– GD, Parker, Colo., via e-mail

ANSWER: This letter has a colorful origin and history. It was written in November 1864 to Mrs. Lydia Bixby, a widow living in Boston whose five sons were supposedly killed during the Civil War. Lincoln wrote the letter at the request of Massachusetts Governor John Albion Andrew. It appeared in print in the November 15, 1864, issue of the “Boston Evening Transcript,” the same day Adjutant General of Massachusetts William Schouler delivered it to Mrs. Bixby.

As it so happened, Mrs. Bixby only lost three of her five sons. Furthermore, Mrs. Bixby’s sympathies ,and that of at least some of her sons, rested with the South rather than the North. Private Arthur Edward Bixby, who Mrs. Bixby claimed was underage when he joined and was discharged, actually deserted. Captain George A. Bixby was captured at Petersburg and may have deserted to the enemy. Mrs. Bixby, who had moved from Richmond, Va., to Boston, is alleged to have been a member of the Copperheads (Northerners who were sympathetic to the South) and manager of a house of ill repute. A great-great grandson reported that Mrs. Bixby destroyed the letter upon receipt.

Scholars question whether Lincoln wrote the letter. They believe the letter was written by John Hay, Lincoln’s personal secretary. Hay supporters cite Lincoln’s lack of time to write letters in November 1864 and the use of certain words favored by Hay as opposed to Lincoln.

Several handwritten copies have surfaced, but all have proven to be forgeries. When F. Lauriston Bullard, a Lincoln scholar, investigated the Brasenose College attribution, the original could not be found nor any record of Brasenose College ever owning it. The most recent “period” copy was supposedly uncovered in a Dallas museum in 2008. Attempts to authenticate the letter led to a wide variety of pro and con opinions. In the 1998 movie “Saving Private Ryan,” Harvey Presnell, who portrayed George Marshall, read the Bixby letter to his offices before giving the order to find Private Ryan.

Researching an object helps makes it come alive. Your copy has more conversation value than collector or historical value. The John A. Key signature is worth more than the document. Further, it is unlikely Key printed it.

Alas, your letter is in poor to fair condition. The pictures that accompany your e-mail show the document is heavily creased from folds and mishandling and has a water stain along the bottom edge, a dirt band across the top, and rounded corners with especially heavy rounding of the upper left edge.

In Ohio, your document is worth between $25 and $35; this value based on the Key signature. Outside of Ohio, value drops to $5 to $10.

—————————————

QUESTION: I have an old Victor 78 rpm record featuring Mark Twain reading a passage from one of his stories. The record label has these numbers: 50576-R and 3415A. Does my record have any value?

– K, Reading, Pa.

ANSWER: Credit goes to Fr. Dan (Daniel), a priest at St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Church, Bethlehem, Pa., for providing me with the information to answer this question.

First, the number 50576 indicated the record was made after 1921 and before 1923. The number 3415 is the matrix number; a number that provides the exact date on which the record was recorded but not pressed.

Second, Samuel Langhorne Clements (Mark Twain) died on April 21, 1910. The Victor Talking Machine Company began in 1901. Hence, the recording had to be done between 1901 and 1910. The initial release was on cylinder. The flat record was a re-release.

Third, your “Diamond Disc” record is ¼ of a inch thick. It is not a “78” rpm but an “80” rpm record. This slight change in speed meant the record could only be played on an Edison machine. At the appraisal center of the “New” Atlantic City Antiques and Collectors Show, I had the chance to examine an early Edison disk machine. It had an adjustment control that allowed the owner to adjust the speed upward or downward from 78 rpm. While the upper limit was not marked, I am certain it included 80 rpm.

I tried to find a Victor Talking Machine Company discography and a “spoken word” discography. I am certain one exists. I also was curious if other authors recorded readings from their works between 1901 and 1910. If a reader knows, please e-mail the information to me at harrylrinker [at] aol [dot] com. I will share it in a future column.

Historical value is one thing. Resale value is another. If your record is in playable condition, its value is around $3. The cylinder version would retail for $2.

—————————————

QUESTION: I have collector plates from Beauties of the Red Mansion and Poetic Visions of Japan. I purchased them from the Bradford Exchange. A set of Beauties of the Red Mansion sold on eBay for $200. I cannot store them anymore. Should I dump them?

– PF, NYC, via e-mail

ANSWER: Poetic Visions of Japan featured designs by Yoshiharo Kathoh and were manufactured by Ketsuzan-Kiln. Ahao HuiMin did the designs for the Beauties of the Red Mansion series, manufactured by Imperial Jingdezhen Porcelain. This series appears to consist of 12 plates issued between 1986 and 1989.

