There are a few common reasons why people choose to sell antiques. Each reason comes with its own set of solutions.

Scenario 1:

You’re a collector and you like to cull your collection now and then. This keeps the process interesting and keeps excess clutter from taking over your life.

Details: You know what your items are worth. After all, you’ve been collecting these gizmos for years and you have an eye for provenance.

Solutions:

Your sources may function as outlets. If you spend a lot of time at the model train store talking to the proprietor, find out if he or she will make you an offer. This kind of transaction builds bonds with other collectors, legitimizes the enterprise (whatever it happens to be), and keeps our weird little communities strong. You may also find a fair price here, not to mention a good home for your lovables.

Find an online or print community resource, and see if the publishers will let you post an ad.

Find an online auction site that specializes in your items.

Try to avoid generic outlets like pawn shops or flea markets where buyer knowledge may be broad but not deep. If you have something special, knowledgeable buyers may line up for it, while outsiders may have to be convinced of its worth. For better offers, find the former.

Scenario 2:

You’ve just inherited something, or you’re emptying the house of a relative who’s moving or downsizing, and you’re surrounded by items (tin toys, china plates) that you don’t want but suspect are valuable.

Details: You have no idea what these items are worth. You also may be pressed for time.

Solutions:

Find antiques shops and dealers in your area who can come to your location, view the items, and make you an offer. An additional benefit: Whoever buys the items will also haul them away.

An auction in the home may be an option. Find a dealer who will come to you. The dealer will take a percentage of the proceeds, so if you organize and advertise the sale yourself, you might save money. But you may lose, too—Dealers have contacts among specific antiques communities, whereas the audience you draw on your own may be too general to appreciate the value of your items.

Scenario 3:

You have an item, and you would like to take it somewhere, leave it behind, and walk away with money. An episode of Antiques Roadshow has you eyeing the pottery bowl in your cabinet that has no sentimental value to you, and if you can find that mysterious “auction” those appraisers are always talking about, you’d like to dump the bowl and collect your millions.

Solution:

First, don’t rush. What your item is worth today it will be worth tomorrow. If you really do have a treasure on your hands, get several appraisals from reliable dealers before you commit to selling. Then:

Research antiques auctions taking place in your area and find out how to get your item on the block. (This site is an excellent resource.)

Museums may also have an interest in your piece. Make some calls and find out.

By Erin Sweeney

for Antiques.com

Auction Sept. 16th, 2010  10am

Featuring Bill Blass, Oscar de la Renta, Thea Porter, Carolina Herrera, Missoni, Givenchy, Valentino and many more.

William H. Bunch – Auctions & Appraisals
PA-AU-002314-L
1 Hillman Drive at Route 202 South
0.4 mile south of Route 1 in Chadds Ford, PA
TUESDAY, August 31, 10 AM

Beginning @ 10AM in the WAREHOUSE &

1 PM in the FRONT SHOWROOM
Previews: Monday,

August 2, 9AM – 5PM

Tuesday (Sale day) from 9AM

Please note the 1 PM start time in the front room!

Furniture at 5 PM in the front room!

2 pc mahogany breakfront with Egyptian head mounts

9 pc carved mah French BR set with white antiqued finish

Pierced tin pine pie safe in old paint surface

Sample of bisque figurine and decorated porcelain collection

Furniture at 4:30 PM in the back room, 5 PM in the front.

STERLING SILVER & PLATE, GLASS, CHINA & PORCELAIN, LAMPS, CLOCKS,
NEAT STUFF, JEWELRY,
ARTWORK, FURNITURE INCLUDING
COUNTRY AND VICTORIAN
CUSTOM AND REPRODUCTION, MUCH MORE!
WAREHOUSE @ 10 AM: TOOLS, HOUSEHOLD, COLLECTABLES, 1000’S BOOKS, EPHEMERA, TOYS, DOLLS, MUCH MORE!

