CHARITY ROW:
A very well crafted hardwood sculptural box signed C. Cobb* and dated 1978. When it is closed it is 6 inches tall, 5 3/4 inches wide and about 2 1/2 inches thick. The interior dimensions are about 1 3/4 inches deep and between 2 and 4 1/2 inches tall.
I’m not sure of what kind of wood it is made from, but it includes at least two kinds of clear grained hardwoods. I like the organic, flowing lines this piece has.
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Perhaps Charles B. Cobb?
He grew up to be a fierce latch hook dragon rug. It was a long way from when he was just a scrawny little scaly latch key reptile.
It shows you never can tell, that awkward kid you knew in elementary school might now be the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, or a nightmarish terror straight out of a fairy tale.
The rug is about 67 inches wide and 35 inches tall. As you can see in the picture above the edges were never bound so it looks unfinished. The rug could also use some backing and it is slightly soiled (maybe a real good vacuuming would do the trick?).
School days, school days
Dear old Golden Rule days
‘Reading and ‘riting and ‘rithmetic
Taught to the tune of the hick’ry stick
You were my queen in calico
I was your bashful, barefoot beau
And you wrote on my slate, “I Love You So”
When we were a couple o’ kids
A nice pair of antique cast iron and wood school desks. Each has a shelf for books, a hole for an inkwell, a pen groove and the seats fold. Both are in pretty good shape and are roughly 28 inches deep, 21 1/2 inches wide and a maximum of 26 inches tall.
We’re selling them separately.
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Telephone tables are sign number 437 that things have changed and kids have it too easy.
“Back in my day we had to have special furniture for our phones. It wasn’t some easy thing where you carried around more computing power in your pocket than the Strategic Air Command and could do internet searches for even the simplest stuff, like how to breathe. No, we had to remember phone numbers or look it up in a book. Ever hear of a book kid? It’s not some E-lek-tronik doo-dad, no sirree, its analog and uses paper and you had to know how to spell to use it. Bah you kids!
Wanna play Words With Friends?”
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Moriage is a Japanese ceramic decoration technique where ceramic items are decorated with the application of raised slip lines and dots. This gives the pieces a wonderful textural quality although they are prone to being easily damaged.
There is a lovely coffee or large tea-pot, a smaller pot that could be used as a tea-pot or overly generous cream pitcher, a lidded jar that’d work for sugar, tea storage or biscuits, six plates, five teacups and six saucers.
So, it is a nearly complete set for six except for one teacup.
The main scene features Kannon (a.k.a. Guanyin) a Bodhisattva of kindness surrounded by four rakan. Above her head is the traditional heraldic symbol or crest of the Shimazu clan.
According to our source (see item #1230) these ware were produced for export from about 1915. The end date of production of these is less clear but it is seemingly ends during the early Showa Period (i.e., the reign of Emperor Hirohito). Given this uncertainty these pieces could date from the 1930′s to the 1950′s (my guess is the 1950′s).
The tea cups have a lithophane geisha on the bottom much like the ones in the Kutani golden dragon set we had last August which makes sense since I think they bear the same makers mark, which consists of the words “Made In Japan” and a view of Mt. Fuji.
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Each one of the decorations on Polish pottery is applied by hand. Can you believe it?
Frankly I’m surprised that there’s as much of this out there as there is AND that it’s relatively affordable.
Approximately 10 1/2 inches tall and 8 inches in maximum diameter. It is signed by the decorator, Paulina Sobierajska.
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One of my associates saw this and said something like “I think there should be a chandelier in every room, but cool ones, not crappy 1980′s lamps.”
That’s really not a bad idea and one I hadn’t considered* before. One walks into the dining room and there’s an elegant crystal chandelier, the living room has funky 1960′s pendent lamps and this would be perfect for the solarium.
To accomplish this I would have to build both a dining room and a sun room and raise the ceilings too. The metal bits that make up the flowers would quite possibly result in multiple self-inflicted traumatic head wounds if I hung it at an aesthetically pleasing level.
I’m not sure where it was made but the preponderance of Community Warehouse employee and volunteer inquiries have been “Is that Italian?” which seems like a good possibility.
This used to be installed as a permanent fixture. We could add a plug if you wanted and then you could use it as a free hanging lamp. Overall the lamp is about 18 inches high and 18 1/2 inches in diameter and seems to be in great condition.
