From the monthly archives:

August 2008

Haunted House Stories – The Mysterious Glowing Toilet

August 21, 2008

The Ghostly Glow
Make sure you wait until late tonight to read today’s blog post and be sure to turn out all the lights before you do so …
Lights out?  Ok, proceed.
Our home was built in 1887 and like many old homes, it comes with it’s own spooky stories.  We recently had some good friends visit [...]

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This Sofa Is Flipping Us The “Bird” (Pattern)

August 20, 2008

When speaking of John Henry Belter and J & JW Meeks furniture, there are several “patterns” that were typically made by the makers as original designs or commissions for wealthy clients and subsequently produced again and again.
Some Belter pattern examples are “Tuthill King“, “Henry Clay“, “Cornucopia“, “Fountain Elms“, “Rosalie” and “Rosalie w/Grapes“.  You may not [...]

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J. H. Belter or Meeks Rococo Sofa at James D. Julia

August 19, 2008

The sofa depicted above is coming up during James D. Julia’s “Spectacular Maine Auction” on August 26th.  I’ll be profiling more of the delectable Victorian pieces in future posts as we near the sale, but let’s talk about the sofa above for the moment.
Priscilla Myer’s 1980 book, “Victorian Details” dedicates two pages to theories on [...]

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Special Finds Updated 8/18/08

August 18, 2008

Special Finds was updated with Jelliff furniture for sale that matches those with provenance in the Newark Museum. Learn about Special Finds here or if you are a subscriber, go here.

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Allen & Brother or Herter Brothers Bedroom Suite

August 17, 2008

I was contacted by the recent buyer of the above bedstead, which is part of a two-piece suite. There is no question it is a very desirable set and I’d be happy to have it in one of my bedrooms. It is constructed of solid Rosewood, has gilt incising and a bronze plaque [...]

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Nearly Identical Pair Of Rococo Bedsteads

August 16, 2008

If you’ve ever wanted a pair of Rococo style Victorian beds, QUEEN size no less, then this is your chance. There are minor differences in the carvings, but you can see that they appear to have come from the same shop, possibly the New Orleans area.
The main difference is that one is made of [...]

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1857 Bembe & Kimbel U.S. House of Representatives Chair

August 14, 2008

Rare Victorian is please to offer for sale this original 1857 U.S. House of Representatives chair bearing the original stencil of it’s maker, Bembe & Kimbel.  It is identical in style to the chair that Abraham Lincoln favored as his photo chair and the design is depicted in the recently completed Thaddeus Stevens monument.  Only [...]

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