Sale prices less exaggerated than ‘Hollywood Deco’ was
950s furniture is popular with collectors today, but some earlier Art Deco designs from the 1930s are not in demand.
Watch old movies to see some of the stranger pieces. The look is sometimes called “Hollywood Deco” because the extravagant round mirrors and sofas were such exaggerations of regular furnishings.
An odd cabinet sold recently at a Garth’s auction. It was a 51-inch-diameter round cabinet with glass doors and shelves waiting to display a collection. The solid base is wide to support the top-heavy design.
This type of cabinet was made in the 1930s, and most for sale today were made in England. Most have no maker’s name, and the wood choice suggests the cabinet was not expensive when new.
A cabinet like this sold at an Ohio auction in 2016 for $450. A selection of similar round modernist cabinets found online had asking prices as high as $2,000, but most of these are in English shops and prices were cut to less than $500.
Q: I have a print titled “An Enemy in Camp” that shows tow barnyard ducks defending their brood from the farmyard dog. It’s marked “James Lee Co. Chicago, Illinois” and dated 1906. I understand it’s a chromolithograph. It’s in excellent condition. What is it worth?
A: James Lee was born in England and lived in Canada before moving to the United States in 1892. The James Lee Co. was in business in the early 1900s. It published postcards as well as prints.
Chromolithography, a process of making colored prints, began in the early 1800s. It made inexpensive color art and was popular.
Today, chromolithograph prints sell for about $40 to $70.
Current prices
Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions in the United States:
■ Coca-Cola bottle, Super Bowl commemorative, Coke Is It! At the Super Bowl, Tampa, Florida, 1984, $10
■ Hummel figurine, No. 217, Boy with Toothache, scarf tied around head, below chin, 1950s, 5 ½ inches, $110
■ Umbrella stand, oak, barley twist legs, drawer, brass handle, shaped backsplash, shelf, two umbrella slots, tin plate, c. 1890, 32 x 36 inches, $735
■ Heart-shaped purse, beaded, flat bag, horse heads, flowers, zigzag trim, hide string handle, Native American, c. 1910, 12 x 11 inches, $3,500