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*Or considered as a decent idea. I had one apartment which had a cheap faux crystal chandelier directly over the only place that a bed could go in the house. I think the landlords were aiming for elegance on the cheap but the result was more like monkey business at the bordello.
L’Europe divisée suivant l’estendue de ses principaux Estats subdivisés en leurs principales provinces.
A recent reproduction of a map of Europe originally published by Alexis-Hubert Jaillot (1632-1712)*, who drew on the earlier work of Nicholas Sanson**. The title roughly translates as “Europe divided along the expanse of its main states subdivided into their major provinces.”
This would be really cool if it were real, but unfortunately this is not and it is a good example of why you should never buy an antique map without removing it from the frame. When removed from the frame one can see that the paper is wrong, the margin around the edge of the engraved plate mark and the paper is far too wide, it’s obviously not copper plate engraved, etc.
The most interesting part of its fakeness is that it looks like it was removed from an atlas and then framed. There is a cut and match line down the center of the map, like one would find at the folds of a book.
It still has some redeeming qualities as a decorator piece or conversation starter since the map shows a wonderful view of Europe in the late 17th Century. There are great details to be unearthed including notable the location of the prime meridian intersecting Iceland (the modern site of the prime meridian wasn’t settled as running through Greenwich until 1884), the various measurement scales in use at the time and numerous archaic political divisions (Prussia and Petite Tartarie for example).
The map is about 40 1/2 inches wide by 28 1/2 inches tall in the frame.
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Sanson and his sons (Guillaume and Adrien) were important French cartographers. Nicholas’s work was taken over by his sons after his death however before he died he also partnered with Jaillot on a variety of maps and after his death Jaillot continued to publish and update Sanson’s maps.
After the death of Sanson, Jaillot collected his maps and published a great compendium, the Atlas Nouveau. It was originally published in Paris in 1689 (though other sources have dates as early as 1674 and 1680). Later editions were issued in 1691 and 1695. Interestingly even more editions were published in Amsterdam in 1692, 1696 and 1698 by Pierre Mortier. The legitimacy of these editions is debated, but all bear proper attribution to Sanson and Jaillot.
If by some chance you have an interest in the peculiarities of Sanson and Jaillot’s careers or the general history of maps in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries a perusal of Sir Herbert George Fordham’s 1929 work on the subject is highly recommended.
*Alexis Jaillot:
“Alexis Hubert Jaillot (c. 1632- 1712) followed Nicholas Sanson (1600 – 1667) and his descendents in ushering in the great age of French Cartography in the late 17th and 18th century.
Hubert Jaillot was born in [Avignon] Franche-Comte and trained as a sculptor. When he married the daughter [Jeanne] of the enlumineur de la Reine, Nicholas Berey, he found himself positioned to inherit a lucrative map and print publishing firm. When Nicholas Sanson, the premier French cartographer of the day died Jaillot negotiated with his heirs to republish much of Sanson’s work.
Though not a cartographer himself, Jaillot’s access to the Sanson plates enabled him to publish numerous maps and atlases with only slight modifications and updates to the originals. As a sculptor and an artist, Jaillot’s maps were particularly admired for their elaborate and meaningful allegorical title cartouches and other decorative elements. Jaillot used his allegorical cartouche work to extol the virtues of the Sun King Louis IV, and his military and political triumphs. These earned him the patronage of the French crown who used his maps in the tutoring of the young Dauphin (and continued long after youth passed since at time of the publication of this map he was 35).
In 1686 [or 1675] he was awarded the title of Geographe du Roi and with it significant prestige and the coveted yearly stipend of 600 Livres. Jaillot was one of the last of a generation of French map makers to acquire this title. Louis XV, after taking the throne, replaced the position with the more prestigious and singular title of Premier Geographe du Roi. Jaillot died in Paris in 1712.”
-Biography courtesy of Geographicus.com, notes in brackets are taken from Fordham, those in parentheses from other sources.
