Antique-shop.com
Antiques! => Antique Questions Forum => Topic started by: luxetveritas on July 15, 2009, 06:29:37 PM
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Okay, so, I don't know about the rest of you, but I've hit a real dry spell this year as far as getting good deals- which is totally ironic considering the economy. But anyone, estate and garage sales, flea markets, thrift shops and the Goodwill just aren't giving me much these past few months. For some inspiration, why don't we all list our top three or so finds ever, these can include eBay deals, garage sales, estate sales, thrift stores, dumps :), etc! If you want, just for more "shock and awe", list the values of each piece and how much you payed for them!
I'll start out by listing my top three. I haven't had many, but here it goes!:
1.) By far the best find I've had is a small collection of six Qianlong porcelain vases and one bowl. I found these at an estate sale a few years ago for $5 a piece. The kids of an older man who had passed away were selling his treasures he had collected during his many trips to the Orient (or so they said that's where he had gotten most of his things). I had a box they handed me at the front door and was making my way though the house. I put the six pieces immediately in the box and was excited to see what else I could find. He had really quite a large collection. Unfortunately the vases were the only things worth mentioning I found, but was thrilled. The whole time I wondered what I should give them for the vases, for those of you who don't know, $5 for a Qianlong vase is a once in a lifetime opportunity. At the end of my walk-through I stopped by a case of jewelry that was for sale. In it was the man's wedding band. It was cut in half by a pair of pliers. The kids actually cut the ring off his finger to sell it for 60 bucks. I was astounded, and ended up taking the vases and the bowl for the price listed. I think that's one of the worst things you can do to your dead father... cut his wedding ring off his dead finger to pawn when you don't need the money desperately and couldn't care less about keeping it as a family heirloom. Anyway, I spent $25 for the vases and the bowl, each one is worth about $750!
2.) A little while ago I found a Russian samovar on Craigslist for $75, they sell for $400 on eBay.
3.) Also a Craigslist find, a blue willow tea cup from the early 19th for only $5. Not terribly valuable, but a really cool find.
I'm looking forward to see what everyone else has found during their collecting experiences! My last two aren't great, but still my favorite finds. Your turn!
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Here are my top three in no particular order:
My Chinese wedding bed. I paid $1,000 for it from a seller on Craigslist, which is by far the most I have ever paid for an antique, but I had been looking for one of these that I could afford and when I saw it, it was love at first site. It is covered with beautifully carved dragons, phoenix and scenes from the Chinese opera. I recently contacted a pair of Chinese antique dealers who produce a very helpful line of online videos about Chinese antiques. They looked at my photos and said that the bed is over 100 years old and from the Fujian Province in southern China. I just got a preliminary insurance value from one of them for $2,000 - $3,000 but he said that he wanted to check with his partner on that, so I will update this with the final value ASAP. (And yes, I do sleep in it! It's OK, everybody asks me that!)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/ChineseBed29.jpg)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/ChineseBed24.jpg)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/ChineseBed34.jpg)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/ChineseBed31.jpg)
Next is my ancient Egyptian New Kingdom bronze ring. I don't recall exactly how much I paid for it on Ebay, but I recall it wasn't much. The seller posted only a side view of the ring, but said it was inscribed with hieroglyphs. So I took a bit of a risk and bid on it. I've since shown it to 5 different Egyptologists, all of whom said they believed it to be genuine. The hieroglyphs read "Hes nefer Amun Ra" which translates as "High praise of Amun Ra". The funny thing is that the band is very worn and quite obviously worn during life. But there is a large corrosion stain under the bezel where it laid against the finger of the mummy it was on. I was told this is unusual for grave good to have been worn during life. I think the ring must have been deeply treasured. This ring was donated to a museum in 1900 that didn't have an Egyptian collection, sat in storage for years, the Egyptian items were purchased by a professor who died and his estate was being sold on Ebay. No idea of the value, it's history alone is priceless to me!
