Collections the point of these collectibles
Collecting is a pastime in almost every country.
Children start collecting stones, leaves, bottle caps and toys from Happy Meals. Adults search for things by great artists or that have special meaning. So it is not a surprise to find there are many porcelain plates and paintings that picture collected things.
In the 17th century, the Chinese had a popular pattern that showed vases, tables, birdcages, screens and other household furnishings. An English Ridgway Potteries dinnerware pattern called “Homemaker” shows pieces of 1950s furniture, and a set of dishes called “50’s Kitchen” by Fitz and Floyd has kitchen equipment — even an aluminum TV-dinner tray.
The patterns all show scattered items, not scenes or groupings.
A Chinese 17th-century Famile Verte dish recently sold for $2,440 at a Neal Auction in New Orleans. The American plate sells for $10; the English version, $5 to $10.
Q: I need information and a value on my grandfather’s set of sandstone-like building blocks. They are in a wooden box with two trays of blocks, plus pictures and directions (in German) for building castles and buildings. The set is called “Richter’s Designs for Architectural Models.” The set probably is from the late 1890s.
A: An early mention of building blocks was in a 1798 book about educating children. In the early 1840s, Friedrich Frobel created the idea of kindergarten and designed toys to stimulate children’s intellects through play. Among these were wooden blocks in various shapes.
In the 1870s, German engineers Otto and Gustav Lilienthal developed stone building blocks of quartz sand, chalk and linseed oil. Businessman Adolf Richter purchased the rights to the stone and the machines used to make them. He called them “Richter’s Anchor Blocks” and sold them in sets. They became popular.
Richter died in 1910, but the blocks continued to be made in Rudolstadt, Germany (East Germany), until 1963. The company was restarted in 1994 and it’s now owned by Gollnest & Kiesel, a European specialty toy company.
Sets from the late 1800s and early 1900s have sold from $50 to $200.
Current prices
Prices are recorded from throughout the United States.
■ Snuff box, lift lid, hammered brass, oval cartouche with beaded frame, Hungary, c. 1905, 2 x 3 inches, $65
■ Cup and saucer, cup with orange-peel pattern and petal rim, saucer with painted roses and scalloped rim, Westmoreland, 1906, 4 x 6 inches, $110
■ Water sprinkler, figural duck, cast iron, rusty orange color, angled spouts on top of head, c. 1920s, 6 x 13 inches, $200
■ Souvenir, cuff bracelet, sterling silver and enamel, etched with travel landmarks in Vienna, Austria, c. 1905, 2 x 7 inches, $460