**Sanson started his career as a historian and used cartography as a way to illustrate his historical studies. Some of his maps came to the attention of Cardinal Richelieu who in turn introduced them to the king, Louis XIII. The king appointed Sanson Geographe Ordinaire du Roi. Sanson’s duties included advising the King on matters of Geography and compiling the royal map archive. In time he built a legacy of roughly three hundred maps and is largely responsible for initiating the ”golden age of French Cartography”. After his death, Sanson’s cartographic work was carried on by his sons, Guillaume and Adrien Sanson by A. H. Jaillot and Pierre Duval, with whom the partnered.
Cool accent lamps that are sort of Tiki, but not too Tiki
The lamps have wire armatures that are covered in thin bark cloth or tapa. Tapa cloth is made from the inner fibers of the paper-mulberry tree and for a good chunk of Oceania once was the predominant type of cloth for clothing. Given certain advantages of other fibers (like staying together when wet) it has fallen out of favor for everyday use but still is made in some quantities for blankets, ceremonial use and interior wall coverings.
In this use the fibrous nature of the material allows light to shine through. However, given that this is a natural fiber and flammable, I recommend use of low wattage or fluorescent bulbs.
Each lamp is just over 26 inches tall.
UPDATE: The cream colored ones have been sold.
My uncle was a was a talented guy. He also had an inclination towards shyster-ism and the art of the con. He had all sorts of scams and schemesover the years but possibly the worst one was during the late 1950′s when he ran a do-it-yourself custom house address/ placard shop. He called it Paint, Buy Numbers.
After the inevitable failure of this venture he returned to the basics, like patenting patent medicines (for example his famed preparation* for the relief of arthritic pains).
These vintage paint by numbers pieces were originally sold together as Indian Summer by Craft House (Catalog #14102). Unfortunately the Paint By Numbers Museum website doesn’t list the year these were introduced.
They are 12 inches by 16 inches, the original kit contained 21 colors and we’re selling them as a pair.
I vaguely recall my grandmother (born in 1890) making afghan/throw blankets in these colors so I’d guess they’re from the 1970′s.
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* “Compositions are provided which, when applied in various ways to the skin over the joint of the patient being treated, resulting in dramatic amelioration of such diseased conditions as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis. In general the present invention is of benefit in treatment of diseases characterized by inflammation of osseous, cartilaginous or fibrous connective tissue.”
And a lovely pair they are too! These are part of the famed Købenstyle line designed by Jens Quistgaard for Dansk. These are the paella or saute pans. They are enameled ceramic over iron and feature bright white interior with turquoise exterior.
We have them in two sizes, the larger one is about 14 inches in diameter, the smaller is 10 1/2 inches in diameter. We measured this at the widest part of the pan, not including the handles. The actual opening diameters are slightly smaller due to the curved sidewall.
Both pans are in very good condition with some of the typical signs of use, like little flea-bite chips along the upper edges.
We’re asking $50 for the larger one and $35 for the smaller.
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Do ducks with canvas backs need occasional reapplication of oil finish wax to stay dry?
Antique looking Canvasback Duck decoy. The coloring indicates it is a drake and the forward thrust head is meant to indicate motion. The cordage wrapped around the duck to suggest an anchor line, although it is purely decorative.
It is stamped ‘White’ underneath suggesting it is a reproduction piece by S.R. White Carving so it is no older than 1979. This decoy is 17 inches long, 5 inches wide and 5 1/2 inches tall and in excellent faked antique condition. That is, it is “not suitable for use outdoors or in the water.” SOLD!
Presumably another Canvasback decoy but this one isn’t marked. Unlike the one above this one has an anchor line attached (rather than the wrapped string belt) however this is probably also a purely decorative duck. It is 17 3/4 inches long 8 1/4 inches tall and 7 inches wide.
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It’s that wonderful time of year again! Every early December we celebrate one of the great practical minds of the 19th century and the savior of lobuli auricularum everywhere.
Meet Chester Greenwood, inventor of earmuffs, wood boring machines, advertising matchboxes and the metal spring rake.
Over the course of his life he’d gotten over 100 patents but it was the patent for Greenwood’s Champion Ear Protectors which made him rich, famous and celebrated even as it approaches 75 years after his death.
The only thing that would make this better for us is if we had any ear protectors to offer but they’re a little scarce in the relatively warm Northwest, so we don’t.
We do have quite a variety of wool blankets though, which are kind of like ear muffs for the entire body.