(http://www.talesofthesevenseas.com/Jewelry9.jpg)
Next is my carousel horse. This comes from the Happy Hollow carousel in San Jose CA, which I used to ride as a child in the 60's. The carousel dates to 1948. We bought it for $150 in the 1970's. I can remember climbing up into the loft of the barn the horses were stored in and seeing them all in rows in the dim light. They looked magical up there and I got to pick my horse from the herd. Recently the park sold several of these they still had in storage. The highest of went for $2,000 and it wasn't in nearly as good a condition as mine is. The horse was made by Arrow Development Co. and still has it's original 1948 factory paint. You can see the "A" on his chest.
(http://www.talesofthesevenseas.com/Eclipse1.JPG)
(http://www.talesofthesevenseas.com/Eclipse2.JPG)
(http://www.talesofthesevenseas.com/Eclipse3.JPG)
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Wow tales that is some really nice finds, One day when I get beyond my nick nacks, I have some equal tales to give ;D.
1. I walk into a thrift/crafts shop, look at a few items and was asked what I am looking for. "silverplated flatware is mostly what I coll ........ I replied, well I have abox of old silverware in the back. She brought a box of say about 60 pieces of mixed silverware, I glance and said how much for the box (rookie move) :o. I paid $30.00 which is my top for a box of 60, of course I didn't count them either (rookie move #2). I paid and happily walk out. Well at least the rookie moves didn't matter this time. Half the box was Sterling, and a few grapes too.
2. For #2 I will just make it #3 too is I have found lots of items that I paid under $1.00 that are worth the $20.00 and $30.00. too many to count.
If you want some thrift store tricks, I learned many and from the best, Family of thrift shop junkies and a lady friend that use to be worse then me ;D
they won't find you the big $$$$ Item but they will pay for a great thrift shop hobby.
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I'd have to say that in over 4 decades of doing this stuff , primarily as a side-line , the coolest deal is that I have made many loyal friends & trusting/trustworthy customers ( even when things get a little heated-up ) who are welcome in my home (and vise-versa) ; relationships that have transcended the transactional ones .
In the world of actual item/commodity transactions , a friend/business partner and I purchased 3 complete crops of syncopated bearing Shamouti (Jaffa) oranges (and delt with all the 'arrangements' ourselves) , sold them in the Middle-East & walked away with nearly a 1/4M. apiece .
They were the best of the best that year .
We tracked and studied individual orange crops in the Middle-East for 8 years before we made the move , and I still think we were exceptionally LUCKY , in that our statistical projections & models panned out just right .
There's more to the story , needless to say , but it was pretty much my biggest one-time 'buy & sell' hit .
I'm waiting to see which I'll call #3 ....
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Wow, beautiful bed Tales. I love Chinese furniture- and I checked out those videos you were talking about, very helpful. I have a friend who has a Chinese cabinet and I want to try some of the dating techniques from those videos to see if it is really old- looks like it :) Is it usual for the wedding beds to be so tall? I don't really know since I haven't seen many, but it seems like a rural home in China wouldn't have such high ceilings- am I wrong? I really have no idea, just curious. But then again, this certainly doesn't look like a rural piece, although what I have seen on Fujian province is. Such a cool bed. I want one now :) --Also, that is the nicest Egyptian ring I have seen! Now that is a valuable piece of history! I have seen a few of those in a book I have on the treasures of Tutankhamen. Neat piece, as is the carousel- good deal!
Ironlord, that is a great deal on that box of "plated" silverware! I am interested to here your thifting techniques. Also, buying $20-30 pieces for less than a dollar adds up REALLY fast. I am trying that, but haven't had the best of luck.
Oranges! That's not an antique :P Jk Joe, that's a great investment. You remind me of my brother and his coffee plant investments :) I don't think he makes 1/4 of a million though! That's an excellent return! I tried salsa once, no clue why, but I was living in California and it just seemed to fit :) I still have hundreds of labels left.
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Thanks all!
Lux, my bed is actually shorter than some of the Chinese wedding beds. Some of them are VERY elaborate with tall fronts on the top of them. Chinese brides brought them with them into a marriage and during the day they would roll back their sleeping mats and serve tea to friends on a low kang table. They served as a room within a room, and I've heard tales of grandmas who would take the children in to tell them traditional Chinese tales. Some of them are incredibly ornate and even have a second entry room to the bed! Run a search for Chinese bed and you should see a lot of examples for sale. If you get one, I want to see photos! ;D I absolutely love mine. They are surprisingly sturdy and they make you feel like there is no place more wonderful in the world to be, when you curl up in one and fall asleep! There is something so wonderful about that!
