EUGENIE LAMP

Q: I bought this lamp at a friend's garage sale for $20. She said it was an Empress Eugenie lamp. I can't find anything about it. Can you help?

A: Oil lamps with figural stem bases were popular from about 1865 to 1880. Most bases were gilded or bronzed, but the finish is often worn off like yours. The figure on your lamp is Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III of France. She was empress consort from the time of their marriage in 1853 until they fled to England at the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871. The pattern of the glass font is Inverted Teardrop Band, a design patented by John Bridges in 1872. During the 1950s, oil lamp bases and fonts were sometimes used as vases for flower arrangements. The lamps sell for about $150-$200 in worn condition.

HORSE VEHICLE LICENSE

Q: I have this nickel-plated brass piece shaped like the number 2. I think it is a 1912 license for a one-horse vehicle. I would like to know more about this piece. Can you tell me why it is shaped like a "2" and who made it?

A: This is a Springfield, Ohio, license plate for a horse-drawn vehicle. For several years, plates in Springfield and some other cities were shaped like the last digit of the year, so your 1912 plate is shaped like a "2." The 1910 plate is an "X" shape, representing the Roman numeral for 10. It was made by Hiss Stamping Co. of Columbus, Ohio. The plate was displayed on the vehicle. License plates are technically "registration" plates, since they indicate that the vehicle is registered and the tax paid, not that the driver has a license. Massachusetts became the first state to require vehicle registration in 1903, when automobiles became popular and money was needed to maintain the roads.

CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS WITH VINTAGE LINENS

Use your vintage linens for the holidays even if you must use your ironing board to get them into shape. (Remember the days before "permanent press"?) Use printed holiday tablecloths and cocktail napkins, even aprons with Christmas patterns. Then get out some vintage toys and candlesticks to use as centerpieces.

ART BASEL & DESIGN MIAMI

I'm just back from the Art Basel and Design Miami shows in Miami Beach. It's probably the largest art show in the world. As always, I looked for trends and the use of antiques in modern art. Seen at the show: a 3-foot-high modern "memory jar" decorated with antique plates, figurines, broken platters and small dolls. Also seen: an antique lacy carved chair from India with a red plastic "leather" seat topped by a neon "stop" sign. Droog, a Dutch design firm that likes to alter old things, offered a wooden kitchen chair from about 1910 that's covered with fuzzy white paint and light blue floral designs. Prices were high for everything. Each of the things I've mentioned must have cost over $10,000.

Modern Japanese basketry vases were selling for up to $30,000. By comparison, antique Japanese baskets are bargains.

SUN-MAID GIRL GETS NEW IMAGE

First a younger Betty Crocker and Aunt Jemima and a slimmer Big Boy were created to update those advertising icons. Now a well-endowed, Barbie-faced Sun-Maid girl is representing her raisin company in TV and print ads. (She's still the 1970s version on Sun-Maid raisin boxes.) At 95 years old, her new look suggests she has seen a plastic surgeon. At least she still wears a bonnet--but her old one looked more comfortable.

DICK CLARK DOLL

Q: I have a Dick Clark autograph doll in the original box. Is it worth anything?

A: Dick Clark was the host of the popular syndicated television show American Bandstand from 1957 to 1989. Teenagers were invited to come on the show to dance to recordings of the latest popular music. Your doll was probably made c.1958. Dick Clark autograph dolls were made in two sizes, 25 and 45 inches. Autograph dolls and stuffed animals were popular in the 1950s and later. Children had their friends sign them. The lid of the box shows both Dick Clark and a group of youngsters autographing the doll’s jacket. The small doll with the box is worth about $400. The larger one is worth about $250.

IRONSTONE VICTORIA COAT OF ARMS

Q: Can you identify this mark? It is on the bottom of a 4 1/4-inch flow blue ironstone pot.

A: This is a fake British Royal coat of arms mark. Manufacturers in England, the United States, and other countries used fake coat of arms marks to make their pottery seem older or more valuable. This "Victoria" mark was used on many new pieces of ironstone about twenty years ago. One clue to the fake: the mark is much too large for a small pot base.

REPRODUCTION CHRISTMAS SCENE FIGURES ARE FOR SALE

You can update your old set of tiny 1930s painted metal figures that make Christmas scenes on a tabletop or mantel. The original figures by Barclay were dressed in 19th-century costumes. In the 1940s, more figures were made in contemporary costumes. These figures have been made again this year using the 1940s molds. It's easy to spot the repros if you are a collector of old ones. The new figures are solid; originals were hollow.