*****************************
MULTI-ESTATE DISCOVERY
AUCTION

Tuesday, September 14

Beginning @ 10AM in the WAREHOUSE &
10 AM in the FRONT SHOWROOM

Previews: Monday, September 13 , 9AM – 5PM
Tuesday (Sale day) from 9AM

STERLING SILVER & PLATE, GLASS, CHINA & PORCELAIN, LAMPS, CLOCKS,
NEAT STUFF, JEWELRY,
ARTWORK, FURNITURE INCLUDING
COUNTRY AND VICTORIAN
CUSTOM AND REPRODUCTION, MUCH MORE!
WAREHOUSE @ 10 AM: Our Warehouse is LOADED! TOOLS, HOUSEHOLD, COLLECTABLES, 1000’S BOOKS, EPHEMERA, TOYS, DOLLS, MUCH MORE!

2 Session Multi-Estate
Catalog Auction
Of Fine and Decorative Arts
Beginning at 12 Noon each day,
Monday & Tuesday, September 20th & 21st, 2010

Preview Sunday September 19th from 12 PM to 5 PM
Monday, September 20th from 9 AM to 5 PM
Tuesday, September 21st from 9 AM

On Monday at 12 PM, we will sell 185 lots from a single owner collection of Venetian and other European glass, 41 pcs Gouda pottery, 200 plus pcs of Delft and other Dutch/Continental pottery, to be sold singly and in lots! Also a small collection of above average floral and scenic early 20th c European porcelain by various Limoges, Austrian, German, Czech, and other factories, plus a small but nice collection of Victorian art glass. About 250 lots in total for Monday afternoon!!

On Tuesday, from many Delaware Valley estates, collectors, and private consignors,
500 plus lots of fresh to the market fine art, decorative arts, much more!
Oriental rugs, silver, jewelry, pottery, large selection of fine Chinese porcelain and other Asian decorative arts, 18th-20th c furniture, fine art, works on paper, clocks, 19th c tortoise boxes, fine 18K gold mounted Steuben crystal, George Washington Order of Cincinnati document, Bryant Baker’s “Young Lincoln” in a 10″ bronze casting, folk art steam locomotive, much more!!

Artist List: Japanese woodblock prints, Harry Dunn, George Cope, Seymour Zayon, Charles Jay, Marc Chagall, Philip Jamison, James Whistler, Paul Davis, Arthur Clifton Goodwin, Geoff H Flavelle, James Turner, Henry Harold Vickers, manner of Worthington Whittredge, Samuel Bouquet,Bernardus Petrus Viegers, much more.

1981 Triumph Spitfire with only 33,000 original miles

A fully illustrated catalog will be available by the end of this week on our website at williambunchauctions.com.

Terms: 20% buyer’s premium with 3% cash/check/wire transfer discount, V/MC accepted

LIVE ONLINE BIDDING via LiveAuctioneers.com and AuctionZip.com, 3% fee

MULTI-ESTATE CATALOG AUCTION

TUESDAY, June 22, 12 PM

AN ESTATE COLLECTION OF MUSIC BOXES, HISTORICAL FLASKS, FINE BOOKS AND EPHEMERA, CLOCKS, FURNITURE, JEWELRY, SILVER, ART GLASS, POTTERY, FINE ART, 1920’S TO 1950’S MOVIE POSTERS, PHOTOS, AND EPHEMERA, MUCH MORE!!

Grif Teller, American, 1899-1993, o/c, 38″ x 57″, “”Speed, Safety, and Comfort”, southbound electric passenger train at Claymont, Delaware, Milepost 19.5.” Original artwork for the 1936 PRR calendar, depicting electric locomotive #4823 with 3 r ed Pullman cars rounding a gentle curve near Claymont, DE, with the Delaware River in the background

THIS PAINTING BROUGHT $61,000 PLUS PREMIUM
WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO CONSIGN TO OUR
FALL CATALOG SALE?

Reginaphone Model 240 Regine Hexaphone

These 2 machines are from a collection of about 50 music boxes in all featuring 2 other Regina uprights, 8 Regina tabletop machines, Swiss cylinder music boxes, some with interchangeable cylinders, paper roller and cob organs, Edison cylinder record players, clocks, and ond other mechanical stuff!!

Featured lot in our April 13, 2010 catalog sale.

