Bathroom set dates to early 1900s
Dear Collector,
I have what I call a bathroom set which was purchased in 1955. Would you please tell me what the pieces are called, their age and current value?
Your wash set was made between 1904 and 1910, which, going by the “hundred year rule,” makes them on the cusp of being either vintage collectibles or antiques. Anyway, this basin, pitcher, toothbrush holder, waste jar and small pitcher came from S.W. Dean, a Staffordshire pottery with connections to 19th-century potter Edge, Malkin & Co. You didn’t mention what you bought them for but I believe all the pieces are now worth more than $200.
Dear Collector,
I have a Donald Duck milk bottle. Please tell me how old it is and who sold it?
You could easily answer your own questions by reading the bottle which should bear the dairy’s name and maybe a date. Since there was no photo included in your letter, I can’t even make a guesstimation.
Dear Collector,
Is this “Flying Nun” lunchbox still a collectible?
Nearly 40 years old and picturing multi Oscar-winning actress Sally Field as Sister Bertrille, a novice nun who glides through life, your Aladdin Industries box, minus matching bottle, is worth maybe $200.
Dear Collector,
Enclosed are photos of an IBM electric typewriter which I imagine to be approximately 40 years old. I have no idea as to whether or not it has any value.
It’s hard to tell from the pictures if you have a Model A (1948) or Model B (1954). Either way, if the machine is working and has all original parts, including paperwork, it could be worth as much as several hundred dollars.
Dear Collector,
I bought a platter back in the 1960s when I was in college. It is plain white with a border of small flowers and is marked “Dainty.” Who made it and when?
Back in the late 1800s, a group of potteries in Trenton, New Jersey merged; one of them was Crescent which marketed its commercial semi-granite wares under the Dainty label. I think your piece dates from 1910 or thereabouts.
Dear Collector,
When the state quarters first came out I put two away for safekeeping. Shouldn’t they be worth something by now?
The state quarters program began in 1999, with a new coin issued every quintile (1/5th of a year), and will end in 2008. The real investment lies in special coins or sets issued by the U.S. Mint. Circulated quarters, such as those received as change from purchases, have generally not increased above face value.
Dear Collector,
I helped a friend dig a trench for a new irrigation system. I found many parts of bottles but this blue Carter was the only one still intact. What did it hold?
Your six-sided cobalt container is a master ink jug, employed to top-off small desk bottles and inkwells. Missing its paper label, this bottle in the shape of a cathedral was manufactured in the 1920s by Carter Ink, and has a value of $100.