Garage sale porcelain vase quite a find

Editor’s note: This is the last “The Collector” column. Glenn Erardi has decided to retire the feature.

Dear Collector: Enclosed are photos of a recent garage sale find. Could you please let me know the value of this piece and any other information about it? It appears to me that the tip of the cover has been glued back on.

Alternately described as a mantle or cabinet vase (or even an urn), this porcelain came from the Altrohlau (presently in the Czech Republic) factory of Victoria, Karlsbad. Popular during the era before World War I, this type of high-end shelf clutter has a current value of about $200.

Dear Collector: While rummaging in our jumble drawer, I found a Scripto cigarette lighter that my mother got my father on their first date at the 1962 World’s Fair. I do not anticipate it to be worth a fortune, but it does have special meaning to me.

Held in Seattle, that year’s Fair would be remembered for the Monorail and Space Needle, both of which are pictured on your lighter. Your treasured trophy is worth $100.

Dear Collector: Could you help with this fishing lure? I would like a value and date.

I asked a friend of mine who is knowledgeable on all things angling, and he assures me that your circa 1950 South Bend lure – called by the way, a “Spin-Oreno” – is worth about $20.

Dear Collector: What is my 1893 edition of “Brownies at Home” worth? Family tradition says this book belonged to one of my great-grandparents.

Brownies are to Scotland as leprechauns are to Ireland; well, sort of. Your book, looking in great condition for a true antique, has a listed value of almost $100.

Dear Collector: I have an original “Bonanza” lunchbox without the thermos. Is it worth more than the $15 I paid for it nearly 25 years ago?

Indubitably! Research shows that each of the styles manufactured by Aladdin Industries in the early 1960s is now worth at least $150. Find the missing bottle (worth about $75 to $100 on its own), and the value jumps to nearly $300.

Dear Collector: Did this china company move from Germany to Japan during the Allied bombings of World War II? I have inherited a set of 12 dishes, cream and sugar set plus serving bowls. On the back of each dish are markings that read as follows: Harmony House, Fine China, Dresdania, Made in Japan.

Where to begin? Believe it or not, your porcelain was made for Sears Roebuck sometime in the 1950s. You seem to have mistaken the pattern name, “Dresdania,” for the city in Germany famed for its porcelain production: Dresden. (Logic tells us that any items made for the German market would be marked in that language, not English.)

Dear Collector: I suspect this toy badge may be a Cracker Jack toy. What are your suspicions?

My deduction is that this CJ Police badge came in a 1930s Cracker Jack box. Value is confined to about $70.

Dear Collector: Enclosed are pictures of a Jim Beam flask of whiskey commemorating the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association. I believe Jim Beam made a number of these honoring many other events. This bottle is unopened. Any value to this item?

Issued in 1976, this bottle is relatively new as collectibles go. Not much value yet, I guess you could say it’s under-proofed. We’ll have to see what the future holds for your memento.