Lot 276
Robert Aitken, printer; The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments: Newly translated out of the Original Tongues; and with the former Translations Diligently compared and revised. Philadelphia: Robert Aitken, 1781-82. 2 parts in one volume, 12mo.
Said to be more rare than the Gutenburg Bible!

Estimate $40,000 to $60,000

SOLD FOR ALMOST
DOUBLE LOW ESTIMATE AT $78,975, INCLUDING BP!!

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One Hillman Drive (Rt. 202 and Rt. 1)
Chadds Ford, PA 19317
Phone: (610) 558-1800
Fax: (610) 558-0885
E-Mail: info@williambunchauctions.com

Catalogue Now Online
The Richard Wright Collection of Moorcroft Pottery
Tuesday 21 September
New Bond Street, London

View Online Catalogue
Buy Catalogue
Viewing Times

Auction Enquiries

It’s no mystery that antiques are the biggest “green” thing going. It’s not like antique enthusiasts are jumping on the “green” wagon either. We were “green” long before it was the cool thing to be.

But the latest hip trend I see is antiquer’s taking what we call “findings” which are pieces of antique or vintage items (not the entire thing) and resourcing them. In short, we are recycling recycled items!

How does one do that? I’ll give you a few examples:

Rice grain bags – currently very hot in the Southern market. What does one do with them? Covering antique chairs, or making pillows for the couch with them. They are so popular, that Restoration Hardware has caught on and is selling reproduction pillows.

Jewelry – I’ve seen jewelry artists taking lone earrings, single shoe clips, buttons, etc and adorning jackets with them, or creating necklaces with the older pieces as pendants or parts.

Photographers are taking cool old painting frames and using them to showcase great black and white photography.

I remember the first time I saw something like this was several years back when I saw typewriter keys being used to create names on a necklace.

Then it was mahjong tiles incorporated into bracelets; vintage bottle caps used to embellish purses…

I have also met dealers that specialize in “found” objects. Interior decorators have been recycling antiques for years. Take a look at how interior designer Kelly Giesen works with vintage doors, hardware and mixes vintage lighting with traditional:

I’d love to hear your suggestions on making old new again. Tell us about it here!

Reyne

Scenes of the City: Prints, Drawings, & Paintings of New York 1900 – 2000

Auction Sept. 16th, 2010

19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings

Auction Sept. 21st, 2010

As a writer and a lover of quirky old machinery, there are few collectible antiques more fascinating to me than typewriters. I even love the word “typewriter,” with its punched-out mechanical consonants and its utter obsolescence. My love affair began when my grandparents bequeathed their old machines to me, assuming I could find some use for them in my line of work. I don’t actually use any of my typewriters, but I do gaze at them, and I do carry them (all 130 fragile pounds of them—my Royal weighs more than my dog) from one house to another every time I move.

Over the years I’ve been asked many questions about typewriters, specifically about the value of old machines that arrived in the questioner’s life the same way mine did. It seems as if every day a dusty Remington or Smith Brothers machine is unearthed in a basement and handed over to the nearest writer in the family. I have good news and bad news about this. But first, a little history.

A Short History of the Typewriting Machine, With Anatomy Lesson.

There are two forms of what we call the “typewriter”: The index and the keyboard. The index is a primitive little device that looks like a wheel mounted on a board. It appeared at the end of the 1800’s but was quickly made obsolete by the keyboard, which is somewhat more recognizable. The first successful keyboard typewriter was designed and sold in 1873 by Sholes and Glidden.

The next century brought us two versions of keyboard machine:

The Typebar: In this version, a pressed letter key swings a bar with a molded typeface toward a waiting paper surface. The typeface is either inked by a rollbar, or it collides with an inked ribbon that lies between itself and the paper. Most machines made between 1874 and 1960, despite their fantastic variety, operate by some version of this method.

The Single Element: In this version, all type exists on a drum or ball element and when a key is pressed, the whole element swings around to present the desired type to the paper. This version was popularized in 1960 by the IBM Selectic. Its arrival heralded (to my way of thinking) the end of the typewriter’s golden age.

The strangest and most beautiful typewriter models are the earliest, the ones introduced between 1874 and 1915. These are known as “unconventional”.