Here’s a small sample, but we have many more. We’ll be adding new ones as we can so stop in to see them in person.
But the most jungle-iest of them all was the jungle where the latch-key kid animals hung out after school.
The Latch-Hook Jungle.
It was two-dimensional, and the lions, tigers and bears (oh my!) were crowded together with fun-loving peaceable herbivores. The stress gave the giraffe a kink in its neck and he looked more and more like a rabbit everyday. The poor zebras were just wide-eyed with fright and their eyes had turned painfully red eyes because they knew that if they blinked just once the tiger would get them.
The tiger resented being type-cast. He actually liked tofu and on the rare occasion he did eat meat he tried to eat only local, sustainably raised small game to reduce his gastronomic foot print. The Zebras didn’t get that he was the first one that was going to extinct if he didn’t.
Besides, every one knows that Zebras are stringy and dry and taste like Democrats in a Republican controlled Congress.
37 1/2 by 48 1/2 in frame.
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And those little Vienna sausages in tomato sauce that Aunt Esther used to bring to every family gathering would stay nicely warm too.
This vintage two-hole two candle power food warmer (i.e., chafing dish) is in excellent condition and it’s a bright mid-century radioactive/safety orange. It is 22 1/2 inches wide, 11 inches deep and 8 inches tall and has neat little Asian inspired handles on the lids.
We have two vintage fire-king baking dishes for it as well and the whole works is in excellent condition.
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This is really quite nice work. The vessel walls are well consolidated by paddling, the collar decoration is nicely done and it’s been pretty well fired, but probably not in a really high temperature kiln.
It is 13 1/2 inches in diameter and 13 inches tall on woven ring stand/support.
Like many prehistoric pots I’m not sure if this one could stand up to direct use over a fire. If placed directly on a heat source there is a good chance that the vessel will break (called thermal shock) as portions of it heat faster than others.
That does not mean that you can only eat cold-soaked porridge with a pot like this. Stone boiling is a tried and true method of cooking without directly exposing your container or meal to the fire.
It’s the original form of slow cooking. I’ve done it and when you’re done you’ll have a new appreciation for modern ceramics (and you’ll know how to cook food in a basket or plastic bucket if you ever need to).
Warning: the thermal shock that could break a pot instead cause one’s stone boiling rocks to break, releasing little bits of rock into your food. It is incredibly important that you use well consolidated rocks to limit the number of little pieces. Whatever you use be careful that you don’t try any kind of rock that is highly porous and or is saturated with water before you heat it. They are sometimes known to explode in the fire sending sharp fire-hot projectiles flying everywhere.
In other words, cook your food like normal and if you really feel like trying this do some research and use proper safety precautions. Don’t be hasty and get hurt.
Remember it’s not always easy living low-tech and sometimes it’s dangerous.
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I’m some what prejudiced in my analysis of this pot.
Back when I was doing archaeology I became intimately familiar with what we jokingly called The Eastern Mudware Complex. That is, the prehistoric ceramics of Eastern North America. Don’t misunderstand me, those vessels revolutionized how people lived, worked and what they ate. Unfortunately as an archaeologist in the real world what you find are broken pots subjected to a couple thousand years of frost and thaw cycles and a few hundred years of plowing. By the time we found the smashed remnants they looked like dog chow.
This is how we taught new folks to recognize prehistoric pottery: “If you have a sifting screen full of dog kibble you have just excavated a pot.” It wasn’t quite that simple, but pretty close.
Although initially looking not unlike dried dog food the prehistoric ceramics of the east coast were decorated in a variety of manners. The decorations could be analyzed to determine change over time and even the rise and decline of different cultural groups.
Basically, the manner in which one decorates a pot is learned, thereby it is cultural. Different decorative traits* and the combinations of these traits change over time, as culture changes. One of the coolest things I saw was the negative impressions of fiber perishables (textiles and cordage) in pot walls. The way one makes fabric, or even the cords in that fabric is definable in space and time.
Fingerprints were also cool to find and a blatant reminder that the artifacts were made by people and the people are what makes the past interesting, the artifacts are just a vehicle for getting there.
*Some argue that decoration is not just decorative. Extensive decorative treatment can also be functional. The application of decoration can help consolidate vessel walls and it can also make it easier for the vessel to heat uniformly, reducing the potential for catastrophic failure from thermal shock and a ruined supper.
