$175.00
Mammy bottle dolls were constructed to be quite functional; they were used as doorstops back in the day. Their sand-filled bottles added enough weight to readily keep that door in place.
Her interesting and expressive face is also completely hand-stitched and bears a tiny hole in the center of her chin. A similar teeny hole may also be seen (see photo) on her back. Mammy wears a lacy bonnet detailed with tiny pleats and 2 ribbon flowers. Her pink skirt and blouse, also hand-stitched, is presented in various shades of pink as Mammy's outfit must have been subjected to light over the years and is in places, quite faded. Despite the careful laundering, Mammy's clothing is speckled here and there with teeny dark pinpoint size spots, most particularly in the bust area. Her white apron is pristine and is accented with a small, non-functional pocket. Her lace bonnet is fragile and must be handled with care as it can tear easily.
Although her bottle frame is covered by a black stocking, the stocking has opened slightly under her skirt revealing her sand-filled milk bottle.
This wonderful, early, one century old (!), mammy bottle doll is one of 3 currently offered mammy bottle dolls that have all come from the same estate. These dolls are very seldom found in today's collectible market. All three are are priced separately.
$95.00
Measuring 13 inches wide x 9.50 inches high x 1/8 inch thick and constructed of heavy, multi-layered cardboard, this wonderful piece is in very fine, all-original condition with a warm, rich patina and color. All of the board's original, wooden, letter/number squares are in such a perfect state that they appear never to have been used! To spell a word, one slides the letters along cut out tracks in the board. To perform computation exercises, one simply flips the board over and is presented the opportunity to practice addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and percentages!
Quite visually appealing and easy to display!
Condition: some tiny edge rubs and surface wear due to use here and there on each side of the board- quite reasonable given this teaching tool's age and use by young children. See all photos.
A seldom found vintage, early School House item!
$165.00
Fabulous colored and black and white illustrations (see photos) adorn this 26 page book! The book features the adventures of a little Southern boy who lives with his gran'mammy and gran'daddy in a log cabin set down in a cotton field.
Interior pages are in very nice, near mint condition, are clean and bright and are tightly bound together. The only intrusion is a former owner's name, "Weaver", written in blue ink on the interior cover page (see photo). The hard bound cloth covers are in fine condition, with very, very slight wear to cover spine edges and book corners typical of a book of its age. This is a verified first edition as later editions had the cloth board without the color pastedown. Illustrated on every page, alternating color and black and white. This copy includes a worn, tattered, but nearly complete dust cover, which accounts for the pristine condition of the front and back hardcovers.
A very charming addition to one's Black Americana collection, and a black-themed children's book that is very rarely found in today's collectible market!!
$165.00
Sapolio was a brand of soap noted for its unique and clever advertising, led by Artemas Ward from 1883–1908. Bret Harte, an American short story writer and poet, wrote jingles for the brand, and the sales force also included King Camp Gillette, who went on to create the fabulously successful Gillette safety razor and the razor and blades business model. Time magazine described Sapolio as "probably the world's best-advertised product" of its time period!
This pleasant trio of Sapolio Soap die cuts is in excellent condition and comes protected in an attractive, walnut-toned, oak decorative frame!
This very rarely found advertising trio together create quite a visually appealing decorative piece!
$45.00
Circa 1920-30’s, the chalk box features a sliding wooden top and carries further advertising on one side printed in matching cobalt blue print. Box measures 6.5 inches x 4.5 inches x 3.75 inches and is constructed of machine cut hinges. In pristine condition and an increasingly difficult collectible to find!
$150.00
This 1920-30s, hinged, wooden game piece box features an original, hand-executed, ink-on-paper drawing of a black figure in a tuxedo that has been pasted to the box cover. The drawing has been preserved with a shellac covering.
The box contains fifty, sequentially numbered 1-50, wooden game pieces painted red and white. The game pieces are in mint condition and appear to have only been lightly used. They remain firmly in place within the box with the support of non-stick, archival tape which may be easily removed without damage to the game pieces, if desired.
