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The Hull Nine Yards: Collecting Hull Pottery

July 17, 2013 in Pottery & Porcelain, Uncategorized by hdavis

Hull pottery Little Red Riding Hood cookie jarHull Pottery might be best known for the cheerful and utilitarian Little Red Riding Hood design pictured here, which comes in so many forms, from teapots to shaker sets.  Prices for Red Riding Hood can be steep, but collectors have so much more to choose from, thanks to the prolific nature of the company kilns!

In reality, Red Riding Hood didn’t come along until Hull had already achieved success from meeting the commercial supply and demand of florists for vases.  Early products, inspired simply by a wide variety of blossoms, are still popular today, and with pattern choices like Calla Lily, Dogwood, Magnolia, Orchid and Poppy in soft retro pastels, collectors can create their own gardens or simply devote themselves to one favorite design.  Still, it’s worth noting that after a flood destroyed all the kilns of the Ohio-based pottery, the Hull Pottery took advantage of a fresh start to give a more modern look to their product lines, introducing theme-inspired designs like Ebb Tide, Serenade, Fantasy and Woodland.  With Hull’s trend for dramatic forms and affordable prices, whether you own one piece or a hundred, you’re certain to have a colorful addition to your collection!

The Allure of Lures: Collecting Fishing Tackle

July 10, 2013 in Sports, Uncategorized by hdavis

A birch bark fishing creel, possibly Montagnais/ NaskapiSummer’s all about fishing, although I have to confess that I’m a wretched fisherperson.  Within about thirty minutes, my brother would usually be grumbling something like, “If you’re going to throw rocks, at least go downstream!”  Still, a well-stocked, well-organized tackle box is a thing of beauty – at least until I start stirring around in it!

Of course, fishing wasn’t always about glittery rubber worms or shiny metal discs, and it’s easy to identify collectibles by searching the database.  You’ll find lures to mimic all sorts of small aquatic life, from minnows to frogs.  I’m fond of the “Fly Rod Runtie,” partly because of the name and partly because he looks about as panic-strickened as you’d expect bait to look!  (He only has a slight edge over the “Luny Frog.”)  We’ve also got all sorts of antique reels, from modest ones to hot collectibles like this Morgan James reel that sold for over $9,000!  Folk art collectors love the hand-carved fishing decoys that mimic everything from trout to turtles, as well as the beautifully crafted creels, like the Native American birch bark example pictured here.  And, at the end of the day, if you’ve still not had a nibble, you can always haul home a taxidermy mount like this 44″ pike to claim as your own!

I Want You – To Start Collecting: Uncle Sam Memorabilia

July 8, 2013 in Ephemera, Holiday & Patriotic, Uncategorized by hdavis

Uncle Sam World War I recruiting poster by James Montgomery FlaggFor the Fourth of July, Uncle Sam puts in an appearance right along with parades and fireworks.  There was a time when he was far more ubiquitous, and many people are unaware of his remarkable journey from government contractor to American icon!  When the U.S. was entrenched in the War of 1812, Samuel Wilson, a small-town meat-packing magnate from Troy, New York, obtained a government contract to supply troops in the northern parts of the country.  Barrels of salt beef marked “U.S.” were shipped to the troops, who began to joke that the initials really stood for “Uncle Sam.”  Of course, many military-issued supplies were marked in this manner, and before long, soldiers were joking about getting presents from Uncle Sam when each shipment arrived.Uncle Sam may have gotten his name in 1812, but it took forty years for someone to bring him to life in an illustration; this illustration must have captured the imagination of thousands of Americans, as Sam soon began to appear everywhere!  Folk artists were among the first to pick up Uncle Sam’s image, but the familiar bearded visage has also been used to market everything from tobacco to candy (whilst inexplicably riding a rabbit) to paint.  My personal favorite is this cutout of Uncle Sam, who seems to have abandoned his coat and tails in order to shill for OshKosh overalls.

Fortunately, he was dressed up again and at his gravest by the time he “posed” for his iconic 1917 World War I poster depiction (pictured above) by artist James Montgomery Flagg.(For more on Flagg, click here to read our reference note.)

The Shocking History of Medicine: A Collection of Quackery

June 24, 2013 in Science & Technology by hdavis

Medical; Quack Device, Radium Ore Revigator, Stoneware Water Cooler, 12 inch. Maybe it’s the contrast with the constant flow of medical news and technological advances, but I’m fascinated recently by all the evidence of “quackery” in the database.  Sometimes when one stops to contemplate modern medicine, it’s staggering to realize how dramatically things have changed and in such a relatively short time.  Less than 100 years ago, for instance, it wasn’t surprising to encounter containers like the one pictured here.  “The Revigator” offered customers a refreshing drink of radon-infused water.  Just put a little radium in the inner compartment, fill with water, and let Nature do the work!

Quackery actually has a very long history and is likely, I’m sure, to be even older than the word itself, which dates to about 1710 and is based on an old Dutch word, “quacksalver,” meaning “hawker of salve,” salve being one of the earliest forms of quackery.  This didn’t change for centuries, as there are any number of salve/ointment containers in the database.  (Like this one for Morris Imperial Eye Ointment.  If it was a good idea to drink radon water in 1910, I shudder to think of what it might have been thought helpful to put in one’s eye in 1890….)  Quackery borrowed the legitimacy of science for marketing purposes, and so it’s no surprised to see every scientific discovery incorporated (or at least claimed to be) for a customer’s benefit.  Electricity was, of course, a huge development, and there were dozens and dozens of companies selling machines that promised to use static electricity to cure everything from impotency to rheumatism to the ever-popular “nervous disorders.”  When one thinks of how science has advanced in the last century, it’s, well, shocking!

Time in a Bottle: Antique Bottle Whimsies

June 19, 2013 in Crafts & Folk Art by hdavis

Logging tools in an antique bottle whimsy The ship in a bottle has become an icon of sorts, a necessity in any scene depicting an expensively decorated office with a nautical theme, a visual gag as a stand-in hobby for any character when one wants to convey a level of obsessiveness or fustiness.  As usual, these sorts of stereotypes aren’t really accurate, in part simply because it wasn’t just ships that were assembled in bottles, but a wide range of folk art creations.

In many respects, bottle whimsies, as the form is called, share their origins and themes with the rest of the folk art world.  They were typically made by people either on the fringes of society (drifters, prisoners, the mentally ill, etc.) or those who found themselves in isolated circumstances for extended periods of time (sailors, loggers, soldiers at remote posts, etc.), and the majority of them seem to be made by men and unsigned.  Most of the bottles date from around the 1870s to the 1930s, but bottles from the 1850s through the 1950s are occasionally seen, but since little is generally known about the makers, it’s difficult to say if these dates also define the artwork.  And, like much folk art, religion is a common theme with a number of bottles containing depictions of Christ on the cross.

Because of their more recent age, rustic nature, and mysterious origins, bottle whimsies aren’t typically as appreciated by collectors as some other folk art forms (scrimshaw, carvings, etc.), but researchers have made some connections that allow them to attribute certain bottles to the same maker, even if the maker’s identity remains unknown.  Carl Worner is the most prolific known maker, and while little is known about his life, 50-60 bottles have been attributed to him.

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