Roycroft American Beauty vase a valuable Arts-and-Crafts find
Q: We have an 18 ½-inch-tall Roycroft vase and a 6-inch diameter bowl. They have been in my wife’s family since 1924. We have the original invoice. The vase has never been polished and is in original condition. What is the value?
A: Elbert Hubbard was born in Bloomington, Illinois, in 1856 and raised in Hudson, Illinois. He was an American philosopher, writer, artist and publisher. And he called himself an “anarchist” and a “socialist” — neither of which is true in the strictest sense.
Hubbard’s working life began prosaically enough as a soap salesman for the Larkin Soap Company of Buffalo, New York. But in 1892, he enrolled in Harvard, dropped out, and went on a trip to England. There on a walking tour, he met William Morris and was smitten with his Arts-and-Crafts Kelmscott Press, founded in 1891 at Morris’ home, Kelmscott Manor.
Returning to the United States,
Hubbard sought a publisher for his biographical sketches titled “Little Journeys” to no avail, which caused him to open his own Roycroft Press in East Aurora, New York. The name “Roycroft” was derived from the brothers Thomas and Samuel Roycroft, who were English printers 1650-90. But it also meant “king’s crafts” and referred to skilled craftsmen who belonged to medieval guilds and made things for the king.
The print shop was so successful it began attracting visitors, and expansion followed. Soon a hotel was built, and this required furniture and lighting — and Hubbard asked the local craftsmen to make simple, straight-line pieces in line with Arts-and-Crafts tastes.
These became so popular that an industry was formed. Other craftsmen at the Roycroft community made leather goods, book bindings and metal wares. The hammered copper vase in today’s question is called the “American Beauty” vase. The name is said to be derived from either the rose, or the song “American Beauty Rag,” composed by Joseph F. Lamb (18871960) in 1913.
The design is credited to Victor Toothaker, who was hired at Roycroft in 1912 and became chief designer and foreman at the Roycroft metal shop after a wage dispute between Elbert and Alice Hubbard and Karl Kip and Walter Jennings.
The Roycroft American Beauty Vase came in approximately four sizes: 7 inches, 12 inches, 18-19 inches and 21-22 inches. There were also several finishes, but the most common was dark Aurora
Brown.
The 18-19 ½-inch size is the most commonly found of the “American Beauty” copper vases, but this 1924 example should be valued in the $3,000-plus range. The “plus” depends on a lot of variables that cannot be completely explored from a single photograph.
Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson have written a number of books on antiques. Do you have an item you’d like to know more about? Contact them at Joe Rosson, 2504 Seymour Ave., Knoxville, TN 37917, or email them at treasures@knology.net. If you’d like your question to be considered for their column, include a high-resolution photo of the subject, which must be in focus, with your inquiry.