“Ain’t I A Woman?” I always think of that Sojourner Truth plea every time I see Royal Doulton female figurines at auction. They are so lovely in their bone-china skin, beautifully painted gowns and their elegant…
Category: collectibles
Brothel tokens – fake or real?
Posted in collectibles, and Tokens
I hadn’t seen Barbara’s tokens yet, but I loved the cute round linen pouch with the multicolored needlepoint rooster they’d come in. Inside were three tokens that she had bought from a female vendor, and…
Are you afraid of a big bad – clown?
Posted in collectibles, and Figurines
“Clowns scare people,” the auction-goer said, stopping near me as I stood in a corner of the auction house fingering one of a pair of brightly colored glass clowns. He was a regular, a man who…
A Christmas sleigh ready for a loving touch
Posted in collectibles, and travel
The old sleigh looked as if it had been left unattended in a barn for years. Its red leather was dirty and hard. The elements had battered its wood, leaving gaps, nicks and holes. It looked…
Lawn jockeys aplenty
Posted in Black history, and collectibles
As I stood there looking at the black lawn jockey on the auction table, I could sense that someone had walked up next to me. The auction-goer watched as I fingered the metal figure. He…
Wild Turkey bourbon decanters
Posted in bottles, collectibles, and Figurines
Someone had removed the turkey’s head. It was lying there exposed next to two other ceramic decanters of Wild Turkey bourbon. Maybe an auction-buyer had lifted it out of its cradle to take a closer…
The tiny spoons lying there amiss on the auction table reminded me of a woman’s hair tousled by the wind. They were scattered, without order, as if someone had just tossed them about along with their…
Bobblehead cigar-smoking black male ashtray
Posted in collectibles, Crafts, and Figurines
I don’t know why I bought the metal figure of a black male with a cigar in his mouth, one hand in his pocket and the other on his hip. I’m not usually drawn to Black…
Wine press? Looks like a giant nutcracker to me
Posted in collectibles, and Unusual
As I was making my preview rounds at an auction house, I came across a big wooden basket straddling a ledge on a wooden stand, a metal plunger in its center. It looked like a giant nutcracker. I…
Golfing, divots and a game of pure fun
Posted in Black history, collectibles, and Sports
In my head, I can still see my golf buddy Gerald bent over a divot in the green grass, a small two-fanged tool in his hand, carefully repairing the groove he’d just made with his…