The Strength of Iron with the Hardness of Stone

 

QUESTION: My grandmother collected all sorts of odds and ends of antique china. Among all the pieces she had were a half dozen plates and jugs that had a special quality about them. She called them her stoneware and said they were probably from the early 19th century. Three of them had the name “Spode” on the back or bottom. Two were pure white with no decoration while the others had Chinese scenes painted on them. Can you tell me anything about them and when they would have been made?

ANSWER: The pieces your grandmother called “stoneware” are actually “ironstone,” a form of china with the look of porcelain. Ironstone china is a hard earthenware similar to porcelain. Although it has the hardness and fine surface of porcelain, it’s opaque while porcelain is transparent when held up to a light. 

Josiah Spode II first made ironstone in 1805. But before that, Miles Mason had been experimenting with a china formula that reproduced the appearance of Chinese porcelain. In 1813, Mason’s son, Charles, took out a patent, listing it as an improvement on ironstone china. Both Spode’s and Mason’s ironstone were equally fine. The blue-white color of both of their wares, as well as their patterns, were  imitations of Chinese wares.

Spode used his ironstone as a way to copy Lowestoft patterns. Lowestoft was a soft-paste porcelain produced in Lowestoft, Suffolk, England, made from 1757 to 1802. It was mostly used for pots, teapots, and jugs, with shapes copied from silverwork or from Bow and Worcester porcelain. The English nobility had their initialed tableware made in China but getting replacements was a slow process, so they called upon English potters to make them.

While these pieces usually had no marks, they sometimes had the name “Spode” impressed in small letters on their bottoms. These patterns included crests and coats of arms and initials in shields with borders of small floral or leaf patterns or delicate ribbons.

One of Spode’s early ironstone patterns, commonly known as “Tree of Life,” is a design of the famille rose type, painted in blue, green, yellow, brown and pink. The mark appeared in black with the name “Spode” set on a rectangle of fretwork.

Patterns on Spode’s Lowestoft also included Queen Charlotte’s pattern, selected for Her Majesty’s visit to the Spode factory in 1817. Decorated in blue, it featured a butterfly border and a Chinese landscape in the center. It was a version of the old willow pattern that was popular on Chinese wares.

Though Spode copied many of his patterns from imported Chinese wares, he adapted others by making them more elaborate than their Chinese originals. Two types of old Chinese porcelain influenced Spode. The first was the old blue-and-white Nankin designs with pagoda and landscape and the butterfly border. The second was the famille rose design of the Yung Cheng period 1734. These patterns were in polychrome with gold and had floral and bird motifs. However, Spode didn’t use these patterns exclusively on his ironstone.

Spode marked the pattern numbers in red on his ironstone in addition to the factory mark. Lower numbers indicate an early production date, enabling pieces to be placed within certain years even if the exact date cannot be identified.

Eventually, Spode’s ironstone came in a variety of patterns. The Cabbage pattern featured a large leaf and flowers. Printed in blue, workers then filled it in by hand in blue, gold, rose, and Chinese red. Another early pattern, Peacock, features birds and peonies in gold and other colors in the famille rose style with a border known as India edge.

Landscape was Spode’s most Chinese looking pattern. It featured Chinese figures in blue and gold in the border with a landscape of water and buildings painted in colors in the center. Bang-up, first produced in polychrome, was a pattern of Chinese flowers. Ship and Star featured a pattern of a ship, buildings and figures set in a center cartouche and has a star border printed in brown.

The pattern known as George IV, was first made for the Coronation of George IV on July 29, 1821. The center of the plate has a design of Chinese still-life motifs with flowers and vases in blue, Chinese red, and gold with a heavy border.  

To read more articles on antiques, please visit the Antiques Articles section of my Web site.  And to stay up to the minute on antiques and collectibles, please join the over 30,000 readers by following my free online magazine, #TheAntiquesAlmanac. Learn more about the "The World of Art Nouveau" in the 2022 Spring Edition, online now. And to read daily posts about unique objects from the past and their histories, like the #Antiques and More Collection on Facebook.

Going for the Prize Inside

 

QUESTION: Ever since I was a kid and read the back of the cereal box as I was downing a bowl of cereal before going to school, I’ve loved them. Cereal boxes were fun and often had games to play on the back and many contained prizes inside. Recently, as I was cleaning out an old desk drawer, I came upon several of the prizes I had retrieved from cereal boxes. At first, I would eat the cereal until the prize suddenly fell out as I poured some of it into my bowl. But after a while, I became impatient and dumped the cereal from a newly opened box into a large bowl or pot to search for the prize. Are these little prizes collectible today? I know mothers detested the prizes found in McDonald’s Happy Meals and saw them as junk. What about the cereal prizes? 

