Author Archives: AAA Publishing

The Silent Maiden

The young girl represented in the alabaster bust still has a story to tell. Here serene expression and gentle smile are suggestive of a time in our history when Dutch and Flemish artists began to explore peasant life as an artistic theme in painting and sculpture. Although these themes were first popularized during the late Renaissance period from 1525 to […]

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Antique values

Personal property appraisers receive frequent calls where the caller wants to know what their antique or vintage items are worth. This is not a quick answer because the intended use dictates both the value you will use and the effective date of the appraisal. Let’s first define some values: Replacement Value “Replacement Value” has been defined as the “cost to […]

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The wish book

In 1886 a young man began selling watches to supplement his income as a railroad station agent.  He did so well that less than a year later he was able to quit his job and sell mail order watches and jewelry full time. In 1893, after acquiring a partner, he established the corporate name of Sears, Roebuck and Company. The […]

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From Fins to Memories – and Back Again

by Dan Perley I was born in Ottawa, Canada in 1955 as the North American auto industry was building towards what was perhaps its high-water mark, sometime between then and the 1959 model year.  Certainly, 1959 marked the maximum height of fins and of course Cadillac had the highest and most glorious of all, but as a young boy my […]

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Marks on pottery and porcelain

Not all antique and collectible pottery is marked. Since the identification of the manufacture can play a huge role in value, as a beginning collector, buying ceramics with a manufacturer’s name will make it easier to identify, date, and value various ceramics. There are no laws governing marks on ceramics. In practice, most manufacturers changed their marks when they added […]

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The Uncollectibles

Terry Kovel gave an interview about items that are no longer collectible. Published in the March 15th, 2012 edition of Bottom Line Publications,  the article is titled “10 Collectibles NOT Worth Collecting Anymore”. Most are well-known areas to avoid for most collectors, dealers, and auction houses. There are a couple of areas that benefit from a more in-depth explanation. Franklin Mint silver […]

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Early Glass Origins

Glass-like substances occur naturally and have been used by humans for countless generations. The best known glass substance is obsidian, produced by the intense heat of volcanos, lighting strikes, and the impact of meteorites. Origins of the first manufactures glass are lost to antiquity (selecting the images will show an enlarged picture.) It is thought that seagoing Mediterranean merchants accidentally […]

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Old Sheffield Plate

In 1743, Thomas Boulsolver of Sheffield, England, discovered that he could bind a sheet of Sterling silver to a copper ingot by pressing and rolling the two metals into a workable sheet. The friction from the process caused enough heat to fuse the metals to each other. This sheet could then be made into a teapot, a tray, or other […]

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Ivory in Antique and Period Jewelry

Long before the invention of modern plastics, jewelers used ivory in jewelry. Ivory in jewelry was popularized with Cook’s tours of the Paris Exposition starting in 1855. The Cook’s tours escorted English travelers to and from the Exposition, returning through Dieppe, an ivory carving center in France. Dieppe has been famous for ivory carving since the 17th century with 350 […]

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Engraved Prints

Print identification is a large study. What is presented here are some pointers to outline a few major identification and valuation tips for engraved prints. The Antiques Institute is offering a half day seminar on prints on June 16, 2018 if you would like more information on this topic. Follow the link for more information: Fine Art Prints There are many […]

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