|
|
||
Brass
Saucer/WMG Font Night Lamp,S2-104 About 6 3/4" tall overall About 2 1/2" tall to top of collar About
4 1/4" in diameter at base      |
One
of
several similarly styled night lamps
History
&
Background:
This
sweet
little lamp is pictured in Figure 104 of Ruth
Smith's book "Miniature Lamps II". In overall style,
and especially the style of the painted decorations, it
bears some similarity to several other little finger
lamps. It is perhaps most similar to the lamp shown
in Figure 14 of Marjorie Hulsebus' first book "Miniature
Victorian Lamps". That lamp has a floral
decorated blue-green opaline font sitting
on
a brass saucer. The font on that lamp is a bit
smaller than the font on this one and sits lower on the
saucer than does this lamp. The font on this lamp is
made of a bluish-gray translucent glass often called
"opaline." The three other lamps that we believe are
similar to this one are the ones shown in Figures 105 and
106 of the Ruth Smith book and a lamp shown in Figure 39
of Frank & Ruth Smith's "Miniature Lamps". These
last three are finger lamps without saucers of any kind
and are all opaque white milk glass lamps with floral
decoration around the side of the font. We also have
a similarly decorated, but unlisted, small stand lamp with
a white milk glass font on a metal stem. The
floral decorations on all of these lamps are quite
similar, although not identical. Unfortunately, the
manufacturer(s) and dates of manufacture for all six of
these lamps are unknown. We're fairly certain
however that all six of these lamps are legitimate
antiques (made at least 100 years ago. and probably made
sometime around or before 1900), and it is likely, but by
no means certain, that all of these lamps were made by the
same company. It is known that workers at the
various lamp companies often moved from one company to
another; it is also known that companies often copied
other companies' designs. So, it is possible that if
one company didn't make all of these lamps, that a single
artist created all the floral designs, or that the designs
were simply copied by the artists at another company. Marjorie Hulsebus in the
"Price Guide for Miniature Lamps" rates this lamp as being
"scarce" (see the note below on our use of these ratings
in eBay listings). Based on data we've collected
since June of 2002, we believe that this lamp is truly
"scarce". Since June of 2002, we have seen just 27
other examples offered on eBay--that equates to a lamp
like this one showing up on eBay only about once every 9
months.
Condition
of
this lamp:
This
lamp
is really in quite good condition for its age. The
brass saucer, the collar and the burner have all been
polished. The font itself is in very good condition with
no discernible chips, cracks or other signs of
damage. The original painted decor is also in fine
condition with no signs of wear. The brass saucer
has a few minor dents and some deformation on its edge.
The embossed finger ring is in fine condition. The brass collar with no
splits or cracks is tightly affixed to the font. An Acorn
burner screws tightly into the collar. The burner thumb
wheel is unmarked. The thumb wheel turns easily, but
is not currently adjusting the old wick that is in the
burner (perhaps because the wick is dry). All the brass
has been polished. The
lamp
comes with an old somewhat ripply clear glass chimney with
an embedded potstone. The chimney has a fire-polished top
edge and a rough-cut (as made) bottom edge. There are a
couple of very minor flea-bites on the bottom (fitter) edge
of the chimney. This chimney is antique; it was made prior
to World War I. (We know that because, although not
pictured, the glass fluoresces when viewed under "black"
light--a telltale sign of the fact that the glass was made
before 1915). Measurements are provided below the second photo to the left. Lamps like this one were made to be carried around--to light one's way up to bed after dark or to allow one to navigate the way to the facilities at night. As such it is a practical and cute little relic of the Victorian era. This lamp provides us with a reminder of what life was like in the U. S. in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
About the Use of Words Like "Scarce" and "Rare" When we see eBay listings which utilize words like "Scarce" and "Rare"--especially when those words are applied to items that we know to be extra-ordinarily common we find it disturbing. We realize that some eBayers, not having or knowing of a better way of assessing an item's scarcity, use these terms quite subjectively and frequently based on their own personal experience. They simply don't know whether an item is common, scarce or rare. We take two steps to describe the scarcity of a lamp. First, we only use the words "Scarce", "Rare", "Very Rare", "Very Very Rare" and "Extremely Rare" if the item in question is judged to be so by an acknowledged outside and independent source. For miniature lamps, we use the ratings in Marjorie Hulsebus 2006 edition of the "Price Guide for Miniature Lamps". Marjorie's ratings are also somewhat subjective (they are based on the collective view of a panel of 12 experienced miniature lamps collectors--we were members of that panel), but were at least arrived at independently of the sale or offering of any particular lamp. We don't always agree with the Price Guides ratings but if we disagree, we will still quote the guide's rating and then provide the reason why we don't agree. Second, since June of 2002, we have collected
and recorded data on the auction of over 65,000 listed
miniature lamps on eBay and over 8.800 lamps offered at
selected live auctions (ones which we attended or from
which we were able to get reliable data). We've
reviewed many tens of thousands of eBay listings.