RegularJoe, that was really interesting about the oranges! Wow!
Ironlord, neat story on the silver! Can you elaborate on why asking for the box price was a rookie move? Also what are grapes?
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Liked all the stories !
The horsie reminded me of the ones I rode in Balboa Park , (San Diego , Ca.) as a kid .
...and ironlord , getting sterling from ANY thrift store the way you did is NOT a rookie mistake ... that's the kind of thing that earns you merit badges !!!
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Sorry lux, I meant that I didn't even look at them before asking and paying for the box, just grab and run is the rookie move. Grapes are flatware with grapes on them, popular in the turn of the century about the most collected of the flatware.
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Got it! Thanks Ironlord!
RegularJoe I looked up the Balboa Park carousel, it is a beauty! It was carved in 1910 by the Herschell-Spillman Company. That's a famous name in carousel circles. My horse was part of the brief "next generation" technology between wooden carousel animals and fiberglass. Mine is cast iron and doesn't have the high value of the wooden ones. $2K was the highest of the six or so horses that were auctioned, the lowest went for under 1K. The company that made it, Arrow Development Co was founded by two guys who were WWII buddies and took their metal fabrication skills into building carousels after the war. They went on to build some of the classic rides at Disneyland. I can post more info if this is of further interest on a different thread.
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Oh, I had a guess that grapes referred to flatware with that particular motif. I have a silver on copper grape two handled platter I've been meaning to sell. Perhaps I'll try out some of the time mentioned above ;)
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I'm on a very limited income, so anything I buy of any value has to be a particularly good deal for me to end up owning it. That said, here are three items that stand out in memory as quite a good return on investment.
When I was around 12 years old (circa early to mid 1990's) and already an antique freak, my dad told me about some people he'd met that were selling some stuff. He described one of the items as an old ship picture, and as he know I was into old sailing ships he brought me out to look at it. It was at an old house out in the country down a gravel road. The idem was a late nineteenth century lithograph of the "Great International Naval Review" a part of the Colombian Exposition of 1892. The subject was steaming warships from many different country's in a great parade near Washington D.C. It even listed the nations attending and named the ships. It was in a beautiful hand carved frame. They wanted $75 for it, but that was out of my league as a twelve year old with a summer job. I offered them thirty dollars and they took it. I've been told the litho is worth about $500, I don't know about the frame. I've enjoyed looking at in on my wall for many years now.
I recently bought a leather bound book on Ebay called "Notices OF The Emperor Charles The Fifth", by William Sterling. It is only fifty-six pages long, and says it is one of only 25 copys made (for the Philobiblon Society of London, 1858). It is printed on what looks like handmade rag paper, and printed very much in the manner of a book from the eighteenth century. For example, the old english "f" is used for the lower case "s".
It has an inscription on the title page reading "Presented by the author to Charles Sumner, then to George Livermore Aug 1 '60". It appears to be in Sumners handwriting.
Charles Sumner was a famous abolitionist Senator from Boston, nearly beaten to death on the floor of the Senate by a Senator from NC prior to the Civil War. George Livermore was a wealthy Boston merchant, abolitionist, antiquarian book collector and armature historian. He wrote a book about the contributions of free African Americans to society. I don't recall the title. It has been said by "some" historians that a copy of his book was given to President Lincoln (by Sumner), who read it frequently while drawing up the Emancipation proclamation. What is know by all historians is that Lincoln gave Livermore the pen with which he signed that historic document.
I have no idea what its worth. I can't find the book online (obviously, so few copys were made). Sumner would have been the only American to receive one, and the surviving others are probably tucked away in the private libraries of descendants of the intellectual aristocracy to whom they were given. Also there is the provenance of its owners to consider. I paid $12 for it. If anyone has an inkling about its worth I wouldn't object to hearing your thoughts.
