Strange table has come into style
As fashions change in clothing, so do fashions change in furniture and design.
A strange table made by John Scott Bradstreet (18451914) recently was offered at a Cowan auction in Cincinnati. Bradstreet was a leading interior designer, decorator and tastemaker in Minneapolis for many years before he died in a car crash.
The table was in the Arts and Crafts style — sort of. Bradstreet went to Japan many times, and his designs were influenced by Asian arts and bits of many other styles — English Arts and Crafts, Moorish, Gothic and the Aesthetic Movement.
The table sold in the auction was covered with shallow carvings. The technique, called
used cypress, a soft wood that, after a long time in water or mud, develops raised lines in the grain. The wood was then scorched, brushed, carved and waxed, a process that was modernized and patented by Bradstreet.
Few pieces like this are known, and many are in museums. This table sold for $24,000.
Q: I have three Royal Doulton blue-and-white vases depicting 19th-century children playing blindman’s buff in the woods. What can you tell me about them?
A: These are part of Royal Doulton’s “Blue Children” series, made from 1890 to 1930 and often called “Babes in the Woods” by collectors. The designs were handpainted on earthenware vases, plates, plaques, biscuit jars and jugs. Fakes also have been made. A 9 ¾ -inch vase, initialed by the artist, recently sold for $224. An 18 ¼ -inch vase sold for $1,180. You should have an expert look into the value of yours.
Current prices
From sales in the U.S.:
■ Girl Scout pin, Brownie holding her uniform dress to curtsy, painted hard plastic, 1941, 2 x 1 inches, $105
■ Sundial, armillary, bronze and copper, ringed sphere, arrow center, roman numerals, pedestal base, verdigris, c. 1910, 10 x 7 inches, $140
■ Babe Ruth doll, holding bat, hollow celluloid head, stuffed body, felt arms and legs, 1930s, 13 inches, $210
■ Walking stick, carved cow-bone handle, cluster of masks, wooden ribbon twist shaft, metal core, Japan, 1800s, 35 inches, $570