The juicer you choose to juice with may change your life. Or it may not.
I don’t know if it actually matters what juicer you use. Regardless, we have two very nice juicers today.
First we have the Jack LaLanne Power Juicer. It has a non-drip spout, 3600rpm motor and stainless steel blade. It aslo boasts “patented extraction technology” to yield 30% more juice. 30% more than what is not stated. Our runs well but I didn’t sacrifice my lunch to see if it would juice an omelet. GONE!
Secondly we have an Olympic model 1000 juicer. At first glance this looked stunningly similar to one we had back in January. Even though the names are different it turns out there is a good reason for this, since Olympic was taken over by Omega. Like the LaLanne juicer this too has a 3600 rpm motor and stainless blade. The juice catchment system is somewhat different and we don’t know how it compares in terms of percentage more or less juice extracted. Like the other juicer it runs well but again, I didn’t test it with actual foodstuffs.
We’re asking $45 each for these.
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This is a sweet little knife. It’s modeled after the highly elaborate knives that Argentinian gauchos (cowboys) were known for. Historically there were a variety of subtypes, but this style is the among the most popular.
Typically they are decorated in a variety of repousse patterns, ranging from geometric to representative motifs. Ours has a handle and matching scabbard decorated with various South American birds including Torcaz, Calandria, Monjita, P. Flor, Cardenal and Zorzal.
It is 10 inches long and features a pointed single edged blade. Although the balance is decent and the clip on the scabbard suggests it’d be good for arming yourself for close quarters work it’d probably be better used as a letter opener or conversation piece.
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This great little cast iron bank shows two late 19th century patent dates (March 1, 1887 and February 15, 1888). Given the stuff it came in with I’m sure it is actually an antique and not a modern copy. I estimate that it was probably made around 1900.
It has embossed decorations on all sides and four cast legs on the base. There is a slot in the top where you can drop coins in and inside is a little diverter to make it hard to shake the coins back out when you need bus fare.
It stands 4 1/2 inches tall 3 1/2 inches deep and 3 3/4 inches wide and is in excellent condition. In looking at some of the old catalogs in my personal collection this bank probably originally sold for $1 to $1.50.
It was locked when it came in, but I managed to crack the combination which brings my professional safe cracking career record to 2-1*.
To be honest it wasn’t that hard to do so I wouldn’t recommend actually storing anything truly valuable inside.
*The first safe I opened for the warehouse was stuffed full of all sorts of valuable stuff. Although it was donated to us and hence the contents were probably ours in the eyes of the law we returned the items to the family of the donor. This shows that the law is an inelegant creature that deserves to be ignored periodically.
The next safe I never did manage to get into. I tried and tried but never got it to open. I even considered peeling the safe but one look at the asbestos fire insulation between the shell and the interior convinced my that it wasn’t going to be worth the effort. I still presume it was empty.
Things haven’t changed much at Grey Gardens since the fall of Camelot.
The lawn remains uncut, the fence still needs repair and the bushes are frightfully overgrown.
This is the second original painting by Gene Waggoner that we’ve had in the last year. The first one was an item we featured in a fundraising sale last October. It was more of a haunted house picture than this one (photo in slide show below). This is a small work measuring 13 1/2 inches by 16 1/2 inches in an ornate oval frame.
Gene Waggoner was an accomplished oil painter who specialized in scenes of rural life, especially barn-scapes, fishing villages and old building. He taught painting classes and published several instructional books in the 1980’s Susan Scheewe Publishing, Portland, Oregon.
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The intersection of form and function often needs traffic control devices or a nice police officer to direct traffic. However, sometimes things work out so that there isn’t a disastrous and ungainly collision. This juicer by Alessi is a good example of when things work, both functionally and aesthetically.
The story is that the designer was eating squid one day in 1990, and squeezing lemons ,when he started rethinking how citrus reamers work and look. The basic model of the reamer was essentially unchanged in the preceding 65 years (as we’ve seen before). Phillipe Starck started drawing on his napkin, beginning with a squid and modifying the look until he ended up with this streamline design.
It is 11 1/2 inches tall and about 5 1/2 inches in diameter. It is cast aluminum and it is in excellent condition.
