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Category Archives: Features

Eisenberg Originals

Eisenberg Originals gold-plated Sinbad figural fur clip with turbaned head with pave and enamel detailing and multi-colored teardrop framed rhinestone dangles, circa 1940. Sold for $1,250

by Ken Hall   Eisenberg Originals are the most beautiful and brilliant pieces of costume jewelry no one’s ever heard of. The massive collection of someone who literally wrote the […]

Cameos – Wearable Sculpture in Relief

Cameos come in all sizes, forms, materials, subjects, and colors. This is an example of a carnelian shell cameo brooch

by Maxine Carter-Lome, publisher   Cameos are one of the most widely recognized types of jewelry. Many of us may even own a piece, most probably handed down from a […]

O Christmas Tree: And the Inspired Collectible Christmas Tree Pins

Art tree with sweeping branches, $20-30

Story & Photos by Donald-Brian Johnson       What do you do on the day after Thanksgiving? Some folks start baking Christmas cookies (or eating them). Others begin unraveling […]

Horns of Plenty: Decorated Military Powder Horns in Colonial America

William Williams Jr. Powder Horn attributed to the carver John Bush. Historic Deerfield, 2005.20.6

by Erica Lome, Ph.D.     On a cool April morning in 1775, Amos Barrett readied his musket and prepared for combat. Earlier that day, 23-year-old Barrett had awoken to […]

Two Collectors, One Passion: Pawprints on Paper

The Game of Black Cat

By Margaret Carpenter and Alice Muncaster   Is it possible for cats to spark a friendship between two people miles (and states) apart? Absolutely! Thanks to the Antique Advertising Association […]

Beswick: A Special Breed of Porcelain Animals

Rare Beswick model of a girl on grey pony 1499 with light green jacket – top auction estimate was $1,000, sold for $1,600 in 2018.

by Maxine Carter Lome, Publisher From 1896 when James Wright Beswick and his sons John and Gilbert first established their earthenware pottery business, “J. W. Beswick,” at the Gold Street […]

The Horse Fair: A Celebration of Rosa Bonheur’s Equestrian Masterpiece

Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899) The Horse Fair, 1852–55, Oil on canvas, Metropolitan Museum of Art

By Erica Lome, Ph. D. Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899) The Horse Fair, 1852–55, Oil on canvas, Metropolitan Museum of Art   If you took a stroll through the European Paintings galleries […]

Jeanne Toussaint: Cartier’s Petite Panthére

Diamond, Emerald, Onyx Panthére ring by Cartier

by Maxine Carter-Lome, Publisher “A woman who revolutionized contemporary jewelry” is how Cartier describes jewelry designer Jeanne Toussaint in the 2019 film series, entitled L’Odysée de Cartier. Born in 1887, […]

The View From Where You Sit: Personal Magnification Devices

Microscope: 3 convex lenses in the inner cylinder, fitting into shagreen (snakeskin)- covered tube, with gilt-bronze finial cap and tripod stand, optics by Passemant, ingénieur du roi, France, c. 1750 photo: metmuseum.org

by Melody Amsel-Arieli   Simple magnification devices, like water-filled spheres and rock crystal (quartz) “burning glasses” were known around the Mediterranean and across the Middle East in ancient times. These […]