Catalog: Popular Collectibles (243)

These wonderful, circa late 1950-early 1960's, TRU-TONE No Roll, school or art crayons manufactured by the Milton Bradley Company of Springfield, Massachusetts, are in mint condition! The crayons are unused and are all original! The box measures 4.5 inches tall x 4.5 inches wide x 1/2 inch deep.

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!

Measuring 5 inches wide x 4.5 inches long, this 1920's, brass ashtray represents a very seldom-found offering of vintage Black Americana!

This piece was actually created to serve as an ashtray! It depicts a delightful image of a young black boy in a wide-brimmed straw hat!

In wonderful condition, this piece is stamped "LL" on back.

An uncommon piece of Black Americana that should not be overlooked!

Measuring 3 1/4 inches long, this circa 1920s, miniature, Black Mammy doll is unique in construction- its head and body have been fashioned from an old rubber baby nursing nipple!

Mammy’s sweet little face has been carefully hand-painted, and she has been nicely dressed in a red dress with blue oval designs, a linen apron and red and black head scarf.

Condition of this wonderful miniature Mammy is very good! With the exception of her nipple face which has contorted a bit due to the ravages of time, she is in delightful condition!

Measuring approximately 10.5 inches tall, these sweet, hand-made, circa 1930's, Great Depression era, Mammy and Pappy dolls feature dried apples as heads! Common household items such as chicken or turkey breast bones, dried corn cobs, old rubber baby bottle nipples, wooden clothespins and dried fruit were frequently employed to make play-dolls when money was tight and store-bought toys were beyond reach!

These two folk art pieces came straight from the 93 year old great grandma who played with them as a child!

While the heads were constructed from dried apples painted black, the bodies were cut from various pieces of sponge which were then hand-sewn together. Hands were cut from pink--- and not brown or black felt--very interesting---while the teeth were formed from tiny white beads, and the white fuzzy hair fashioned from nothing more than small, cotton batting pieces. Eyes are glued-on googly eyes.

The homemade clothing is nicely constructed via a combination of hand and machine sewing. Mammy's green, teal and rust flowered dress is embellished with a bit of lace at the sleeves, and she also wears a fancy, white eyelet petticoat and a soft pink crocheted shawl. She is barefoot. Pappy's light blue shirt features 3 button detailing, and he wears denim pants and black felt shoes and hat with a red felt vest.

Condition is quite fine with no observable issues! No odors, rips, stains or missing parts. A very sweet pair!

This vintage 1920's cast iron figure is an authentic piece that was carefully hand-painted long ago. The interesting little hooded drummer measures just 1.5 inches high and is in fine condition with paint scrapes here and there (see all photos). Great facial detail! An interesting figure that displays exceedingly well! Please see the other African-American cast iron figures available for purchase!

An exceptional example of 19th century Folk Art-- a very rare needlework cross stitch sampler with Black Americana theme! This highly unusual example dates to circa 1880's and depicts two young girls on a primitive, “make-do” seesaw--- a wooden board placed over a log-- complete with a grapevine trellis in the background! This wonderful piece is accented with a multi-toned, Greek Key border design with fringe edging.

The needlework measures approximately 15 by 14 inches and is in good condition overall, given its 120+ years of age! The central design is superb with no problems, but the two upper corners show evidence of some unraveling, particularly the upper right, which has a small hole. This little hole could be repaired, or if the piece was framed, it could be visually eliminated; however, it truly does little to detract from the central focal point of the children on the seesaw, when viewed in its entirety. The piece does show subtle evidence of typical, age-related discoloration.

An utterly wonderful and scarce example of 19th century Black Americana themed Needlework!

Offered is a rarely found, Ca 1890s, tintype mourning brooch featuring a young and attractive, African American woman.

Housed in an ornate, brass frame complete with backside pin to allow attachment to one's clothing, the mourning pin measures 1 3/16th inch in diameter.

