Page 43 - JOA-Sept-2021

By Terry Kovel and Kim Kovel

oy wagons, those that are large
Collecting Tip:
enough to give rides to children
Tor to haul packages of newspapers Rust stains on clothing or textiles from old hooks
for a newsboy, were first made in the and eyes or pins may come out with lemon juice.
1880s in the United States. Most were
made of wood that was painted red. Terry Kovel
Newspapers were sold to newsboys by
the bundle. The boys kept them in a Q: I inherited what my family calls “the lobster dish.” It originally belonged to my
wagon and moved around the city, grandmother, who died in 1969. It’s a divided dish with a large gold-color figural
shouting the headlines to sell the papers. lobster in the middle. The dish is 15 inches by 11 inches and is in excellent condition
Most of the boys were homeless and this This stenciled wooden wagon with only slight wear on the lobster body. It’s marked with a birdlike creature above
is how they earned a living. with removable side panels from the letters “C.T.” Below that, it's stamped “Germany.” My grandmother was a plate
In 1899, the newspaper owners raised the early 1900s sold at a Cowan collector and cherished this piece. Can you give me any information and value that
the price of 10 papers sold to the news- auction for $160. I can pass on to my granddaughter?
boys from 5 cents to 6 cents. It started the famous newsboy strike that tied A: The lobster dish was a popular shape from the 1880s to early 1900s, and
up traffic and caused fighting in the city. The boys eventually won the strike variations were made by several companies. Your lobster dish was made by
and a better price. C. Tielsch Porcelain Factory, founded by Carl Tielsch in Altwasser, Silesia,
The newsboy wagons were usually made of painted wood with the name Germany (now Walbrzych, Poland), in 1845. It merged with C.M.
of the newspaper on the side. Some, like this one, had built up sides that Hutschenreuther in Hohenberg, Germany, in 1918, but the name “C. Tielsch”
could be removed. The type of wheel on the wagon helps to date it. Early continued to be used. This mark was used from about 1887 to about 1934.
wheels were metal with a rubber rim. Later wheels were rubber. Selling price, $150 to $200.
Another clue to the age of the pictured wagon is the name of the paper. ***
The paper was started in 1883, destroyed by fire and started again in 1900. Q: I got a little 4-inch creamer from my husband's uncle. It’s white with a hand-
William Randolph Hearst bought it in 1921, around the time the paper's painted design of stylized flowers and leaves and a peasant wearing a hat, yellow/
name was changed to “Detroit Times.” It closed in 1960. green shirt, and blue pants. It’s marked “Henriot Quimper, France” in black under
The most famous toy wagon was manufactured by Antonio Pasin in 1917 the blue striped handle. Is it worth anything? If it is, I will stop using it to hold pens!
in Chicago. He made the Liberty Coaster in 1921 and the famous red Radio
Flyer in 1927. His company became the largest wagon maker in the country. A: Tin-glazed, hand-painted pottery has been made in Quimper, France, since
The wagon at the Cowan auction sold for $160. 1685. Three different companies made pottery with similar designs of Breton
peasants and flowers in blue, green, yellow and red. The three companies
ootstools were used to elevate the merged in 1968 and used the mark “HB Henriot,” and the artist’s initials or
feet of a person sitting in a chair decoration numbers. Quimper was sold to a family in the United States in
Fas long ago as ancient Egypt. The 1984. After more changes, Jean-Pierre Le Goff became the owner in 2011, and
stool was usually rectangular with four the name was changed to Henriot-Quimper. You could still keep your pens in
small feet. In the following centuries, it since it probably won’t sell for more than $25.
footstools were made as long rectangles ***
with four or more feet. They were used Q: I have a modest collection of Anri bottle stoppers, bookends, figures, letter openers,
by all those sitting on a bench in front mugs, tie racks and other wooden objects they produced. I’d like to know the current
of the fireplace. value of Anri items.
Smaller stools were kept for use
This Dimitri Omersa lion footstool by small, seated children whose feet A: Anri was in business in St. Christina, Italy, by 1912. The company was
auctioned at a Jeffrey Evans & Associates could not reach the floor. Footstools founded by Anton Riffeser. The name of the company is a combination of the
sale for $3,159. Other animals have sold were often made to match the uphol- first two letters of his first and last names. Several artists and woodcarvers
at auction for $1,000 to $5,000. stered furniture in the living room worked at the company. After World War II, the quality of the carving and
during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Ambitious housewives covered painting declined. Anri stopped making bottle stoppers, corkscrews, and other
footstools with their needlepoint work. bar accessories in 1976, but wooden figures continued to be made. The
In 1927, a man named Dimitri Omersa, who made luggage for the company is now closed, and no new figures are being made. Anri items sell on
Liberty of London store, created a footstool shaped like a pig from leftover many websites. Some sell for $10 or less, some for $50 or more. You can get an
leather. He waxed and polished the leather. The store started to sell his foot- idea of value by checking several websites to see what items like yours have sold
stools, and today there are 39 different Omersa & Company animal foot- for. Be sure to look for sold prices, not just asking prices. Some recent prices
stools sold by Liberty, Abercrombie & Fitch, and other expensive stores. The were $10 for a bottle stopper, $53 for a happy birthday music box, $79 for a
footstools retail for about $3,000. figurine of a couple reading the newspaper and $250 for dog bookends.

Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States.
Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
CURRENT PRICES
Print, John James Audubon, Carolina Turtle Dove, Bowl, carved wood, calabash, gourd form, Norfolk Lamp, electric, ceramic base, double baluster form,
No. 4, Plate 17, birds in dogwood blossoms, pine, light honey colored graining and knots, deep flared cup top, horizontal bands, shades of blue,
Princeton edition, distressed wood frame, framed size thin sides, North Pacific Hawaiian Islands, c. 1940, etched patterned bands, Bitossi, marked Made in
44 x 32 inches, $410. 8 x 9 inches, $2,490. Italy, mid-1900s, 23 inches, pair, $940.
Furniture, secretary, Louis XV style, walnut, paneled Sterling silver overlay decanter, clear glass, thistle Jewelry, pin, mourning, portrait of a woman, reverse
slant front, long frieze drawer, fitted interior, cabriole pattern overlay, monogrammed cartouche with L.E.G., painted glass, engraved oval rose gold leafy frame, com-
legs, France, c. 1910, 38 x 29 x 18 inches, $810. tapered silver rim and stopper, 12 1/4 inches, $125. partment with woven hair, Victorian, 2 x 2 inches, $375.
Chinese export porcelain vase, copper red glaze, ovoid Paper, poster, Billy Joel concert, Moore Theater, Knife rest set (6) clear cut glass, cylindrical with flattened
bottom, elongated neck, flared rim, 20th century, Seattle, November 21, 1976, portrait, white on black side, flattened faceted ends in red, green, blue, turquoise,
23 1/2 inches, pair, $1,250. ground, 22 x 13 3/8 inches, $425. yellow, & purple, marked Faberge, 2 1/2 inches, $315.
Terry Kovel and Kim Kovel answer questions sent to the column. By sending a letter with a question and a picture, you give full permission for use in the column or any other Kovel forum. Names,
addresses or email addresses will not be published. We cannot guarantee the return of photographs, but if a stamped envelope is included, we will try. The amount of mail makes personal answers or
appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, (Journal of Antiques & Collectibles), Kovels.com P.O. Box 23192, Beachwood, Ohio 44122.
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