Lastly, I sometimes go to an antique store a few blocks away from my home and look around. I came across a matching set of fourteen works of science printed in the 1890's. I took in a deep breath of air when I saw that "Origin Of The Species" was among them. Any old copy's of that work are always of at least some monetary value, and I'd never been able to afford one online. I tried to buy only those (my "Origin" is two volumes) and was told that I would have to buy the whole set. With a grim set to my jaw I asked how much they wanted for the set. I got the whole lot of very interesting nineteenth century science classics for $20. Worth as it turns out a good $500, more if sold individually.
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O.K. , well .... moved this back up the list ....
I made a great deal for myself (and 3 for clients too) & finalised the deals this morning .
Everything signed & sealed .
All that's left is the delivery !
I'll be posting images , after I get this thing in my sweaty little hands .
I'm guessing a couple of weeks , what with customs , international etcs. to deal with .
It's rare when/if I get pumped up about a deal anymore , but this one is a real winner .
I'll keep you in suspenders until I post it .
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My late Father got all the deals. Six foot jeweler's walnut wall hanging regulatior clock for $150. I remember at an antique show in Omaha I begged him to buy a matched pair of signed (base and leaded glass shade) Tiffany small leaded glass lamps. Drews wanted $1,500 each. I begged him to buy them but my Mother talked him out of it. I think they were two bulb. Beautiful lamps. Today I'm lucky to be able to afford a Bradley and Hubbard lamp. ;D
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regularjoe we are still suspended.....any hints?
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I guess it's not mine until it's in my hands , KC ...'things' can happen when an object is in transit !
I will say that not too many people in the world own one of these items .
Looks like I'll be the only one who owns two .
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Sorry all, I've been go for a while but got back tonight. Anyway, excited to here about this new deal :D Hm... what could it be... I do know one thing, you seem to get pretty darn lucky with the deals if you ask me!! (Jealous face). I'm lucky if I can even find a clay poker chip these days :P Jk. Looking forward to hearing this one, regularjoe!
-Lux
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Thanks lux ....
I assure you that it makes my 'list' !
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The suspense is KILLING US! When are ya gonna spill the beans?!! ;D
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As soon as I get the pot o' beans in my hands & take a few pics to post , talesof ...
Boy Scouts' honor , I promise , swear on a stack of buddas , etc .
This thing was purchased from a far away place , so it will take a couple of weeks to get here .
I will take pics of the 2 things together , side-by-side , and tell (most of) the story .
Sorry to be such a tease .... but if I gotta wait , everybody else does too .
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What if the ship goes down? Will we ever know?
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Let us hope not for we will have 4 + pages to this Thread ;D, And I will get lost rereading all the post
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While we're waiting for RegularJoe's Mystery Score to arrive, here's another wee bit of inspiration...
I got this Chinese cabinet on Craigslist for $99 bucks:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet2.jpg)
Up close on the inlay on the doors:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet3.jpg)
Hardware on the big doors:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet4.jpg)
Hardware on the smaller doors:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet5.jpg)
Wear marks on the drawer openings from the rails of the drawers:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet6.jpg)
Interior door, multi-piece construction on the lower doors:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet9.jpg)
Old laquer, wear, wood shrinkage:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet7.jpg)
Interior more wear, wood shrinkage. (That little alter was $30, and the two old architectural foo dogs were $30. Paid more for the opera doll!)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet8.jpg)
And finally, here's the sales tag that came with it from the antique dealer that the seller purchased it from:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet11.jpg)
Not too bad for $99 bucks!
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Wow, taleofthesevenseas, $99 is an amazing price!
You certainly make the most out of Craigslist (I also liked the cabinet you bought off CL and restored [mentioned/pictured on another thread], you did a great job restoring it).
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Cool cabinet , talesof .
Very nice sub $100 CL score !
Every little once in awhile there's some pearls to be found on CL , for certain !
I like to check out the ads there during the middle & end of the month ( folks moving , short on cash & so on ) .
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Hello Everyone,
I am new at this but I thought I would give it a shot. I welcome your comments on the value though!!! I am only listing 1 but possibly more to come, need to research a few others that I found before sharing.
I found a 1844 Goodwin's "Water Pitcher" at my favorite thrift store for $3.00. Photos to follow. I was so excited that I emailed regularjoe2 to let him know about it. Well here we go regularjoe....photo's as promised.