The image is quite clean and crisp with a very tiny imperfection noted on the image just above the woman's head at the frame edge.

This extremely colorful, lighthearted, and energetic, signed, fine quality, Limited Edition, giclee print depicts a lively outdoor dining scene full of gaiety and camaraderie.

The image, itself, measures 32" long x 24" wide, while the framed artwork in total measures 41" long x 32.5" wide. The giclee print was framed using museum-quality, acid-free double-mat board and backing materials, within a fine quality solid wood frame and topped with non-glare glass. This artwork was purchased directly from artist, Kelvin W. Henderson, it was signed by him at the time of our purchase, and it cheerily hung in our dining room for ten years!

The artwork is actually brighter in color than my camera was able to capture- closeups appear a bit "darker" than reality. Condition is absolutely perfect! And its presence---well, it will command one's attention hanging on an entire wall-space all by itself! It is, as stated earlier, a Limited Edition giclee lithograph-- Number 18 of a 150 Limited Edition series, with an additional 50 canvas editions. The provenance of this piece with all details is attached on the back side of the artwork as seen in one of our photos. A buoyant and effervescent piece of art!

As this piece exceeds typical shipping criteria in terms of dimensional size and weight, we regret that we cannot offer free shipping. We will provide a $25 shipping credit, but the remaining cost of shipping will rest upon the purchaser.

Measuring 14 inches high x 8 inches wide, this early and VERY, VERY RARE, Circa 1890-1900, exotic Female Blackamoor, metal frame mirror is complete with all original parts including its original 8" x 10" beveled mirror which is in amazing condition!. An extraordinarily difficult to find, highly captivating piece! Unmarked.

This stunning, 125 year old+ example of statuesque Black Americana is in wonderful condition absent two very tiny areas of loss, not unexpected given the age and use of the piece. One area is at the extreme edge of the right tip of the base, and the other, very minor loss to the tips of the right thumb and index finger. Neither of these areas of loss are easily noticed, nor do they distract from the truly incredible rarity of this early piece.

Very well made, the frame easily comes apart into 3 pieces for safe shipping and/or storage.

An extraordinary opportunity to acquire an extremely RARE and highly coveted piece of turn-of-the-19th-into-20th-century Black Americana! One will be very hard-pressed to find another example!

Offered are two, VERY RARE, 1880's, romantically-themed advertisements printed in Germany and sold by the Bim Brothers, London. The two advertisements both feature well-dressed African American gentlemen attempting to woo and capture the exclusive attentions of pretty young African-American ladies, one via a banjo serenade and the other via an offer of lovely flowers.

The products which these advertisements were meant to endorse is unknown. The advertisements feature a high-shine, glossy finish which compliments the beautiful detailing and intense coloring of each piece. Both would look fabulous framed!

The advertisement featuring the banjo playing gent (with that snarling black dog in the lower right corner) measures approximately 7.25 inches wide x 10.25 inches long. The advertisement featuring the shy woman being presented with pretty flowers measures approximately 7.25 inches wide x 9 inches long.

Please note that any white specks that seem prominent in the closeup photos are the result of light bouncing off the surfaces of the aged advertisements. These pieces are approximately 140 years old, and while in very good condition given their age, both do have tiny surface imperfections, lines and light edge wear. The advertisements are priced at $35 each or two for $60.

Offered for purchase is a RARELY FOUND, salesman sample box of Sharpoint Black Face Wire Cobbler's Nails measuring a very diminutive 1.75" tall x 1" wide! (Please note: the larger box pictured in the photographs has been SOLD. This offer is for the smaller box.)

The trademark for Sharpoint is a cleverly-designed, eye-catching, broadly smiling image of an African American gent. If one looks closely, one can clearly see the words "Sharpoint Cobblers Nails" printed within the black space of the gent's mouth! A very "sharp" advertising strategy!

