No place for this vase
Dear Collector,
We have recently acquired this beautiful vase, marked “Roseville.” We’ve looked in all the books we can find and have snooped in some antiques centers, and cannot find this pattern. Can you give us an idea what it is, how old and what it might be worth?
I will answer your questions in reverse order: Value is what you paid. It’s not as old as you’d think. It is a reproduction, probably made in China. The three things that lead me to question its authenticity are the raised Roseville mark, which only appears on the real pottery with “USA” underneath it. Secondly, the glaze is not as fine as that found on the original. I’m sure that if you move your hands over this vase and then over a true piece of Roseville, your sense of touch will tell you the difference. Lastly, the design, especially the crudely executed branches are not up to the standards of Roseville.
Dear Collector,
My mother came to this country from Lithuania in 1924. Her grandfather gave her this 50 Centu bill to remind her of her homeland. She gave this money to me just before her death. I don’t think it’s more important than family history, but I am curious.
I hope I get this monetary conversion right. There are currently 100 Centu to 1 Litas, so your bill would reckon out to about 19¢ American. However, its value as a collectible is close to $50.
Dear Collector,
Can you put a date on these bookends?
With a monk reading before a shelf full of books, your circa 1922 Ronson bookends came in three sizes with slight differences. Your set is the middle size, worth $50-$75.
Dear Collector,
I hope these pictures of a 1940 “Comet Magazine” can help you find its value.
This short-lived (1940-1941) series of science fiction stories by H-K Publications of Springfield, Mass., is worth maybe $20 per issue. There also was a magazine by the same name, again featuring sci-fi, which had an equally brief lifespan in Australia in the 1930s.
Dear Collector,
How old is this hand-Nippon porcelain toast rack?
Bearing a backstamp of the Morimura Brothers, who imported Noritake, your letter holder (I guess you could use it for toast) was produced shortly after World War I.
Dear Collector,
I’m thinking about framing this music book for the song “I’m Wild About Horns On Automobiles That Go Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta.” Before I do, I want to know if it’s worth anything.
The words for this novelty song were written in 1929 by Clarence Gaskill, lyricist of “I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me” (which has been featured in five movies, including 1954’s “Caine Mutiny”). Value for the sheet music is $15, plus the cost of framing.
Dear Collector,
I have a “Men Into Space” game and would like to know if it was the premise for a TV show of the same name?
Your Milton Bradley board game came out in 1960, one year after the episodic program first aired on September 1959. This show put men (and women) on the moon a decade before NASA made that dream a reality. This game is listed at a value of $125.