OLD HALL EXCELSIOR PLATE

Q: Can you tell from the marks on my plate who made it and how old it is?
A: Your plate was made by Old Hall Earthenware Co. of Hanley, Staffordshire, England. The company was in business under that name from 1861 to 1886. The marks on the bottom of your plate include the pattern name, Excelsior, and an English registry mark, which indicates the design of your dish was registered on January 8, 1880. The asymmetrical Japanese-inspired design would have been popular in the 1880s. A plate in this pattern is valued at $15 to $20.

VOTES FOR WOMEN PLATE

Q: My mother bought this plate in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1961. Taped to the back is a piece of paper with my mother's handwriting which says, "Made for a lawn tea party given by O.H.P Belmont at Marble House, Newport, RI, in 1910." It has a lion and banner mark with the words "John Maddock & Sons, England" on the back. The plate is 6 inches wide. Is it valuable?

A: Alva Vanderbilt Belmont (1853-1933) was the widow of O.H.P. Belmont. After her first marriage, to the wealthy William Vanderbilt, ended in divorce, she married the even wealthier O.H.P. Belmont. After his death in 1908, she became active in the women's suffrage movement. She had the "Votes for Women" china made by John Maddock & Sons for a party in support of women's suffrage held at her Newport "cottage," Marble House, in 1909. Luncheon plates, salad plates, soup bowls, and cups and saucers were made. The dishes were also used at a tea party held at the mansion in July 1914. Both events raised money to support the suffrage movement and guests received pieces of the china as favors. The Newport Preservation Society sells reproductions of Votes for Women china. Reproductions have been made by five different manufacturers since the 1960s. The mark on your plate indicates it is one of the original pieces and was made c.1896 or later. An original plate like yours is worth about $800-$1,000. Reproduction plates sell for $20 or less.

COPELAND SPODE BYRON

Q: I have a Copeland Spode England sandwich plate marked "Spodes Byron Series No. 1." I've heard that the Byron plates were made in the 1830s. Is my plate really that old?

A: Marks like the one on your plate were used by Spode in the early 1800s, but they did not include the word "England."

When a country name is included in a mark, it usually indicates the piece was made after 1891, when the McKinley Tariff Act was passed requiring the country of origin to be on all pieces sold in the United States. All china imported into the United States after that had to be marked with the country of origin. A series of blue and white transfer plates with center scenes based on engravings in a book about Lord Byron's life were made by Copeland & Garrett, successors to Spode, in 1834. The plates were also made with brown, green, pink, and puce transfer scenes. They had acanthus leaf borders. These are called the Byron Views Series. Multicolored scenes like the one on your plate were made c.1931-1969. The center scenes are not the same as the older Byron series and the plates have grapevine borders. The twentieth-century plates sell for about $25-$35. A sandwich plate similar to yours recently was offered for sale for $67.

SOME READERS' KOMMENTS

From our readers comments on last weeks Kovels Komments:

J.R. wrote: I collect bicycles. I'm 99% certain that the button shown in the newsletter is an ad for Arnold, Schwinn, and Co.'s "The World" bicycle. The model name was used from 1896 on.

A.M. wrote about the British registry mark mentioned in the discussion of the Clementson Bros. plate. One little word can make a big difference. We wrote that the mark told when the dish was made--but it actually indicates only when the design was registered. It takes time after the registration to actually make a plate. The mark indicates the earliest possible date of manufacture. We got it right in all our books, but slipped up this time. This is a mistake that was common in books written 40 years ago.

HOW TO TELL IF IT'S SAFE TO USE AN OLD DISH IN THE MICROWAVE

Put the dish and a glass of water in the microwave. Heat it for one minute on high. If the dish doesn't get hot it's okay to use it to heat food. But if there is gold or silver trim on the dish it will spark and can't be used. Never use a plate with chips, deep scratches or crazing. You will damage the plate and you may find bits of glasslike glaze in your food. And this is not a test for lead content in the glaze. Some old majolica and heavy pottery wares of the past were decorated with lead glazes which should not be used. Watch out for new decorative plates. They are usually marked "for decorative purposes only" because they have lead glaze.

TOP 10 STORIES IN KOVELS KOMMENTS IN 2008

These were the Top 10 stories in Kovels Komments in 2008, based on interest from our readers:

1. In Memoriam: Ralph Kovel
We were touched by the many notes from fans of our books, newsletters, and TV shows telling us how much Ralph would be missed. This week USA Today listed "those who died in 2008 [and] left an indelible mark." The list included Ralph as coauthor of "the popular Kovels' antiques and collectibles price guides that became a bible for antique shop and flea market treasure hunters." He would be pleased to know he is remembered and that his passion--collecting--is finally on a par with art.

2. Record-setting price for a Monopoly game
The very early $47,600 set was stored for 30 years, proving you should be careful not to throw away unusual old games.

3. Gibson Girl plate
The Charles Dana Gibson drawings of the Gibson Girls are still popular, but few know the history of the set of blue and white plates. The plates sell for about $85 each.

4. Eisenberg fur clip
To think shoplifting was the start of Eisenberg rhinestone jewelry! Eisenberg fur clips and other jewelry are now popular collectibles. And few collectors today realize the clips were originally worn on fur coat collars.

5. Georges Hoentschel vase
A plain tan vase with a GH cipher on the base turned out to be by a French potter--and worth as much as $3,000. It pays to do the research.

6. eBay tricks
Anytime we mention problems with eBay, our readers are interested.

7. Knitting for bottles, chairs and trees
What a novel idea--knitting covers for chairs or trees.

8. Nasty Valentines
Comic valentines, very popular in the 1840s, are more subtle now. And a 1930s "penny dreadful" is a popular collectible.

9. Modernist jewelry
2008 was the year for modernist jewelry exhibits at museums. Prices are rising because the maker's names and talents are becoming known.

10. eBay fees
It got more expensive to sell on eBay this year when fees went up.

ASBURY PARK PLATE

Asbury Park Plate

Q: Can you tell me the value of my old blue-gray souvenir plate picturing views of Asbury Park, New Jersey? The views show six different town landmarks. There are stars circling the plate's rim and at the top is the title, "Views of Asbury Park, N.J."

A: Many different potteries in England and the United States made American souvenir plates. The plates were immensely popular from the 1890s until World War I and show scenes from famous places like Niagara Falls and from small towns, too. Others picture historical events. The plates are often marked with the maker's name, the importer's name, or both. Rowland & Marsellus, a New York City importing company in business from about 1893 to 1937, sold at least three different Asbury Park plates. If yours was originally sold by Rowland and Marsellus, it should have a diamond-shaped mark on the back with "R&M Co." inside. Rowland & Marsellus imported plates, vases, cups, saucers, and other items from different potteries in the Staffordshire district of England, but the items were marked only with the Rowland & Marsellus mark. No matter which company made or imported your plate, it would sell for about $75 to $100.

SAFE WAY TO DISPLAY PLATES

Safe Way to Display Plates

If you use plate hangers to display your plates, be sure they are not too tight. The clips should be covered with a soft material. Otherwise, the ends of the clips may scratch or chip the plate.