The game box measures 5.25 inches wide x 10.50 inches long x 1 inch high.
Truly a one-of-a-kind piece of vintage Black Memorabilia! Displays wonderfully!
$165.00
Entitled "Gathering Cotton", the plate depicts eight slaves, including two children, picking cotton and placing it in woven straw baskets.
Plates such as this, particularly those with the alphabet embossed around the rim, were produced for use by children as subtle educational tools. England was well ahead of the United States in recognizing the moral evils of slavery abolishing it in 1833, but continued to produce slavery-themed plates for the American market.
This plate measures only a diminutive 5 1/2 inches in diameter, and the interior is decorated with the black transfer-printed scene which was then hand-painted in colors prior to firing. The rim is embossed with decorative swirls as well as the alphabet in capital letters.
Condition of the plate is quite good. It has a use/age-related spider-crack that is visible on the backside of the plate and is also partially visible on the front side. (see photos) This spider-crack is quite tight and does not pose any concern to the structural integrity of the plate. Also noted is some subtle edge roughness which occurred during firing; hardly noticeable when the plate is displayed on a stand. This plate has graced my collection for the past 30 years!
Despite its age-related imperfections, this plate displays absolutely beautifully, and for those collectors who are interested in slavery-related artifacts, this would be a noteworthy and visually-appealing addition to one's collection.
SOLD
Entitled A New Story of Little Black Sambo, this tale picks up the story with Little Sambo's mother, Black Mumbo, exclaiming that Sambo, after almost losing his best Sunday clothes to the tigers, would- from now on- only be allowed to wear his every day clothes. Now very unhappily dressed in only a grass skirt, a pouting and naughty Sambo decides to run off into the jungle once again without permission, and climbs a tree to gather coconuts. A tiger soon arrives threatening to eat Little Black Sambo, trapping him up in the tree for the entire day! Eventually, Tusker the Elephant arrives, successfully chasing off the tiger and saving Sambo. Sambo then returns home, where an angry Black Mumbo spanks him with a hairbrush for running off, despite the gift of coconuts Sambo hoped would appease his mother. The conclusion of the tale then moves forward one month later when the family goes to visit Little Black Sambo’s cousins, the Bimboes, who admire his fine Sunday best clothing that he was finally allowed to wear again!
Although no author is attributed, it is thought by some that the tale was co-authored by the book's two illustrators, Clara Bell Thurston, who rendered all of the lovely colored drawings and Earnest Vetsch, who rendered the "black and white" illustrations (which, actually, are done in navy blue ink) as well as the fancy hand-lettering of the text which further embellishes the book.
With 36 unnumbered pages which alternate between the superbly rendered color and navy blue line illustrations, this unique little book is in quite good condition. No fading of color, no rips, creases or missing pages. Binding is tight with all three original staples present. Cover edges are subtly worn, and age-related, light soiling is present. Tusker the elephant has been lightly colored with colored pencil in some places as is Sambo's grass hut, and evidence of penciled-in page numbers, long since erased, is noted. (Any blurring in photos is due to camera technique and does not reflect book condition.)
This rarely-found, miniature-size (possibly a rare salesman's sample) edition of the continuation of the original Little Black Sambo story is a must have for the collector of Little Black Sambo books!
To see all of the Little Black Sambo items currently available for sale, simply type “Sambo” into the search box on our website homepage.
$18.00
An absolutely wonderful addition to one's School or Artist Memorabilia collection!
Also pictured are two other mint condition, unused, boxed, school crayons that are currently offered for separate sale. The group of three make a charming, visual display!
$75.00
Mr. Layton was a skilled pitcher with a strong bat who had a four-year career in the Negro Leagues, playing for the Indianapolis Clowns, the New York Black Yankees and the Raleigh Tigers. One of his teammates was a promising infielder by the name of Hank Aaron, who signed with the Boston Braves in 1952, and eventually became a Hall of Famer. Layton received an invitation in 1951 to try out for the Brooklyn Dodgers, but by then his shoulder was troubling him so he declined, hoping it would heal and another opportunity would present, which unfortunately never came. As of 2016, Mr. Layton, at the age of 87, was enjoying retirement as an associate pastor in a North Carolina ministry.
