Yard-sale find was better off left alone
Dear Collector: I bought this doll at a yard sale six years ago. The tag on her wrist says she is an “Effanbee Doll.” She is in excellent condition. I would like to know more about her.
New items tend to look better than old things; that’s one way to determine age. Your doll is based on several earlier examples (Peggy Lou and Anne Shirley) made by a company founded by two gentlemen named Fleischaker and Baum – F&B, get it? It dates from 1998-99, which is the reason you were able to buy it at a yard sale a few years later.
Dear Collector: Can you tell me what this “Big Boodle” book is worth?
A crime/mystery novel revolving around counterfeit currency, or boodle, in pre-Castro Cuba, this paperback by author Robert Sylvester was published by Perma Books in 1955. Not overly valuable yet, it’s listed at $4 to $15. It’s interesting to note that this was one of Errol Flynn’s last movies, filmed in 1957.
Dear Collector: I think this platter marked “RHS” is English, at least that’s were I think my forebears came from in the late 1800s. Can you confirm this?
Move across the border into Scotland to Sinclairtown, part of the town of Kirkcaldy, where Robert Heron and Son pottery once stood, and you’ll find the origin of your circa 1880s earthenware relic.
Dear Collector: Enclosed is a photocopy of a 1952 two-rupees note from the Central Bank of Ceylon portraying Queen Elizabeth II of England. I got this from my third grade teacher who visited the island in the late 1950s. Any value?
Now the independent Republic of Sri Lanka, this former British colony with a population of 21 million near the southern tip of India exports tea, coffee and rubber. Your souvenir could be worth as much as $15.
Dear Collector: In the process of cleaning our house in preparation for moving in, we found this Seth Thomas clock. Would it be worth taking to a repair shop? It seems to be wound as far as possible, yet it won’t work.
With a possible value of $300, this circa 1885 Chicago pattern shelf clock may just need a cleaning and minor maintenance. Let’s cross our fingers, and hope a bit of oil will free up your timepiece’s hands before you have to shoulder a large restoration bill.
Dear Collector: What value is there to this unopened bottle of Donald Duck beverage? I bought it in the early 1980s; it’s at least 30 years old.
Your keepsake dates from the 1950s, when General Beverages of Chattanooga bottled a series of sodas touted by Disney’s favorite quacker (Does that make Donald a soda quacker?). Jokes aside, probable value on your half-century old thirst-quencher is nearing $100.
Dear Collector: How much is the painting in these snapshots worth?
I can’t read the signature or date. Why didn’t you include that info when you chose to send fuzzy photos?