Goebel to Stop Hummel Production in October

News from Germany is that Goebel will stop producing the once popular M.I. Hummel figurines as of October 31, 2008. Goebel, who brought the figurines to life starting in 1935, is looking for other alternatives to keep the production of the figurine alive. The figurines, which are based on the drawings of Sister Maria Innocentia (1909-1946), have lost their appeal with the public in the recent past and prices have been slumping. Sister Innocentia, born Berta Hummel in Bavaria, was a brilliant artist whose depictions of children first brought her to the attention of Goebel.

In addition to stopping production of Hummels, Goebel has also announced that the Goebel Information Center and the M.I. Hummel Club Center, both in Rodental, Germany will close within the next couple of months. The International Club Convention in Germany which supposed to have been held on October 17-18, 2008 has also been cancelled. However, as of this writing, the 2009 International Club Convention that is scheduled to take place in September 2009 in Western New York (Buffalo and Niagrara Falls, New York) area is still a go.

Misidentified Islamic Decanter Sells at Auction a Second Time

In our September 26, 2008 NOVA-Antiques Newsletter we talked about a 1000 year crystal decanter that was misidentified by an auction house this past January. The original sale, which brought in almost $400,000, was cancelled when the owner realized that the decanter had probably been undervalued. The rare decanter, originally from Egypt and now thought to have been from between the 10th and 11th Centuries, was sold tonight by Christie’s of London for more that $6 million. One of only six similar decanters are known to exist in the world today, it has been reported that this vase was made for the Fatimid Dynasty which ruled between 908 and 1187 AD in the Middle East and North Africa. Imagine the owner’s surprise at the difference in money that the decanter brought in.

A Brief History of Polish Pottery

Our friend Agnus does a very brisk business selling Polish Pottery at the local area antique and collectibles markets. We can’t help but marvel at her salesmanship as she explains to the throngs of collectors and potential customers who hang around her booth, what Polish Pottery is, where it comes from and best of all the different vibrant patterns it comes in.

Polish Pottery is high-fired in over 1250 degrees C, and is extremely durable and lasts for many many years. The first known pieces of this pottery date back to the 1500’s and were hand made and hand decorated. In the early days, the pottery was decorated using potatoes to create the designs, today the designs are created with sponges. The main colors used even to this day are cobalt blue, peacock blue as well as earth tones. Each piece was an individual piece of artwork. Most of the pottery comes from the City of Boleslawiec, called by some the “Home of Polish Pottery.”

While molds are used for some pieces, most of the pieces are still made on a pottery wheel. The decoration is applied after the pieces are fired in coal and gas ovens, then a glaze is applied to the piece. Today the pottery comes in hundreds of patterns. Because of the high temperatures, the Polish Pottery pieces are extremely resilient and can withstand use of the microwave oven, the fridge and or regular ovens. Polish Pottery is also very collectible; especially those pieces marked “Unikat” which stands for unique. These unique pieces are created by accomplished artisans who create their own work from start to finish.

NOVA-Antiques Newsletter Archives – June 9, 2005 . . . .

T206 Honus Wagner Card to be Auctioned Off in November

This past August I wrote an article about a 1909 Honus Wagner card that sold at auction for more than $1.62 million. The card, which is known at T206 and at the time was sold by Mastro Auctions in Chicago, apparently has a twin. Philip Weiss Auctions of Oceanside, New York will sell another T206 Honus Wagner Baseball card as part of a huge auction slated for November 22 & 23, 2008. This card, which the auction house says is being sold by its original owner however is graded a 3 by SGC standards and therefore may not bring in the millions that its twin did in August. Philip Weiss is has been quoted in news reports as saying that the card is expected to bring in between $500,000 and $800,000.