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Good for you , DANTE5 !
Looks like you found a winner !
No cracks in it ? ( I hope not ! )
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regularjoe2...Unfor tunately YES !!!. See photo, please let me know what you think about this crack, i.e. how much of the value you think it may deminish it.
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Thanks guys! My hubby has started calling me "Queen of Craigslist"!!
Beautiful pitcher Dante5, even with the hairline crack. I think I'd turn it to the wall and pretend I'd never seen it! :D
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talesof...Yes you can barely see the hairline crack. My detail image picked up on it but you really would have to look hard for it.
Also..great!! find you found on CL. Keep up the good work.
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Yes it's amazing how the camera picks up on every flaw... it does that to me too!!!!!!! :o
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Here's an up close on those old foo dog architectural features. They are very worn from being out in the weather for many years, apparently guarding a gate or doorway somewhere. Now they have an easier life where it doesn't rain...inside my room! I like that they have little wings on them. Definitely a sign of dogs with good karma!!
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/Cabinet10.jpg)
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A little update .... my "item" just arrived .
I will uncrate it in a little while & post pics a little later on today .
Yippie skippy !
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Great!! Can't wait to see it. It's the old saying.."You talked it up" :)
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Off with the suspenders .
I'll let them speak for themselves .
(see following post for more info)
#1 of 7 , #? of 7 , and both of them together .
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Anyone unfamiliar with this can check out my 'art history mystery' post in this forum .
This is the first time , ever , that two of this series has been posted on-line , side-by-side .
You folks are the first to see them together (besides me , of course) .
My shocked art conservator is coming over tonight with her little kit ; she'll disassemble the unit & we'll (hopefully) discover which # this painting is , in the series .
I am looking forward to tossing a log on the campfires in France .
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Awesome! Congratulations!! :o
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regularjoe...WOW!! certainly worth the wait. I understand why you would take to the sky. Great job!! :)
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Well, you have done it again! How you managed to get yet ANOTHER one beats me! I am flaberghasted. I won't ask you to share your secrets (although it would be nice :P) but congrats to you Joe. Simply amazing... another. If I may ask just one question, did you purchase this one at the same price you got the other for ;) ? And one more question I guess... was this an eBay find :P One of these days, maybe as you're on your deathbead checking up on the forum (hopefully no time soon :) ) you're gonna have to share your success secrets with us. This just blows my mind...
And Tales, your find is amazing! Are the foo dogs attached? I have seen antique wooden ones go for $500 on even eBay! (from Chamberlain antiques). I love Chinese furniture, but haven't found too many pieces myself for a good deal. However, a good friend of mine owns a ranch with a piece of really old property on it. In the house is a small cabinet that I believe is from at least 18th century China- I sent pictures to a friend at Sotheby's who agrees that it is probably late 18th century. The owner was offering the cabinet at a garage sale for $25 about five years ago and no one bought it. I only just saw it the other day and will be getting it soon- as the house is being cleaned out in preparation for a small wedding service of all things! The cabinet was just lying tipped over on the floor, and he asked me if I wanted it. It's a really beautiful piece- I'll take some pictures once I finish repairing it (no varnish or anything like that, just cleaning it and fixing the doors and drawers). The cool aspect of the cabinet is that it's all hand carved with motifs of the countryside. A rather upscale piece of Chinese furniture I think. Can't wait to have it finished! ...Just have to wait for another book to arrive that will help with the door that has fallen off.
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Thanks for your comments , talesof , DANTE5 & lux .
I was stunned to find it .
I was prepared to pay way more than 150X what I did .
The seller , who really should have done a little research , did not do said research .
If this is not an example (another exact) of "Let the Seller Beware" I don't know what is .
My Art Conservator is still aghast , esp. since all my involvement with the first .
I do claim credit for having a very good 'radar-network system' when it comes to finding specific items ; the rest however , I really can't explain in very rational terms .
Suffice to say that , along with a few other things - I've had a long run of dumb luck happening around me .
The really big deal to me is that this new painting goes a long way towards changing a hypothesis into a valid & evidential theory . Many questions about the validity of origin in the body of work by the artist have new evidence that is now under scrutiny ( by 'experts' , some of whom were somewhat misled by assumptive opinions ) .