Sharpoint Wire Cobbler's Nails were manufactured by the Charles F. Baker Co, Boston, Massachusetts. This remaining smaller box retains its end flap which features both the manufacturing and patent information, with the patent number corresponding to a 1933 USA Patent date. Amazingly, the box still retains the original cobbler's nails!

The box is in very good condition considering its age and the fact that it has held tiny, sharp nails for over 80 years! The cover litho remains very crisp and clear. Typical, age-related edge wear is noted. Please peruse all photos for condition details. The box has been shrink-wrapped to protect the integrity of the cardboard, and again, it does contain the original nails.

This VERY, VERY RARELY FOUND SALESMAN SAMPLE size box WITH ORIGINAL NAILS is offered at $125.

This wonderful, late 19th / early 20th century photograph of students and teacher from a New England, one-room school house measures 10 x 8 inches including mat. Actual size of the sepia toned photo is 8 x 5 inches. The subjects are posed on the stairs in front of the schoolhouse porch or veranda. The ten young gentlemen in the front row, while quite fashionably attired, don’t appeared to be very enthusiastic about their participation in this photography session! Look at those faces!

Condition is wonderful- no rips or creases. The full view photo appears faded or lighter on the right hand side, but this is camera flash glare only- tones/coloration are uniform throughout as seen in close-up photo.

A delightful and early schoolhouse collectible!

Offered is an utterly fabulous, one-of-a-kind, 1880s, piece of original artwork by Edward West Merrill (1841-1910) of Concord, New Hampshire.

Merrill, known for creating extraordinary art collages of cut paper, cut birch bark, ink, and watercolor mounted on black construction weight paper, fashioned this particular piece depicting the fictional African-American Blackville Debating Society, by encompassing all of these preferred artistic mediums.

One can see the beautiful grain of the white birch bark Merrill used to execute each figure and form, which he then detailed using black ink and added depth and color by applying varying natural tones of watercolor. Merrill added additional elements of detail to the black mounting paper using a lighter toned ink, such as the entrance/exit door to the left of the moderator. The resulting work of art is simply exquisite!

Merrill's subject matter ranged from various genre pieces to racist scenes inspired by Solomon Eytinge, Jr.'s, (1833-1905) "Blackville" series that Eytinge created for Harper's Weekly in the 1870s. Merrill's artwork offered here was inspired by Solomom Eytinge's "Blackville" lithograph printed in the January 4, 1879, edition of Harper's Weekly. (A photo of Eytinge's litho is presented for client reference and comparison to E.W. Merrill's work and is not available for sale.) When comparing the two pieces, one will note that Merrill changed his artwork from that of Eytinge's by eliminating one of the "scorner's" in the right corner, many of the club members featured at the bottom Eytinge's litho as well as the signage above the debate moderator and by adding the 25 lb "Best Soap" box under the moderator's table leg.

At the base of this work reads the following: The Blackwell Debating Society- "Wedder Lord Dorwin Involved Hisself or Somebody Else." -The Scorner in the Corner Will Reply Drawn By E.W. Merrill Concord NH .

Measurements including the handsome, original oak frame are 26" wide x 18.5" in length. The original hanging eyelets have been removed for ease in shipping and are present under the tape as seen in the photo of the verso of the artwork.

Measuring just barely 6 inches in length, this fabulous example of 1920's folk art and hand craftsmanship exemplifies the stereotypical Mammy of the early 20th century.

Constructed with care and skill, Mammy's floral dress, white apron and white under-pantaloons were neatly machine stitched. Her facial features--- eye brows, eyes, nose, and lips --- are hand-stitched with embroidery thread. She has yarn-constructed black curls peeking out from under her red and white polka dot head scarf. Her arms, torso and head are stuffed with cotton or cloth scraps with the torso securely tucked over the top of the clothespin and into the pantaloons. Her black-painted clothespin legs are hidden under her long skirt.

A very sweet little doll in wonderful all-original condition-- no repairs, rips, stains or odor. Displays quite nicely!!