In 1895, Underwood designed the first “conventional” model: Four rows of keys, a single shift, ribbon inking, and a front strike type bar. After 1895, conventional models became the norm, and by the 1930s almost all typewriter models looked more or less the same.

Between 1874 (the beginning) and 1960 (the end), typewriters had a fantastic run. Especially during the early years, they symbolized all of the reckless innovative exuberance of the industrial revolution, standing on a perfect overlay between business efficiency and mechanical whimsy.

Collectible Typewriters

Despite their beauty, typewriters have some quirks that set them apart from other memorabilia and collectibles.  For one thing, nobody throws typewriters away. So of the millions of Royal and Smith Corona machines produced in the earlier half of the century, most are still in circulation and are surprisingly well cared for. So they are not rare, not usually.

But:

• The world of typewriter collecting is like the wild west right now. There are no catalogue values or price guides as there are with collectable dolls or collectable baseball cards. The value of each machine lies only in the opinion of the buyer and seller. The wild frontiers of antiques collecting are always tamed eventually– In this case, nobody is sure why it’s taking so long.
• This doesn’t apply to typewriters made before 1915. If you own any of these beautiful typewriters, your model is rare and it is certainly valuable, depending on whom you ask:
  • American Visible, 1893
  • Chicago, 1898
  • Corona, 1912
  • New Model Crandall, 1881
  • Ford, 1895
  • Junior, 1907
• This is also true of the following collectible Royals:
  • The No 5 Flatbed
  • The No 1 Flatbed
  • The No 10 with beveled glass windows on the sides.

By Erin Sweeney

for Antiques.com

English, Continental & American

August 28th, 2010 11am

“Mid-century modern” describes an era in the history of design that began around 1945 and ended in the late sixties. Before WWII, popular architectural and furniture styles emphasized handcraftsmanship, ornate detail, and traditional materials like darker and heavier woods. But the visual art world (painting and sculpture) had been influenced just a few decades earlier by a movement called “modernism”, a visual emphasis on clean lines, contrast, elevation, and innovation in style and form. After the war, modernism began to influence lifestyle-related art forms as well, specifically architecture and furniture design.

Suburban living and economic prosperity began to expand during this time, and with these changes came a demand for mass produced, affordable furniture that could offer both beauty and function.  Home décor reflected a common desire to move beyond painful memories of the war and focus on innovation and the future.  Also, war-inspired advances in the aircraft industry made new manufacturing techniques and materials possible, like plastics and pressed molded wood.

Mid- century modern furniture styles were lightweight, affordable, clean-lined, and visually simple, and they made use of materials rarely before seen in furniture design, such as steel and acrylic.

Famous mid-century modern furniture designers include Charles and Ray Eames, Eileen Gray, George Nelson, Lilly Reich, and Isamu Noguchi. Famous manufactures such as Herman Miller and Vitra made names for themselves by building and selling the work of these designers.

Danish Modern Furniture

Many aspects of midcentury modern furniture design reflected an interest in organic, natural shapes that harmonized with the environment. In Scandinavian countries, this preference had already taken hold by the 1940’s. Danish and Swedish designers, inspired by long cold winters and a corresponding attraction to light, clean, warm shapes and natural materials like blond-colored wood, began to spread their influence across Europe and America.

Denmark had in turn been inspired by Japan; A relaxation of Japan’s isolationist policies allowed the elegant simplicity of Japanese style to flood into Scandinavia and lend additional polish to the simple and increasingly popular beauty of Danish design.

Two names of note in Danish modern design are Hans Wegner and Ingvar Kamprad. Wegner designed the iconic Danish modern piece known as the “Round Chair”, which was later used by Nixon and Kennedy in 1960 during the first nationally televised presidential debate. And Ingvar Kamprad founded the Ikea company in the 1940’s, which has been producing economically accessible Danish modern furniture since that time, though it’s only recently become a household name.

Vintage and Retro Furniture

By the late 1960’s, the passion for Danish modern and mid-century modern furniture design had more or less cooled. A fever for ultra-simple lightweight styles, space-age materials, and simple blocks of color had given way to the heavier structures of the 1970’s and 80’s.  But a mid-century modern revival is currently well underway, and the retro appeal of a Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair, an Eileen Grey side table or an Isamu Noguchi coffee table now seems to be hotter than ever.

