By Terry Kovel, King Features Syndicate
Friday, March 27, 2016
Smoking was an important part of the life of a well-to-do gentleman in the 19th century. A cigar after dinner was routine. Smoking paraphernalia was created not only to be useful, but also to show off wealth. Collectors today still seek all kinds of tobacco-related items, although smoking has lost favor.
Cigars stood in the holes in the center of this sterling silver cigar accessory. The urn at the top is a lighter. The piece was made by Edward Moore for Tiffany & Co., and sold for $13,750 at a Sotheby’s auction in New York.
Pipes, ashtrays, cigar holders, lighters, cigarette or cigar cases, cigarette or cigar boxes, cigarette dispensers and smoking stands are collected. Some collectors want commercial packaging and advertising, including cigar box labels and wooden boxes, packs of matches, cigar bands, cigarettes packs, trade cards for tobacco products, cut-out newspaper and magazine ads, large posters and other store ads, and store cigar lighters and cabinets.
Many items sell for under $50, but some “tobacciana” collectibles are very expensive. Chrome, glass, plastic or porcelain match and cigarette urns, jewel-studded gold or silver cigarette cases, sterling cigarette boxes for the table and bronze ashtrays by famous makers sell to collectors of fine arts.
Q: The tag on an old chair I have lists Royal Furniture Mfg. Co. of Gardner, Mass., as the maker. What can you tell me about it?
A: We can tell you your chair is not an antique. Royal Furniture Mfg. Co. was founded in 1934. It’s a small manufacturing firm that is still in business on Main Street in Gardner. The company makes wooden household furniture.
Q: I own a pair of oval “butterfly mirrors.” They are mounted in double wooden frames attached to each other on a decorative wrought-iron hinge. Each mirror can pivot up and down and side to side. I have learned the mirrors were patented in 1868 by Samuel Scottron, a black U.S. inventor. I mounted the mirrors in the corner of a room. Are they rare?
A: Samuel Scottron (1843-1905) patented several inventions, including your mirrors. Scottron was in the Union Army during the Civil War, then opened a barbershop in Springfield, Mass.
His double adjustable mirrors were invented so his customers could examine their haircuts from every angle. A customer could also view a reflection of his reflection, giving him an idea of what he looked like in real life — rather than as a reversed “mirror image.”
The mirrors were sold mounted on a floor-standing, cast-iron support so the mirrors could be swiveled much farther than when they’re mounted in the corner of a room. The Campbell House Museum in St. Louis has a complete, restored Scottron mirror.
Scottron’s mirrors sold well in the late 1800s, but that doesn’t mean they’re not rare today. We have never seen one. By the way, Samuel Scottron is the maternal grandfather of Lena Horne, the famous singer and actress.
Q: My Rookwood vase has a hole drilled in the bottom, which seems to have been done at the factory. The edges of the hole and the bottom of the vase are covered with the same glaze. Does this lower the value of the vase?
A: In the 1930s, lamps were often made from vases, figurines and other objects. The piece was put on a small wooden stand, then a hole was drilled through the wood and, if possible, into the vase or object. A hollow rod went through the vase to hold the light bulb and cord.
Lamps with colored pottery vases as the base were especially popular. Some companies made special vases that were drilled at the factory. Even though its hole was made at the factory, your vase is worth less than the identical Rookwood vase without the hole.
Pottery companies also used figurines to make lamps. Figurines couldn’t be drilled, so the lamp was made with a small stand that held the figurine and a tall rod that went over the figurine and held the light bulb. The cord went into the base and out again to be plugged in the wall. Lamps are still made this way.
A tip: Never store an old painting on canvas flat and face up on a floor. The paint may crack at the stretcher. A pet may step on it. Store it upright.
Terry Kovel answers as many questions as possible through the column. The volume of mail makes personal answers or appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, The Commercial Appeal, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.
Source : http://www.commercialappeal.com/