A brief history of the Negro League:
African-Americans first began to play baseball in the late 1800s on military teams, college teams, and company teams, eventually finding their way to the established professional baseball teams of white players. However, racism and “Jim Crow” laws would force African-Americans from these teams by 1900, with black players left to form their own teams.
In 1920, an organized league structure was formed under the guidance of Andrew “Rube” Foster, a former player, manager, and owner for the Chicago American Giants. In a meeting held at the Paseo YMCA in Kansas City, Mo., Foster and several other Midwestern team owners joined to form the Negro National League. Soon, rival leagues formed in Eastern and Southern states, which brought black baseball to major urban centers and to rural countrysides in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America. The Leagues maintained a high level of professional skill and inspired economic development in many black communities.
In 1945, when Major League Baseball’s Brooklyn Dodgers recruited Jackie Robinson from the Kansas City Monarchs, Robinson became the first African-American in the modern era to play on a Major League roster. While this historic event was a key moment in baseball and civil rights history, it marked the decline of the Negro Leagues. The best black players began to be recruited for the Major Leagues with their black fans following them, and the last Negro Leagues teams folded in the early 1960s.
$75.00
This type of display would have been placed on the counter next to the checkout register with the gum and candy to entice little girls and boys to purchase!
The display box cover features a city policeman demonstrating the authentic and powerful amplitude of the whistles. The cover has a perforated seam that was meant to be unfastened when the box was displayed open so that the policeman and city skyline stood tall above the whistles. The cover has yet to be displayed in this manner.
Marked ALL AMERICAN PLASTIC WHISTLES with no other maker’s mark evident. Very Cool and Colorful Baby Boomer Collectible!
$18.00
An absolutely wonderful addition to one's School or Artist Memorabilia collection!
$495.00
"The Golliwogg at the Sea-Side", published in 1898 by Longmans, Green & Co, London & New York, was illustrated by Florence K. Upton, with story written by her mother, Bertha. This book was the 3rd Golliwogg adventure in a series of thirteen Golliwogg adventures by Upton, with the last published in 1909-- all of which are incredibly difficult to find today.
This hard cover book, measuring 8.75 inches high x 11.5 inches long, is a total of 63 pages in length. The book is lavishly illustrated with 32 full-color illustrations and tells the story of Golly's adventures at the sea shore. Golly and his friends, suffering from boredom, go off to the seashore to try their hand at sunbathing, swimming in the ocean, crab fishing, boating—all with considerable catastrophe—until finally trying a hoped-for-peaceful hayride through the countryside—all for naught!!
The Golliwog, itself, was based on a Black minstrel doll that Florence Kate Upton, born in 1873 of English parents, had played with as a small child in New York. Upton's Golliwog character was first introduced to the world in her 1895 book entitled The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls. Like the rag doll that inspired it, the Golliwog in her book was a less-than-handsome creature with very dark, jet black skin, large white-rimmed eyes, red clown lips, and wild, frizzy hair. Golliwogs are typically male and are generally dressed in a jacket, trousers, bow tie, and stand-up collar in a combination of red, white, blue, black, and occasionally yellow colors.
The book is in very fine but not perfect condition-- not surprising given the book's 113 years of age! Wear to hard-board-cover edges and corners. Binding remains strong and tight with center-taping coming a bit lose on one side, but not effecting integrity. A couple of the pages have 1/2inch tears at base, likely the result of simply turning the pages. Book is complete, with no missing pages.
Truly a fabulous find! Only the 2nd time I have EVER had the pleasure of offering one of these wonderfully-rare, 1st edition, Upton, children's book in my 26 years of dealing in Black Memorabilia!!
$245.00
The child’s head nods up and down in a "yes" motion by pivoting on a tiny metal bar inserted through her neck (see photos).
