Ruby Lane's Past Times Newsletter for August 2004

Past Times
The monthly newsletter from Ruby Lane Antiques, Collectibles,
Fine Art, and Artisans
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Welcome to Past Times!

IN THIS ISSUE:
o How to date Antique and Collectible Porcelain By Ruth Kelly
of Amun·tegui Art & Antiques
o For The Love Of Jewelry By Alison Phalan of Alison Phalan Antiques
o Share Past Times with A Friend
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HOW TO DATE ANTIQUE AND COLLECTIBLE PORCELAIN BY
RUTH KELLY OF AMUN·TEGUI ART & ANTIQUES

One of the fascinating things about collecting porcelain is
getting it home, taking out a magnifying glass and deciphering
the marks on its underside. Marks, numbers and letters hold the
clue to the date of manufacture, sometimes down to the exact
year†a piece was made. Some marks can even tell you the name of
the artists who modeled and painted a specific porcelain.
Following are three examples of how this is done:

Royal Worcester Hadley Vase - 1909, England:

The letter H on the underside of this vase indicates that this
is a Hadley design. James Hadley was the principal modeler of
Royal Worcester and considered to be the finest ceramic modeler
of the 19th century. His softly painted roses later became known
as Hadley Roses by Royal Worcester collectors. In 1875 he set up
his own modeling studio and Royal Worcester continued to absorb
most of his output. In 1905, after HadleyÇs death, Royal
Worcester purchased his factory including the transfer of all
its molds, designs and workforce. Production of HadleyÇs designs
continued, with a letter H added to the shape design number.
Such is the mark on this vase: an "H" preceding the shape number
212. The hand-written number below the line, 1054, is the color
coding. The year of manufacture is determined by the number of
dots surrounding the words "Royal Worcester England." Royal
Worcester pieces were dated in this way after 1891 and each dot
represented an additional year. This vase has 18 dots so it must
have been made in 1909 (1891 + 18 = 1909).

Royal Copenhagen Siamese Cat Figurine - 1957, Denmark:

This porcelain Siamese cat has the Royal Copenhagen mark applied
since 1923: a Crown and Royal Copenhagen Denmark in green and
three blue wave marks (which represent DenmarkÇs three straits).
From 1935 on a green dot was placed over or under one of the
letters of the factory name. Each time the dot moves right to
the next letter it represents an additional year. If you have a
Royal Copenhagen porcelain from this period (1935 to 1984) you
can easily identify the exact year the piece was made. From 1935
to 1949 the dot appears above one of the letters of Royal
Copenhagen. From 1950 to 1984 the dot appears below one of the
letters of Royal Denmark Copenhagen. In the case of the Siamese
cat figure described above, the dot appears under the letter "N"
in Denmark which means that the piece was made in 1957.

Royal Delft (De Porceleyne Fles) Vase - 1968, Holland:

This vase has the factory mark of ÑDe Porcelain Fles,â the best
known and most respected Delft factory in the Netherlands,
founded in 1635. It is also known as Royal Delft since 1919,
when it received a Royal warrant in appreciation for the quality
of its products. This vase bears the makers mark used since
1876: JT (which stands for Joust Theft) with the word Delft
underneath; the date code (C.M. which stands for 1968), the
artist's initials (N d G which corresponds to Nico de Graf, an
artist who has worked at Royal Delft since 1963 until now) and
the style number (825). Ironically, it is those pieces that do
not say Royal (represented by either the word or a crown) which
are authentic Royal Delft. If you have a post 1879 Royal Delft
porcelain you can identify its age of manufacture by the letters
of the alphabet printed on its underside and the following key:
1879 to 1904: A to Z; 1905 to 1930: AA to AZ; 1931 to 1955: BA
to BZ; 1956 to 1980: CA to CZ; 1981 to 2006: DA to DZ.

We invite you to see the porcelains marks described above and
much more in our shop: Amun·tegui Art & Antiques at Amun·tegui
Art & Antiques.

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FOR THE LOVE OF JEWELRY BY ALISON PHALAN OF
ALISON PHALAN ANTIQUES

One reason to wear jewelry is to get attention. It's not the
whole point, but it's a big part of why people wear it. It is
thought that the very first humans adorned themselves. If you
pick up any fashion magazine right now you'll see that big
vintage rhinestone brooches are as they say ëhot, hot, hot!'.

I suggest wearing pins in a group based on a theme. Wear a big
flower pin with a bumble bee hovering over it. Or a fun sailor
pin with a big anchor pin. Some people buy brooches and just
leave them right on their coat or jacket all the time.

I also like to wear a tiny bee pin on a sleeve instead of the
lapel. It looks like it landed on your arm! That gets attention.


Chandelier earrings are also very popular. Big long rhinestone
earrings that sparkle sell very well.

But what gets your attention? It's about small art to me. Each
piece, well made, is a tiny work of art. I look carefully at a
piece of jewelry and study it to see how it was made. Bright
colors appeal to me. Costume or fine, a good piece of jewelry
fascinates me.

If you are just starting out buying and collecting, now is a
good time to buy. Alot of nice old jewelry is out there. Buy
from a Ruby Lane seller or a reputable dealer. Going through
auctions is good if you are practiced at finding a bargain but
there are alot of pieces that are in poor condition.

Also, ask questions. Mainly, buy books and read. There are many
good books on old jewelry that will help you get started. Treat
yourself and buy books that give you a history lesson with lots
of photos. And remember, sometimes a piece of old jewelry is
just old. Not pretty, not valuable. Trust your visual senses. Do
you find it attractive and pretty?

History buffs (like me) can actually buy a ëFlapper' necklace, a
piece of jewelry worn in the ëTitanic era' or even a Victorian
piece worn during the Civil War.

Vintage beads are very much in style now too. Old crystal and
glass beads sell well. If you buy vintage beads be sure not to
store them in plastic bags. The old string can deteriorate in
the plastic. I bought archival bags to store mine in.

Cameos are selling too. My little neighbor asked me what a cameo
is. It's usually a carving of a person or place in relief.
(There are many plastic cameos out there and a photograph is not
always the best way to tell if it's real. Make sure you know the
material the cameo is carved from.) Many are very beautiful and
can be carved from shell, hard stones, corals, amber or even
lava from a volcano. I like cameos carved with mythological
scenes.

I've been collecting jewelry and selling jewelry for about 20
years. I started selling when a friend asked if she could buy my
Victorian moonstone ring. I thought then that if I sold it to
her I could use the money to buy another piece of jewelry. So I
started selling and buying over and over. I'm a genealogist and
a big history buff. So the history of jewelry fit right in to my
other hobbies.

Oh, and one other thing...alot of people have lost jewelry over
the years for various reasons. It is very common for them to
look for a replacement.. I find that gratifying when someone
buys jewelry from me because they had one like it "when they
were a little girl" or their Mother or Grandmother "wore one
like this". Jewelry brings people back to their roots!

We invite you to visit Alison's shop at Alison Phalan Antiques .