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Antiques answers with Nick Fletcher
From the Bolton Evening News, first published Tuesday 4th May 2004.
Q: Can you tell me the value of an old book. It is called the Holcombe Hunt, compiled by Arthur N Walker. It says it is a limited edition of 350, and is signed and numbered. Mrs T
A: Most books have a print run of many thousands so one limited to just 350 is of special interest, particularly as the subject -- hunting -- is very collectable too This book, which is nicely illustrated, was published in 1937, and an example in excellent condition is worth around £200.
Q: I have a small figure of a young girl, marked Regal Ware. Does it have any value? Mr H
A: Regal Ware was a trade name used by the Stoke-on-Trent firm of A.G Richardson from the 1920s onwards. The firm made a wide range of ceramics, including ornaments like the one you describe. Value of the figure you describe would be around £20-£30.
Q: I have a bowl about nine inches in diameter and a deep blue colour decorated with pomegranates. It has a very shiny glaze and has the name Hancock and Sons on the base. Also a signature that looks like Abraham. Is it of any value?
A: This is a bowl from a Staffordshire firm which made some interesting pottery, some of it designed by George Cartlidge and based on earlier designs by a pioneer of the Arts and Crafts Movement, William Morris. By the 1920s, when this bowl was made, the firm was using a designer called Frank Abraham who was creating some original and very eye-catching patterns. Products from Hancock's Morris and Rubens ranges are particularly sought-after and this example is worth about £150.
Q: I have some old wax-cylinders in cardboard tubes marked Edison and Sterling. They are recordings of songs by Fred Vernon, Billy Williams, Huntings Band and church choirs. What are they worth? Mrs M
A: Before the invention of the gramophone and flat-disc records in the late 1890s music and songs were recorded on wax cylinders and played on machines called phonographs, invented by Thomas Edison. The phonograph remained popular until around the time of the first world war, when the better sound quality of the gramophone finally ousted it. The wax cylinders were made by the million and many have survived, though they are fragile and apt to crumble or suffer from mildew. Good playable examples by music hall stars such as Fred Vernon or Billy Williams can fetch £5-£10 each among collectors, but long-forgotten bands and church choirs are less popular and fetch about £2 each. Damaged or damp-affected examples are worthless as they are unrestorable.
Q: I am starting to collect the wooden puppets made by a firm called Pelham in the 1950s and 1960s. Is there a club I could join where I could contact other collectors? Miss D
Q: I have acquired a few Portmeirion jugs and tall coffee pots from car boot sales and charity shops paying about £5 each for them. They are mainly a pattern called Greek Key. I have heard they are quite collectable. How much are they worth?
A: Portmeirion was started in the early 1960s by Susan Williams-Ellis. Her first highly successful range was called Totem and a coffee pot from that range would be worth about £60-£80. Greek Key was a slightly later range from the late 1960s, and values are lower, typically about £25 for a jug or coffee pot. The company's products were very fashionable m the 60s and 70s, and the firm is still going strong today, producing a much wider range of items, all of them very distinctive.
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