This auction, which will feature more than 1000 lots in the two day period, will also include other sports memorabilia including other T205 and T206 baseball trading cards. Between 1909 and 1911, the American Tobacco Company inserted baseball cards into cigarette packs as a promotion. However, only about 200 of the Honus Wagner cards made it into general circulation because the athlete was a non-smoker and refused to be associated with the cigarette promotion. Born Johannes Peter Wagner in 1874, Honus was one of nine children. He played shortstop from 1897 to 1917 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936.

Nostalgic Petroliana Collectors

With gas prices jumping through the roof and drivers in some areas driving around for hours trying to find a gas station that even has gas, it’s difficult to imagine that anyone would be nostalgic about the good ole gas station. Petroliana are those collectible items associated with gas stations including advertisements, maps, old gas pumps and globes as well as oil cans and bottles. In recent years, Petroliana has been one of the fastest growing segments of collecting in the United States, as baby boomers nostalgically remember those times that were far less complicated and a gallon of gas cost less than a dollar. Now, there are tens of thousands of collectors and they are not just the boomers but their X and echo boomer generation offspring as well.

The nice thing about Petroliana, like a lot of other segments of collectibles, is that it goes across other segments of collecting. For example, a person collecting ephemera may collect Petroliana in the form of old street and city maps or a person who collects advertising memorabilia might collect Petroliana in the forms of old Esso or Texaco signs. And because there were so many different gas stations around the country, there is an abundance of collectibles to be had for the avid collector. You can find many collectibles at auctions, flea markets and antique shows as well as at yard and garage sales. If you are decorating in Petroliana and you can’t find an original of something you want, there are many reproduction pieces out there as well.

There are many websites dedicated to Petroliana and can help you to determine pricing and identify collectibles. One that I particularly like because it helps with picture identification is Gas Pump Index.

Antique Redware Pottery – A Brief History

Redware pottery, which is just what the name implies, a reddish brown colored pottery, was first made by English settlers in the 1600’s. Redware pottery was made in many different states including, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and Tennessee. The reason it is that color is because of the iron content of the clay that was used to produce the pottery. The shades of red or brown can vary greatly depending on where the clay came from and how much iron is in the clay. Antique redware pottery from colonial times can be found to be in most cases rough and usually of poor quality. The reason for this is because of the restriction imposed on the English Settlers by the British crown in the 17th Century.

Until the revolutionary war, the settlers were required to send all raw materials to England where the clay would be turned into well designed and fancy pottery. The pottery would then be sent all over the world, including the colonies here in America. It was unlawful for potters to produce their own products lest the crown not make a huge and handsome profit on the shipment, production and re-shipment of product. Although it was unlawful, some colonists continued to make their own pottery and it was tolerated because the merchandise was of inferior quality to the pottery made in England. After the War of Independence, many potters came to the United States from England and later other countries such as Germany and produce better quality products that were able to compete with the English pottery.

Recently, an Associated Press article said that a piece of Redware Pottery made by John Alexander Lowe was auctioned for about $63,000 in Knoxville, Tennessee. According to the article this was the only known surviving piece of pottery associated with Lowe because all other findings in the past consisted mainly of shards. Case Antique Auction Gallery auctioned off redware jar which is believed to be from the mid-19th Century.

Cranberry Glass Bowl Featured at Outasite!! Collectibles

This week, Outasite!! Collectibles is featuring this stunning Victorian era cranberry glass bowl. It is a Victorian flashed cranberry glass bowl with an applied collar of hand pulled circles that look like flowers. This bowl is probably from the late 19th Century or early 20th century and the cranberry glass has many bubbles consistent with it’s age. This cranberry may have had a lid at one time. It measures about 5.25 inches in diameter and almost 2 inches tall.

Cranberry Glass is a reddish glass that is made by adding gold chloride to molten glass. Most accounts attribute the first pieces of cranberry glass to the Florentine glass maker Antonio Neri in the 1600’s; Others feel that it has been around even longer than that. Whatever the case, cranberry art glass is very collectible and sought after by many people. Cranberry glass may also be referred to as gold ruby by people in Europe. Visit Outasite!! Collectibles for more antique and vintage cranberry glass merchandise.