“Dump” is a relative term. If you mean should you send them to the city dump, the answer is no. You already have discovered that a secondary market exists. If you divide 12 into 200, you get $16.66. In today’s secondary collector plate market, any plate that brings this amount falls into the minor miracle class.

Value is what someone is willing to pay. Internet research uncovered a storefront Web site specializing in the sale of collector plates offering Beauties of the Red Mansion series plates at prices ranging from $59 to $105 per plate. This dealer wins my “Please, God, send me a buyer with no sense whatsoever” award of the month. Why would anyone pay these prices? The same plates sell on eBay for a 15- to 25-percent of these asking prices.

Poetic Visions of Japan plates appear more frequently on eBay than do Beauties of the Red Mansion plates. Poetic Visions of Japan plates sell between $5 and $7.50. Offerings with an opening bid request of over $10 fail to attract a bidder. A patient buyer will have all the opportunities he needs and more to buy any Beauties of the Red Mansion collector plates.

Every time I hear “when will they ever learn” from Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Blowing in the Wind,” I find myself thinking of individuals who buy contemporary collector edition collectibles believing they are investing in a piece of art that will appreciate over time. These plates and other forms are not works of art and will not appreciate over time. In reality, they are every executor’s nightmare.

Should you dump, meaning sell, them now? Absolutely! Take any money you can get and put a smile on your face.

—————————————

QUESTION: Are Wee Forest Folk “doomed” collectibles in terms of value? Some of them sell well, but others do not. Any insight you can provide is welcome

– J, via e-mail

https://www.worthpoint.com/askWorthologist/index

ANSWER: Just as there will always be an England, there will always be a contemporary collectible that catches the imagination of optimistic individuals who believe in instant and profitable collectability. As memory of the Beanie Baby debacle fades, the lessons it taught are forgotten.

Annette Peterson created Wee Forest Folk, a handcrafted line of miniature mice sculptures, more than 30 years ago. The Peterson family, which now includes Willy and Donna, continues to design new products. The family-owned business is located in Carlisle, Mass. Check the Web site weeforestfolk.com.

The promotional literature contains all the key words one expects—meticulous, carefully selected, delicate, patience, personal pride, retired and workmanship. One does not have to be a genius to read between the lines. These are nothing more than mass-produced castings of cutesy-pooh sculptures.

These little buggers are expensive. This is the only clue a buyer needs to recognize that long-term collectability is problematic. The secondary market will not sustain these values, a fact proven over and over again when 1980s-, 1990s- and 2000s-collector editions of any form are tested in the secondary auction marketplace.

Some of the earliest examples do sell above their initial purchase cost, only because enough new collectors who want discontinued (another word that indicates danger) examples are entering the marketplace. This will not last.

The secondary market for Wee Forest Folk is another speculative bubble waiting to burst. The secondary market value will follow the same course as it did for Dept. 56 and similar items.

If you own examples that are selling for more than they cost new unload them now. In 10 years, you will be able to buy them back for a fraction of what you received.

—————————————

Rinker Enterprises and Harry L. Rinker are on the Internet. Check out his Web site.

You can listen and participate in Harry’s antiques-and-collectibles radio call-in show “Whatcha Got?” on Sunday mornings between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. Eastern Time. It streams live on the Genesis Communications Network.

“Sell, Keep Or Toss? How To Downsize A Home, Settle An Estate, And Appraise Personal Property” (House of Collectibles, an imprint of the Random House Information Group), Harry’s latest book, is available at your favorite bookstore and via Harry’s Web site: http://www.harryrinker.com.

Harry L. Rinker welcomes questions from readers about collectibles, those mass-produced items from the 20th century. Selected queries will be answered on this site. Harry cannot provide personal answers. Photos and other material submitted cannot be returned. Send your questions to: Rinker on Collectibles, 22 Stillwater Circle, Brookfield, CT 06804. You can e-mail your questions to harrylrinker [at] aol [dot] com. Only e-mails containing a full name and mailing address will be considered. Please indicate that these are questions for WorthPoint.

Copyright © Rinker Enterprises, Inc. 2010

WorthPoint—Discover Your Hidden Wealth

Join WorthPoint on Twitter and Facebook.

– KT, Adamstown, PA, via e-mail

ANSWER: Mention Rin Tin Tin and the first image that comes to my mind is “The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin,” a 166-episode television show that aired on ABC between Oct. 15, 1954 and May 8, 1959. The show starred Lee Aeker as Rusty and James Brown as Lt. Ripley “Rip” Masters. “The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin” was ABC’s answer to CBS’s “Lassie.”