My homage to Elisabeth Sonrel is to bring to light these examples of her work that had been forgotten , and have them added to the 'book' on her history .
The fact that she did no other 'limited edition' series (that have been discovered , to date) painted in her own hand says something about them .
She was 38 when she painted the original , and 30 years later , chose to paint these .
The next chapter in the story is to find out "why?" .
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Congratulations regularjoe2! What a find! You deserve the wait (although it was killing us) and the exciting anticipation to spring this on us.
I imagine you did a dance around the room several times! (Wish someone had been there with a video!)
Words can't convey enough the way I am so happy for you! The adventure continues.......
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The Artist would certainly, be proud to know you spent so much time in searching & bringing to light her lost Art. I admire your tenacity. it just prove's the ''expert's'' don't know it all.
Nice work!
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Thank you very much for your encouragement , KC & D&b .
I am planning to do the dance when I find all 7 of them .
I have a couple of leads overseas for one more ... we'll see if they are like many others (dead-ends) .
In the image :the woman in the upper left is Elisabeth Sonrel (so I'm told) , in her early career & "youth".
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Apart from just being able to find a good deal, it helps to have the capital to buy the darn thing! I recently saw a Rubricated manuscript in it's original stamped leather binding with metal clasps corners and ornamentation (circa late 1400's) sell on Ebay for $400. The seller didn't know what they had. Easily worth $10,000 (half of what I make in a year). Didn't have the money to buy it :'(.
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Well that O.k., one can just have a much fun on $20.00, got me a 12 items, One a Spode, a little Staffordshire, and a few other cool items, I think I have $50.00 worth of stuff and priceless amount of learning with them, give me a few years And I will be buying up those one of a kind priceless pieces worth 140K, but I better know it is a 140K piece for sure, thats what that $20.00 today is really paying for. ;D
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Regularjoe you' have too keep us posted. this is one of history's mystery's you now have two of seven known limited edition print's, that supposedly never existed.
The seven being the first one you ''Discovered'' you know if it had not been marked as one of seven 1/7 you may never have found a mystery to solve. the other's may never be found....
But we know you' will go on. you have my support.
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You can bank on me keeping updates on this little project here , D&b .
Goes to show a person does not know what might just be around the next corner !
And just between you & me , D&b - I bought the last one for $50.00 (plus all the shipping/handling/insurance & etc. & etc. that had to be tacked on , darn it !) .
(No brag , just fact.)
::) ::) ::) ::) ::)
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o $50!
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Yup ...
well , actually it was $49.99 .
I didn't feel like paying 50.
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Tightwad! :)
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"I yam what I yam" - quote attributed to - 'Popeye , the sailor-man' .
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You are very fortunate to find such a find at such a great buy! Definitely something to be proud of...you deserve bragging rights!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Keep us informed!
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You continue to surprise me :) Congratulations once more on your awesome find! And Skinny, if you find another such eBay auction, you should send me a message :) I would be more than willing to pay the $400, sell, and split it half and half with you! ;) I love antique manuscripts/books, just don't know a whole lot about them.
Mind posting a link to the ended auction? I am getting interested :D
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You continue to surprise me :) Congratulations once more on your awesome find! And Skinny, if you find another such eBay auction, you should send me a message :) I would be more than willing to pay the $400, sell, and split it half and half with you! ;) I love antique manuscripts/books, just don't know a whole lot about them.
Mind posting a link to the ended auction? I am getting interested :D
I guess it ended to long ago to find it on finished listings. It was a few months ago I guess. She was a beauty though. A few hundred more dollars spent getting some minor flaws repaired on the binding and researching what it was about and who wrote it and where it was printed etc, and it would have been a valuable book indeed. If I happen to run across a once in a lifetime find like that twice in a lifetime, I'll let you know :)
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Thanks Skinny :D I'm still waiting for my great eBay find. Although, if you search on the German eBay you can find antiquarian books for much cheaper than in the US. Some 17th century books sell for only about 12 euros!!