DARWIN'S MOST FAMOUS BOOK SELLS AT AUCTION

A first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" auctioned for $170,569 at Christie's in London. The rare book was noticed by the owner's son-in-law when he happened to examine the books in the guest bathroom. The family said the book was bought 40 years ago for less than $1. About 1,250 copies of the book were printed in 1859.

SWAN'S HEAD BOTTLE

Q: I picked up this unusual item at a local estate sale. It's made of heavy satin glass and is in the shape of a bird's head. It has a screw-off cap on one end. The person I bought it from thought it might be a perfume bottle, but someone else told me he thought it was a Prohibition-era woman's hip flask. It is about 8 1/2 inches long. Any idea exactly what it is and what it might be worth?

A: You made a lucky find! This is a swan's-head laydown perfume bottle made by Webb c.1884. Thomas Webb was a glassmaker who began working in 1829 and founded his own glassworks in Amblecote, England, in 1840. Production ended by 1991 and the factory was demolished in 1995. Your perfume bottle is probably worth $6,000-$10,000.

GALILEO'S MISSING FINGERS ARE FOUND

Two of Galileo's fingers, cut from his hand 300 years ago, were just rediscovered when the sealed glass jar they were stored in sold at auction. Three fingers were cut from Galileo's hand in 1737, when his body was moved to its final resting place (Galileo died in 1642). It was not uncommon at the time to cut body parts from saints to keep as relics--and Galileo was considered a sort of secular saint. At some point two of the fingers and one of Galileo's teeth were stored in the jar, which disappeared in about 1905. The person who bought the jar at auction took it to experts at the Museum of the History of Science in Florence, Italy. Experts there confirmed the authenticity of the jar and its contents. The fingers will be displayed at the museum with the third finger, which the museum already possessed.

FAR-OUT LONDON FASHIONS

Remember Carnaby Street? It was the center of London's fashion world in the 1960s. Long hair and mod clothes for men were "in." The extreme clothing featured bright colors and op-art designs. Men wore drainpipe (skinny) jeans, pointed-toe shoes, and mod suits with narrow lapels. Today the English lad in his 20s seems to be at it again. London's Financial Times pictures the latest Dickensian styles--men with upswept hair, beard and mustache, and wrinkled clothing. They're wearing waistcoats (vests), huge black overcoats, large bowties, shirts with Peter Pan collars, even torn sweaters. The most likely of these fashions to be popular outside of London are the accessories: walking sticks, watch chains with watch and fob, and key chains with charms dangling from a pants pocket. And, of course, old-fashioned tortoiseshell spectacles.

THANKS (AND A DISCOUNT) FROM KOVELS

Thanksgiving is behind us, but we continue to thank you for making Kovels what it is today. Those of you who use Kovels.com belong to a community of over a million collectors. And now you can look forward to the unveiling of our new website! It's coming soon and will offer features YOU have been asking for: an events calendar where you can list your own events for FREE, forums you can enter FREE to talk about your favorite collectibles, the ability to comment on every article and to read the comments of others, and easier searches. On top of all that, you will be able to access (by signing up for a premium-plus subscription) more than 8,500 pottery and porcelain marks.

We trust that Kovels.com is helping you save more, spend less, and live a richer collecting life. We're listening to you--so please let us know how we're doing and what else we can do to make your collecting more fun and profitable.

To show our appreciation, you will receive 15% off any purchases you make at Kovels.com's store through Friday, December 4, 2009. Mention the code "Kovels" during checkout.

BRUNSWICK POOL TABLE

Q: I bought this pool table from a friend about 30 years ago. I also have the original balls, ball racks, counters, and shelf storage for cue sticks and balls. Can you tell me how old it is and what it is worth?

A: The company that made your pool table was founded by John Moses Brunswick. It started out as the Cincinnati Carriage Making Co. The company began making billiard tables in 1845. It merged with Julius Balke's Great Western Billiard Table Manufactory in 1873 and the name was changed to The J.M. Brunswick and Balke Co. After another merger in 1884, it became The Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co. and was the world's largest billiard table manufacturer. A table similar to yours was made by Brunswick-Balke-Collender from 1913 to 1915, but it did not have metal corners. The company name was changed to Brunswick Corp. in 1960. It's still in business, with headquarters in Lake Forest, Illinois. The company's website, http://www.brunswickbilliards.com/, pictures many of its antique tables. The company might be able to help you date your table.

DRESS UP FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Remember to wear your vintage Christmas pins.