Rin Tin Tin’s history begins near the end of World War I. Lee Duncan, an American serviceman, found a litter of shell-shocked five-day old German shepherd pups in a bombed-out dog kennel in Lorraine, France on Sept. 15, 1918. Betty des Flandres was the mother, Fritz de la Chasse Royale was the father. Duncan adopted a male and female, naming them Rintintin and Nanette after children’s puppets.

Duncan received permission to bring the dogs to the United States. Nanette became ill during the ocean voyage and died shortly after arrival. In February 1922, following an unsanctioned two-day Shepherd Dog Club of America show, Charles Jones made a film of Rin Tin Tin, which he then sold to the Novograph Picture Company. The company offered Duncan $350 to shoot a second film. Duncan’s initial attempts to locate a studio to star Rin Tin Tin in feature films failed. Eventually, he encountered a Warner Brothers crew trying to shoot a scene with a very uncooperative wolf. Duncan convinced them to use Rin Tin Tin instead. When Rin Tin Tin died on August 10, 1932, he had appeared in 26 pictures. At his peak, he received 10,000 fan letters a week. Rin Tin Tin silent films, such as “Where the North Begins” (1923), “Shadows of the North” (1923), “Clash of the Wolves” (1925), “A Dog of the Regiment” (1927), and “Tiger Rose” (1929) received worldwide distribution, including Germany.

TRIVA QUIZ: Rin Tin Tin is reputed to have died in the arms of what famous Hollywood actress? (answer below)

Duncan toured during the 1930s with Rin Tin Tin Junior. During World War II, he and Rin Tin Tin III worked with the U.S. Army at Camp Hahn to train German shepherds for wartime use. After the war, Duncan worked to untrain the dogs and return them to civilian life. The Rin Tin Tin bloodline survives today thanks to the efforts of Lee Duncan, Jannettia Brodsgaard Propps and Daphne Hereford.

The Russians captured Vienna in a fierce battle in the first half of April 1945. Following the war, Austria was declared a “neutral” country. Displaced person camps were created in Austria, Great Britain and West Germany for WWII refugees, primarily from Eastern Europe, and many of whom were Jewish.

I have handled dozens of prisoner-of war-artifacts, some dating as early as the Napoleonic War, during my career. My favorites are from the WWII German POW camps that were scattered along the West Coast and throughout the Southwestern and Midwest U.S.

POWs and displaced persons had plenty of leisure time. Many traded handmade products, paintings and artwork for cigarettes, food and other supplies. Chances of identifying the carver of your plaque are miniscule. Based on your description, the individual was talented. Hence, your plaque is not the only one that he made. How it came to the United States is and likely will remain a mystery.

There are multiple buyers for your plaque. Its value to a German shepherd or a WWII displaced person artwork collector is between $35 and $45. Add another 10 to 15 dollars if sold to a folk-art collector. A Rin Tin Tin collector would pay $50 or more, but only if facing strong competition from another collector.

—————————————

QUESTION: We own a 1910 Coca-Cola advertising poster showing a young lady wearing a duster and sitting at the wheel of a car with a bottle of Coca-Cola in her right hand. “Drink the Best” is printed across the top. Printed in the lower left corner is a diamond-shaped advertisement for Goldelle Ginger Ale, another Coca-Cola product. Our research only uncovered reproductions. We believe our example is period, coming out of a box of belongings bought near Kutztown, Pa. It is beautiful, but is it worth keeping, especially if it is a reproduction?

– D&RO, Anderson, CA, via e-mail

ANSWER: Early 20th-century Coca-Cola posters were lithographs, i.e., printed by layering one color on top of another. Using a five- to ten-power loupe, examine the image. If it breaks into dots, it is a reproduction. If the colors are solid, it is a lithograph, albeit not necessarily period. The lithograph printing process is still used today.

The colors need to be extremely bright. Early lithograph dyes retain their period colors. If there is mellowing, it must be very slight. The lines between colors need to be sharp and distinct. If the lines are fuzzy (one color blending into another) or there is an overall softness to the print, this is a negative.

I checked the reproductions, most of which dated from the 1970s and 1980s. While I found the image, I did not find an exact reproduction of your poster. This is a good sign. The image on your poster first appeared as a postcard sometime between 1911 and 1913. Again, the postcards did not contain the “Drink the Best” slogan. Collectors refer to the image as the Duster/Motor Girl.

I researched the slogan “Drink the Best.” The phrase was part of a longer slogan in 1913. However, I did not find the exact phrase listed on any Coca-Cola advertising slogan website or home page. This is troubling. In the good news department, I did not find it on any of the reproductions, either. I found a few references to Godelle Ginger Ale, but would have been happier had I found more.