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Speaking of old books, I have a neat, but not too valuable find coming my way- a grouping of four antique children's school books, the earliest of which is pre-Civil War, dating to the 1850's. The owner of the books tried unsucessfully to sell them on Ebay and could not interest a book seller in them. The condition apparently isn't that great. She posted them for free on Craigslist, saying she wanted them to go to someone who would truly be interested in having them. She said that she simply couldn't stand to just throw them out.
As it happens, I'm writing a novel, and I'm right at a part that is set in a rural Victorian schoolhouse where the books are old hand-me-downs, and a child's primer is going to play an important role in the scene. So I will be able to write one of these books directly into the story. It always helps to have the real thing to work from like this! In exchange for her gift of the books, I'll be sending her a copy of my book when it is done. So it kind of a neat trade!
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That is so cool, Tales! I tried writing a book... well, several books... but I never get close to finishing them, lol. It's really hard to keep your momentum after a while, at least I find. Like some days, I'll be writing really well, and then other days words come out in big piles of sludge :) Hopefully that doesn't happen to you. It can be a real annoyance and ends up waisting you time. If you don't mind me asking, are you going to have it published, or is it just for fun? Looking forward to hearing more on your ongoing project! It is always fun to hear the writer's process :)
--Lux
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I've had pretty good luck being published already, I've published magazine and newspaper articles, plus a couple of radio pieces. I've also had some of my work reprinted in other folks books and I'm a full-time technical writer. But this is my first attempt at a novel. Normally the process is to interest a literary agent before writing the book. But with my situation of working full time and having a disabled husband, I did not want to put additional pressure on myself by having a deadline to meet. I wanted this novel to be a labor of love and it truly has been an absolute joy for me to write. I haven't become bogged down at all, it's become an obsession instead, which to me, is the best way to write, when the story just flows through my fingertips like utter madness! So I'm going at it a bit backwards by writing it first. If I am unable to interest a literary agent, I'll self-publish. I'm about 3/4 of the way through now. It's been great, my brain has been living in the late 1880's since January! LOL!
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That is so cool, Tales! Keep up the good work, I wish you great luck in getting it published!
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Skinny/anyone else who is interested: here is a really interesting book I found on eBay. I have no clue if it is exceedingly valuable, but it sure looks darn cool- and if you read the description of the book I think it would be an super entertaining thing to read- esp. for a doctor :)
http://cgi.ebay.com/MEDIEVAL-MEDICINE-Herbal-Medical-Magic-Alchemy-1538_W0QQitemZ170369193892QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAntiquarian_Collectible?hash=item27aacb97a4&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ht_6214wt_1165
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I just got the antique schoolbooks mentioned above- They are wonderful! Not from a value standpoint, as they are very brittle, but for their content, which is what my interest in them is.
One of them in particular is a reader, that is full of pictures and little poems with upstanding morals. Very, very cute. There are little notes tucked in between a few of the pages. One is a little "reward card" that says:
"This little card
is for trying hard
not to whisper any
and it pleased many."
Kids have written in the margins and from the point of view of getting a glimpse back in time, this book in particular is absolutely charming. The books date from 1856 to the 1870's and from the dates that children wrote in them, they seem to have been in use as late as 1912. These are REALLY FUN!! I will post some photos ASAP.
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OK this is too wierd...
I was looking in that reader and realized it was printed by my Great-Great-Great-Grandfather, George Curtis Rand, of the printing firm George C. Rand & Avery. What are the odds of that?!!! I about fell off my chair when I saw it! George C. Rand & Avery seems to have been a large enough firm that had I looked online, I could have tracked down a book printed by him for sale online without too much difficulty, but to have one given to me by a complete stranger when I wasn't looking for one of his books? I think the odds of that must be miniscule!
To think that his book would find me, 153 years later!! Whoa! :o
GOD I LOVE OLD STUFF!!!! ;D
Here's his photo and a bit about the company from his obituary:
(http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~syafam/Richardson/GeorgeCRand.jpg)
In 1842 he formed with Mr. Andrew Reid the partnership of Reid & Rand, at No. 3 Cornhill. The two partners constituted the working force, and a single handpress, with a small quantity of type, forming the plant. The firm shortly afterwards purchased The Sunday School Messenger, and later The Sunday School Teacher, both of the publications being sanctioned by the Methodist-Episcopal Church, and they were later on sold to the Methodist Book concern of New York City. At the end of three years, Mr. Rand purchased Mr. Reid's interests and continued under the firm name of George C. Rand & Co.