Condition is mint, and the piece is signed on the bottom of her right foot: “Hand Painted Lenwile China Ardalt Japan 6530 B”.
Black nodders are quite difficult to come by and have become an interesting sub-collecting category in the field of Black Americana! Not to be missed!
Please see the equally-difficult-to-find companion piece also available - the Black Boy Child Clown Nodder. And an additional offering that is not part of the Ardalt Black Child Nodder series is the RARE 1950s Black Americana Sailor Nodder by UCAGCO, Japan.
$95.00
Both dolls retain their 3 original pigtails, all tied off with tiny pieces of string. Their hand-painted lips and eyes remain in excellent condition as is the dark brown paint which covers the bisque bodies which were originally white when manufactured (the white bisque coloring is visible at the joints).
Both dolls have jointed arms and legs which allow them to assume different positions. The string holding the larger doll's legs in place has stretched over these many years resulting in looser leg joints. (This can be repaired if so desired by the new owner.)
The larger doll is dressed in a hand-made outfit consisting of an ivory, yarn-knitted petticoat under a yellow crocheted dress while the smaller doll remains au naturalle! A darling, teeny tiny pair that display quite nicely!
$245.00
The front side graphic showing an African American woman picking cotton with her little girl at her side retains its vivid coloring and is in near mint condition with very minor wear specs here and there visible along the black tray rim. The tray underside shows a bit more wear along the tray rim and around the tray base edge.
The front of the tray bears the advertisement, “ The Source of Cottolene- ‘Nature’s Gift From the Sunny South’”, and obviously refers to the cotton plant as the source of Cottolene Lard or shortening which was manufactured by the N.K. Fairbanks Company.
In extraordinarily microscopic-size lettering on the bottom front of the tray at the base of the cotton-picking scene can be read (with a super-magnifying glass), the name of the manufacturer of this metal tip tray: " Passaic Metal Ware Co. Litho. Passaic NJ".
The tray underside depicts a can of Cottolene lard which provides the backdrop for the Fairbanks Company product advertising. It advertising reads, "Way Down South in the Land of Cotton’ If you could see cotton growing in the fields in all its purity, could observe the skill and care used in extracting and refining the oil, you would appreciate while COTTOLENE- the perfect shortening- is so much purer and more healthful than lard could ever be. COTTOLENE is pure and wholesome as the finest olive oil; makes food palatable, digestible, healthful. COTTOLENE shortens your food- lengthens your life.” Wow, quite a testimony!!
A wonderful crossover piece that is becoming very difficult to find and is equally appropriate for one’s Advertising, Black Memorabilia, or Tip Tray collection!
$275.00
This diminutive tin case is painted black with gold accenting and gold lettering present on the front of the case. The black paint shows reasonable wear given its 130+ years of age with the majority of wear evident along seam lines and at the base. The gold painting on the front of the case remains quite nice with very small areas of unobtrusive paint loss present (please see all photos). This tin case was clearly well cared for over the years.
The case contains three, pull-out, tin drawers with tiny, circular, loop pulls at the ends, that when slid out, reveal 15 separate compartments designed to hold the corked, glass, sample bottles. Fourteen bottles remain present, all of which are original to the case. The bottles advertise the spices and perfume waters that the Loverin and Browne Company manufactured for wholesale purchase by various independent groceries. The base of each bottle sits on a spring which would have facilitated secure storage during travel.
An interesting addition to one's advertisement collection! Very easy to display with great visual appeal!
$85.00
Constructed of celluloid with a metal back and pin to allow attachment to one's clothing, this diminutive mourning pin measures just 7/8th inch in diameter.
The image remains quite crisp with surface crackling of the celluloid that does not effect the integrity of the overall structure of the pin. In the highly magnified photos, the crackling appears much, much more intrusive to the eye than when viewed simply with one's eyes, alone.
The backside of the pin carries the maker's mark and manufacturing locations, some of which is partially obscured: "T. J. M..., Dearborn, Chicago".