Vintage tastes have also been fueled by 1950’s decor on the sets of TV shows like Mad Men, and by a corresponding surge of interest in vintage 1950’s clothing and houseware styles.

It’s worth noting that while the shapes and color schemes of mid-century modern furniture have made a comeback, the manufacturing methods have not— Companies like Herman Miller are now making active efforts to create the old designs with updated, environmentally safer, and more sustainable materials.

By Erin Sweeney

For Antiques.com

A treatise on American antique lighting and lamp fixtures should begin with a history of lighting methods. Here’s a backward look at lighting in the U.S. divided into roughly four chapters:

• Electrical wiring has been a standard part of building design since about 1920.
• Between 1880 and 1920, modern homes and buildings were typically wired for a combination of electricity and gas—Gas lines in the walls of a house fed the lamp fixtures, and electrical wiring wound along the pipes. Both options were usually made available, since in the early years of electricity, power sources would often fail for months at a time.
• Because Edison perfected the incandescent bulb in 1880, lamps wired for electricity don’t date before that time. Prior to the gas/electric combination, modern buildings created between 1820 and 1880 were lit by piped gas.
• Before 1820, kerosene and oil antique lamps were the norm, complimented by candles, the earliest and simplest form of American lighting.

Knowing the lighting options available during a historical period, we can better understand how these options influenced the style and design of that period’s antique floor lamps, hanging lamps and antique chandeliers. The most beautiful and collectable American antique lamps can usually be associated with the following five periods/styles:

Arts and Crafts, 1905-1935: Frank Lloyd Wright is a name often associated with this period, though Arts and Crafts or “mission” style fixtures pre-date him by several years. This style is characterized by square glass shades, square oak lamp bases, and square oak frames. The parallel dowling seen on mission-style furniture is often reflected in lamps through the use of brass or copper tubes. Arts and crafts lamp designs are simple, geometric, humble, and functional.

Georgian Revival, 1905-1930: The word “Georgian” refers to an earlier form of English architecture, but it’s used here because Georgian furniture styles—including lamps and lighting– were making a comeback at this time.

This is an important epoch for antique lamp collectors, since the period gave rise to the Art Deco styles, crystal chandeliers, and “art glass” perfected by famous companies like Tiffany, Handel, and Stuben. Beginning around 1915, wires could be enclosed in safe cloth covering, which allowed them to be strung through a chain. This allowed electric antique lamps to be hung from above for the first time. Gas-electric combination fixtures gave way to chain-hung electric fixtures in large numbers during this era.

Victorian, 1880-1915: The Victorian period, possibly the most beautiful period in the history of antique lighting fixtures, documents the elegant transformation from kerosene and oil, to gas-electric combinations, to fully electric pieces. Victorian pieces are distinguished by curving brass shapes with intricate embellishments and detailing.

When searching for authentic Victorian pieces, make note:  These antique light fixtures were not hung from chains, and they were often designed to connect to the fuel/lighting source by tubing, not wires.

Eastlake Victorian, 1870-1900: Table and wall lamps from this period were fueled by kerosene, oil and gas. Also sometimes called “Italianate”, these pieces are characterized by their classical motifs—women in togas, urns, coats of arms, and animals. The functional parts of these lamps are usually made of iron or brass, and the detailing often includes slate, cut glass, or marble. Lamps of this era were not wired for electricity, and were usually designed to accompany Eastlake-style farmhouse furniture. (Envision heavy, veneered wood carved in parallel grooves).

Federal, 1700-1810: The most elegant and collectible pewter, brass, and silver pieces from this period were designed to hold candles (earlier) and whale oil (later, around 1800.) Colonial/founding-father-style candle lanterns, candelabras and candle chandeliers are very popular today. If you’re looking for authentic pieces, check for wax residue and evidence of hand crafting. And be aware that genuine fixtures from this era, though beautiful, are quite rare.

By Erin Sweeney

For Antiques.com