of the label is torn off. Any idea where this company was?
Abercrombie & Fitch Collectibles Focus On Fishing Gear Thursday, April 1, 2010 @ 1:53PMDid you know Abercrombie & Fitch made line dryers for fishing lines? Did you know there even was a need to dry your fishing line?
More Antiques: Steul Buffet, Czech Dress Clip, Estey Pump Organ Thursday, March 25, 2010 @ 6:37PMQ: In 1992 I bought a buffet that was at least 50 years old. There's a brass emblem inside a drawer that says, "Henry C. Steul & Sons, Inc., Buffalo, New York." Can you tell me something about the manufacturer?