Produced as a souvenir piece for the 1884 New Orleans Exposition, this diminutive, antique, metal match holder measures just 2.5 inches high!

Marked "Pat Applied For" on its base, this darling match holder features two small black boys playing around a rather large cotton bale (the bale is labeled "COTTON").

Well-executed detail! A lovely piece seldom found in today's collectible market!

Measuring a very diminutive 2 inches long x 1 ½ inches wide x ½ inch deep, this tiny cardboard match box was made in Sweden in the 1930’s. It still retains its wonderful lithographed image of a Black Man carrying jugs of coconut juice among the palm trees. It is entitled “THE PALMTREE” and is additionally labeled “IMPREGNATED SAFETY MATCH, MADE IN SWEDEN” along the bottom of the litho. It is in near mint condition but no longer contains any matches! The box simply slides out of its cardboard casing with a push of the finger!

Offered is a colorful, 1883, lithographed, Lime Kiln Club, Black Americana, Cigar Label by Mensing & Stecher of Rochester, New York (company noted in the lower left corner). The lithographed 8" x 6" label would have been placed on the inside cover of the traditional wooden cigar box of that era. This highly detailed label features a caricature image of a very boisterous group of African Americans at a lodge meeting. The moderator is trying to get order while some of the members talk and fight amongst themselves with one even holding a pistol.

A trademark label affixed to the bottom of a sour mash whiskey barrel, "ICMCo" stands for the Ithaca (New York) Cigar Manufacturing Co. for whom the label was made.

Interestingly, this cigar label was based on a racial parody book featuring a fictitious fraternal organization of African-Americans, titled 'Brother Gardner's Lime-Kiln Club' by "M. Quad". Quad, in actuality, was noted newspaper columnist and satirist, Charles Bertrand Lewis, of the Detroit Free Press.

Framed in an 8.75" x 10.75" silver-toned wood frame, this Lime Kiln Club lithographed label is extraordinarily scarce and highly sought after. It is listed as one of the top 100 blue chip cigar labels by "InStone 100" (a cigar label rating organization). The lower right hand corner notes the US Patent Office Registry date of May 22nd 1883. This 19th century piece would benefit from professional framing using archival, acid-free materials to enhance its life for many more years to come.

Condition: The color remains as brilliant as the day this 140 year old label was produced! Four unobtrusive and minor tears are noted: two in the lower left corner area, one at the center top near the moderator's gavel, and one between the K and I in Kiln. A crease is noted in the white margin above the label title, and a water mark is present in the lower right side of the white margin. However, none of these blemishes detract from this highly intricate lithograph! Take a few moments to carefully study all of the activity and detailing in this colorful piece!

The book, THOMPSON IN AFRICA or AN ACCOUNT OF THE MISSIONARY LABORS, SUFFERINGS, TRAVELS, AND OBSERVATIONS is the compilation of the journal kept by missionary George Thompson while working at the Mendi Mission in Sierra Leone, Africa, during the period 1848-1851. This is a second edition published in 1852, printed for the author by William Harned, 48 Beekman Street, New York City (the first edition was published in 1851).

George Thompson’s missionary service to Africa occurs approximately 7 years after the MENDI natives of the AMISTAD were accompanied by missionaries on their return to Africa. He serves this very same mission, now in the of colony Sierra Leone, a colony which was established to serve as refuge for the liberated Africans taken from slave ships.

356 pages long, this journal provides a fascinating account of all aspects of the Mendi culture seen through the eyes, however biased in his mission to convert the Africans to Christianity, of a genuinely well-meaning gentleman of his time. Condition: complete, tight binding, foxing throughout, spine wear as shown in picture.

Thompson states, “It is hoped that the following narrative may, in the hands of GOD, awaken a desire in many hearts to go to Africa, for the purposes of preaching, teaching, farming, building houses, mills, manufactories, etc., and thus assist in making long despised and neglected AFRICA, what it is capable of becoming, THE GARDEN OF THE WORLD.”