In 1852 he secured the printing of Uncle Tom's Cabin, the great demand for which necessitated constant enlargement of his facilities -- 800,000 volumes of these were printed at this time. The undertaking involved the running of the office night and day, requiring Mr. Rand's presence the greater portion of the time. Although the work at this time gave him a leading position in the trade, and was undoubtedly the foundation of much of his future success, yet it was gained at the expense of his health, and the overtaxing of his energies developed a physical trouble which for years rendered him a invalid, and which in the end materially shortened his life.
In 1854 his brother-in-law, Mr. Abraham Avery, was admitted to partnership, and from that date until 1867 the imprint of the firm name, George C. Rand & Avery, was known all over New England, and, in fact, in most of the cities of the east where books were published. The entire block, extending from No. 3 Cornhill to Dock Square, and from Cornhill to Brattle Street, a building six stories in height, was required for the business.
In 1867 the firm was changed to Rand, Avery & Frye, by the admission of Mr. Rand's nephew, Mr. Orrin F. Frye, and in 1871, following Mr. Frye's death, to Rand, Avery & Co., another nephew, Mr. John C. Rand, and a son, Mr. Avery Lewis Rand joining the firm. At this time Mr. Rand was compelled by ill health to retire from the active management of the business.
Photos of the books ASAP!!
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A little more about the printing of Uncle Tom's Cabin:
Before Mr. Avery's advent the business had, in a small way, secured the confidence of one or two book publishers. One day in 1852 a gentleman still doing business in Boston, but then in charge of the book work of the publishing house of John P. Jewett & Co., brought in the manuscript of Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Toms' Cabin" for an estimate on a two and a five thousand edition. Mr. Rand after figuring a minute, passed his notes to Mr. Avery, who, after a brief close scrutiny, remarked: "That's all right, George, we can swing it."
A price was given and a time for delivery; these were accepted, and the result was that for six months, night and day, these printers were kept busy with this work. The editions followed each other with unexampled rapidity, and author, publisher and printer, reaped a golden harvest.
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That is really cool stuff tales, I can see the family resemblence, LOL sorry just had too. Actually in the writtings :P, you sure have type a book or two here on the forum, just look at this Thread 5 pages and growing. I can see the lineage of the writtings. I like you stuff and information and stories keep it up add lots of cool spice, and you have one really nice knocker too ;D. Good thing you can't slap via the net :P , actually your a pirate please at least spare me the plank ;D
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Wow this thread is #1 on the list of replies, Talesofthesevenseas you rock, I'm happy you are aboard our Ship.
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Gosh spoke to soon, Lux started this thread. Lux you rock too. Boy I'm starting to fell that plank under my foot, better just go back to my book :-\
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LOL IronLord!
Here's the four books I got the reader is in the lower right corner. As mentioned, no significant value on these, just neat in a historic sense.
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook0.jpg)
My great-great-great-grandpa's printing company in the front:
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook4.jpg)
Thrills and excitement galore! Victorian values are taught as babies are tossed from the windows of burning houses!
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook5.jpg)
Falling through the ice! See what happens when you don't listen to your mother?!
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook6.jpg)
More drama...
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook7.jpg)
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook9.jpg)
And the little card left in the book...
(http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x124/talesofthesevenseas/RandBook8.jpg)
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Neat book, and even neater is that it was printed by your great-great-great grandfather! That was such a neat find, did you tell the seller? It almost sounds like fate... Maybe it is an encouragement to help you finish the book :P Hey, you never know, right? Too cool.
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Yes, I did email the seller, and she said "That is so cool. Kind of creepy--who would have known that I would be giving away the books and you found them at that exact time."
The book is coming along nicely, and great-great-great-grandpa's little reader got a lot of press in the school room chapter! It was really fun having the real thing in hand to work from when I wrote it.
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In the course of looking up information about this ancestor, I found something interesting. In 1859 he printed the self-published book of Harriet Wilson. It is titled "Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black". This was the first known printing in America of an African American woman author.