From among those, we identified the ones that are listed
in the standard reference books and recorded basic
information (identifying features, condition, auction
end-date, etc.) on each. When the auction ends we go
back and record whether the lamp sold or not and for how
much. We keep all of this data in an online database
and make the database available free of charge to members
of the Night Light Club and to others who have requested
access. We don't see every listed miniature lamp
that's auctioned on eBay, but we estimate that we see more
than 85-90% of them. When we quote the Price Guide's
scarcity rating for a given lamp, we generally also
provide information, from our database, on the number of
times during the period we've collected data that we've
seen that lamp auctioned on eBay. And it's this data
that allows us to substantiate, refine or, at times, to
respectfully disagree with the rating in the Price Guide.
Our objective is to have happy, satisfied
customers. We will work with you to satisfactorily
resolve any problems. Feel free to ask any questions prior to
bidding. We try to answer all questions promptly.
Just click on eBay's "Ask seller a question" link above to
send us an email through eBay. Please bid only if you intend to honor your bid with payment. All items are sold "As Is". We do our best to describe all items accurately. However, mistakes and oversights can occur. Returns will be accepted within 14 days if item is found to be not as described. In general refunds will be given as money back and will include the original bid amount and initial shipping costs (but not the return shipping cost). Refunds will be given once the item is received and verified to be in the same condition as when it was sold. Shipping Information eBay's shipping calculator should show the correct shipping charges. We charge only the actual postage/insurance costs incurred. All items shipped are insured. We do combine multiple purchases to save you on shipping costs. If you win more than one of our items, contact us for revised and reduced shipping costs. If you overpay for shipping, or if we inadvertently overcharge you for shipping, we will refund the overage. (If we underestimate the shipping costs, which occasionally happens, we absorb the additional costs). We ship using the United State Postal Service and wrap our items as securely as we can. International
Shipping
We offer 3 options for
International Shipping. The first is eBay's Standard
International Shipping service. This service is fine if you
just purchased a single item from us since this service does not
allow us to combine items in a single box to lower shipping
costs. The second service we offer is USPS Priority Mail
International. This service may be competitive in price with
eBay's service but you should compare prices. The final service we
offer for International Shipping is USPS First Class International
Package service. This is almost always the least expensive
option. However, this service is limited to packages that
weigh no more than 4 pounds (very few of the items we sell on eBay
weigh 4 pounds or more). This service is also not insurable and
thus since most of the items we sell are fragile, this service can
be risky. Almost all of the items we sell are antique and we mark them as such. Most countries do not levy customs duties on antiques. Note that your Customs Service may cause delays in the shipment's arrival. Customs duties and local taxes are not included in the item or shipping costs and are the responsibility of the buyer. Interested in
learning more about miniature lamps? Want
to meet other miniature lamp collectors?
Contact us and we'll arrange to get you
information about the Night Light Club. Please check out our other auctions; click on the "visit store" icon at the bottom of this listing |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|