An article in “Antiques and the Arts” reporting on Randy Inman’s Oct. 12-14, 2001 auction notes:

“a very rare 1913 soft drink ad jointly promoting Coca-Cola and Goldelle Ginger Ale took $7,700, a fine result for a paper roll-down sign.”

This example was in fine condition. The photographs attached to your e-mail indicate your example has water stains, especially noticeable along the bottom portion of the left and right edges. As a result, it is in fair condition at best.

I e-mailed the photograph of your poster William Bateman and Randy Schaeffer, two Coca-Cola collectors who live near Kutztown. Bill responded: “It appears to be period, but of course, damaged significantly. As you know condition means a lot in today’s market. We have one of the Duster Girl posters without the ginger ale marking in near perfect shape. Allan Petretti puts posters in mint condition from that time period from $4,000 to $7,000. With the damage, I could cut that number by half or more.”

Assuming it stands the test I have given you and turns out to be period, it certainly is worth keeping. Given its value, consider taking it to a paper conservator to see if you can have the water stains lessened. Make certain the paper conservator is a member of American Institute of Conservators. Ask to see credentials and examples of work completed.

—————————————

QUESTION: Is it safe to eat off collector plates? I relish the idea of eating off these tacky items.

– BM, via e-mail

ANSWER: Collector plates, also known as collection edition plates, were manufactured for display purposes. I do not recall in advertising or the literature that accompanied them the suggestion that they also had a functional use as dinnerware.

Here are three considerations before adopting a “why not” approach. First, they may not be dishwasher safe. Manufacturers expected them to be dusted not washed. Second, modern knife blades, especially those with serrated edges, may damage the glaze. Third, the glaze most likely has a high lead content, albeit I have no proof.

Your proposal has a sense of practicality and humor. After all, a plate is a plate is a plate. Functionally, there is no reason why you cannot use them for eating purposes. The thought of cutting a medium rare steak resting on top of Vivien Leigh or another “Gone with the Wind” series collector plate has appeal.

When confronted with a collector plate at an appraisal clinic, my stock questions is: “Do you like to play Frisbee?” Now I will start saying: “If all else fails, you always can eat off of it.”

—————————————

QUESTION: I have my aunt’s collection of old plaster food productions, ranging from meats, such as steaks and bacon, to milk bottles and cartoons of eggs. They are at least 50 years old. I have no idea how she acquired them, but suspect they were used as display items for some food related businesses. What are they worth?

– PS, via e-mail

ANSWER: You have fake (faux) food props, a business which is alive, well and thriving. Do a Google “fake food props” search.

Fake food props are used in interior design displays, film, television, theater, trade shows, restaurants, stores and dozens of other areas. Just Dough It! offers artificial food that “looks good enough to eat” in categories such as breads and cheeses, breakfast foods and beverages, cakes, cupcakes and tarts, Christmas specials, cookies and donuts, fruits and vegetables, ice cream, popcorn, specials, spills and novelties, tea and others beverages, and wine, beers and mixed drinks.

Your examples are primitive compared to modern day examples. Yet, their very crudeness makes them fun. Value for individual pieces will range from $4-$5 to $12-$15, the higher values for those pieces with the greatest conversation/fun value.

—————————————

TRIVIA QUIZ ANSWER: Jean Harlow.

—————————————

Rinker Enterprises and Harry L. Rinker are on the Internet. Check out his Web site.

You can listen and participate in “WHATCHA GOT?,” Harry’s antiques-and-collectibles radio call-in show on Sunday mornings between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. Eastern Time. It streams live on the Genesis Communications Network.

“SELL, KEEP OR TOSS? HOW TO DOWNSIZE A HOME, SETTLE AN ESTATE, AND APPRAISE PERSONAL PROPERTY” (House of Collectibles, an imprint of the Random House Information Group), Harry’s latest book, is available at your favorite bookstore and via Harry’s Web site: http://www.harryrinker.com

Harry L. Rinker welcomes questions from readers about collectibles, those mass-produced items from the 20th century. Selected letters will be answered on this site. Harry cannot provide personal answers. Photos and other material submitted cannot be returned. Send your questions to: Rinker on Collectibles, 5093 Vera Cruz Road, Emmaus, PA 18049. You also can e-mail your questions to harrylrinker [at] aol [dot] com. Only e-mails containing a full name and mailing address will be considered. Please indicate that these are questions for WorthPoint.

Copyright © Rinker Enterprises, Inc. 2009

WorthPoint—Discover Your Hidden Wealth

Join WorthPoint on Twitter and Facebook.