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We have recently gotten two old globes. One of them is less old than the other and simply shows that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics still controls much of Asia. We know this predates the dissolution of the USSR in 1990 but post-dates the end of the American war in Vietnam in 1973. We’ve had similar ones in the past and they’re not that unusual, even though they’re interesting to check out. $15
The other one is quite a bit older and shows a vastly different period in time.
This is the Replogle Air-Ways globe (10 inch size). It shows all the world’s major airline routes and political subdivisions of the day. It was made somewhere in the late 1930′s or early 1940′s (see this 1943 sales advertisement). It is in good condition and sits in a cardboard stand (to save on metals for wartime use?). The stand is printed with a horizon ring that shows travel time based on a 300 M.P.H. flying speed. We also have a piece that goes into a peg at the North Pole and acts as a scale (at 300 M.P.H.) for Great Circle flying distance and time.
While it’s pretty neat to think that 300 M.P.H. was once the upper limit of air travel speed I personally find it most interesting to see how the world was once divided. Check out the footprints of European colonialism in Africa and Southeast Asia and the radically differently structured Middle East in the slide show below. $50
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We have a three matching pieces in this late 1940′s Birdseye maple bedroom set. All of the pieces are in great condition.
On the left is a very nice, tall, four drawer chest of drawers. It is 44 inches tall, 32 1/2 inches wide and 19 1/2 inches deep. SOLD!
In the center is a nightstand. Unfortunately we only have one of these. It is 27 1/2 inches tall, 15 3/4 inches wide and 13 1/2 inches deep. SOLD!
On the right is a vanity dressing chest with a center drawer and four other drawers. Now SOLD! In the interests of honesty the upper right drawer in this piece was the residence of one the largest daddy long legs I’ve ever seen. By the time I returned with the tools to evict it from its home the daddy long legs had fled and I couldn’t find it. If you any aversion to spiders or spider-like insects I can not guarantee that this piece is not the residence of a deadly poisonous jungle spider which will mate with a local species, take over your home, ruin your medical practice and be on the way to world domination before you and some colorful local townspeople intervene and save the world. It’s highly improbable but I can’t guarantee it won’t happen.
The vanity is 46 inches wide and 19 1/2 inches deep. The table surface is about 30 inches tall but only because it has been raised onto casters that lift it about 2 1/2 inches (they would be easy to remove if needed). The mirror is a 38 inches wide by 36 inches tall rectangle so you should be able to see the humongous egg laden queen spider sneaking up behind you. More specifically, you’ll be able to see it as long as you’re not wearing a red shirt or have friends who need just a little nudge to become heroes. . .
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Another rare donation of power tools, this time a gas powered edger by McLane.
The donors stated that they had a hard time getting it to start. The gas tank is empty so I’m unable to fully test it, but it turns over and seems to have good compression. I think that it’s fixable and probably just need new gas, good priming and maybe some slight carburetion adjustment. But, you know, all sales are as is and final so there is some risk on your part. That’s why we’re only asking $50.
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I’ve made it a policy of the Estate Store that we don’t hold items and we don’t have special arrangements with folks (the if you see a ___, call me sort of thing*). That said my neighbor has been asking me to find him one of these for at least a year. Luckily for you he’s expended all his political capital (something to do with methamphetamines, stimulant psychosis and a police standoff**) so I’m incredibly happy to offer it to the public instead.
*I’m also perpetually disorganized and would just mess up any such list. If I could charge for it to cover the costs of paying someone who’s not a disorganized wreck to watch over it I might reconsider the idea.
**A standoff where they wouldn’t let anyone on the block out of their houses and then gave up and went home. I can’t string together enough [expletives deleted] together to describe it.
Coincidentally I just read Pliny the Younger’s account of the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius that resulted in the destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum. It’s chilling stuff.
As a result it took me a minute to realize that this was a high quality stove top espresso maker rather than a twisted gag gift:
Dear Cousin Pompeiius, I have enclosed a coffee maker for your household, please make sure your brother Herculaneum is around the first time you use it, with great affection etc.
Made in Italy by Vesuviana our specimen seems to be in good condition. We haven’t tested it but if one were to have problem it would be failed seals, which are still commercially available. It stands about 8 inches tall and it is probably a three or four cup model.
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