Chiming In On A Clock’S Face Value

Dear Collector: Does this clock have any worth beyond sentimental value? It stopped working about 10 years ago. On the face is “Manufactured by Ansonia Clock Co., NY,” and on the back is “Royal Bonn, Germany.” There’s also a sticker saying “I. Lewkowitz, September 20, 1915.”

Until 1920, when they went out of business, Royal Bonn contracted with Ansonia to produce porcelain cases, for which the clock maker provided the appropriate works. Usually depicting bright floral displays or pastoral scenes dotted with windmills, these hand-decorated mantle and shelf clocks are often marked with Gallicized titles such as “La Chapelle,” “La Drome,” “La Nord” and the like, making them favorites with collectors. Most reputable restorers could get this timepiece up and running for $75 or so, making your little chiming clock worth as much as $400. I’m not sure about the date you mention, but I think it refers to the retailer, Lewkowitz of New York City. Maybe if you look under this label you’ll find a style name or number.

* Dear Collector: I have two Lewis Carroll books published in 1946. They are “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass.”

Published by Random House, with Fritz Kredel providing the illustrations, this set is now worth $25. Did you know that Carroll, the pen name of English mathematician Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), was an accomplished amateur photographer. His favorite subject: a little girl named Alice, of course!

* Dear Collector: My ceramic bird was a gift from a friend in 1942 or ‘43. On the bottom is the name “Stangl” with the number “3456.”

Around 1940, Stangl, a New Jersey potter which took over the Fulper works after a disastrous fire in the 1920s, produced a series of porcelain birds based on Audubon’s “Birds of North America.” Your “Cerulean Warbler” was one of many made by the firm during the war years. It is now valued at about $65. Other Stangl birds are worth as much as $300, particularly the No. 3582 “Cockatoo.”

* Dear Collector: Do old Fate magazines have any value?

I guess you could say that it’s kismet that even early numbers of this periodical, published from the 1940s to the ‘60s, rarely sell for more than $5.

* Dear Collector: I have a “Hammond Solovox” that has to be more than 60 years old.

Invented by Hammond Organ Co. employee Alan Young, the Solovox consisted of a small keyboard, oscillator, amplifier and speakers, that when attached to a piano produced string, woodwind and organ-type sounds.

Manufactured during the 1940s, and used by many popular bands, the earliest Solovox created a vibrato effect by using two vibrating metal reeds, which were replaced in later models by a second oscillator.

Sought by musicians and collectors of musical instruments, a “J Model” can sell for more than $200.

* Dear Collector: I am enclosing a picture of a one-pint bottle of “Old Taylor Kentucky Whiskey” which is in its original box with a government seal stating: “Made in 1915, 100 Proof.” Would appreciate any information you can give.

A check on eBay, the Internet auction site, shows a couple of similar examples selling for $100 plus. Cheers!

* Dear Collector: Is my “Popeye” bank worth anything?

At least $75, according to one price guide.