ANSWER: A cereal box prize was a form of advertising that involved using a promotional toy or small item that cereal makers offered as an incentive to buy their brand. Prizes could be found inside or sometimes on the cereal box. The term "cereal box prize" is sometimes used to include premiums that consumers could order through the mail from an advertising promotion printed on the outside of the cereal box.

Cereal makers distributed prizes and premiums in four ways. The first was an in-store  prize handed to the customer with the purchase of one or more specified boxes of cereal. The second was to include the prize in the box itself, usually outside the liner bag. The third was attaching the prize to the box, such as printing games and trading cards on the cereal box or simply attaching the prize to the box with tape or shrink wrap. Some prizes included a gameboard or other interactive activity printed on the box that corresponded with the prize inside the box, which kids used as a gamepiece. The fourth method of distribution was to have the consumer mail in the UPC proof-of-purchase labels cut from a specified number of boxes, sometimes with a cheque or money order to defray the cost of shipping. A third-party sent the premium to the consumer by mail. 

In 1909, Kellogg’s offered the first cereal box prize. Shoppers who purchased two boxes of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes received a copy of Funny Jungleland Moving-Pictures, a little booklet illustrated with dancing tigers, storks, horses, hippos and more. Children pulled a tab to slide new pictures in and out, creating new combinations of the animals’ heads, bodies and feet. By 1912, consumers redeemed The Funny Jungleland Moving Pictures Book 2.5 million times.

With the success of the Kellogg’s prize campaign, other cereal makers, including General Mills, Malt-O-Meal, Nabisco, Nestlé, Post Foods, and Quaker Oats, followed suit and inserted prizes into boxes of their cereals to promote sales and brand loyalty.

The first prizes buried inside cereal boxes were small pinback buttons decorated with World War II U.S. Military insignia, available in Pep, at that time Superman’s favorite cereal. 

By the 1920s, cereal companies turned to then-popular radio shows to advertise their premiums. 

The invention of a screw injection molding machine by American inventor James Watson Hendry in 1946 changed the world of cereal box prizes. Thermoplastics could be used to produce toys much more rapidly, and much more cheaply, because recycled plastic could be remolded using this process. In addition, injection molding for plastics required much less cool-down time for the toys, because the plastic wasn’t completely melted before injected into the molds.

During the 1940s and 1950s, cereal prizes followed a transportation theme, with metal or plastic cut-out planes, cut-out trains, and license plates included in General Mills offerings. It wasn’t until 1943 that Kellogg’s placed a model airplane into a package of its Pep Whole Wheat Flakes cereal. 

Also in the 1950s, the maker of Wheaties distributed brightly-painted steel automobile maker emblems, representing 31 American and European auto makers, including  luxury names like Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Rolls Royce alongside now-defunct manufacturers like Kaiser, Hudson and Riley. 

In the 1970s, Hendry developed the first gas-assisted injection molding process in the 1970s, which permitted the production of complex, hollow prizes that cooled quickly. This greatly improved design flexibility as well as the strength and finish of manufactured parts while reducing production time, cost, weight, and waste.

All kinds of collectible figures—from rocket ships and submarines to cartoon characters and rings—could be cranked out and hidden beneath cereal. 

In the early 1980s, Apple Jacks cereal included a rubbery, squid-looking toy in every box that could be thrown at walls and slowly “crawl” down to the ground as it stuck and unstuck itself. Even the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles got their turn. 

And in 1996, General Mills distributed the PC video game Chex Quest on CD in boxes of Chex cereal.

Today, cereal box prizes have become a unique collectible. Most vintage cereal box prizes sell anywhere from $5 to $30, but rare ones can go for as high as $175 for a Banana Splits TV Show ring and and $250 for a General Mills Lucky Charms Game.

To read more articles on antiques, please visit the Antiques Articles section of my Web site.  And to stay up to the minute on antiques and collectibles, please join the over 30,000 readers by following my free online magazine, #TheAntiquesAlmanac. Learn more about the "The World of Art Nouveau" in the 2022 Spring Edition, online now. And to read daily posts about unique objects from the past and their histories, like the #Antiques and More Collection on Facebook.

The Collectability of Vintage Cameras

 

QUESTION: Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, I used several Nikon 35mm cameras and lenses to shoot photos for the articles I wrote. In the mid-1990s, I began using the new digital cameras and never looked back. Besides my 35mm cameras, I have several other older cameras. What can I do with them? Are they collectable?

ANSWER: Now that digital photography has become firmly a part of people’s lives, people want to know what to do with their old 35mm cameras. Even though photography has been around for well over 150 years, it’s taken a long time for traditional photographic gear—cameras in particular—to become collectible.

Today, old cameras dot the tables at yard sales and flea markets. Most are 35mm castoffs, but a few are older. With the ease of taking photos with a digital camera, let alone not having to buy film, it’s no wonder dealers have so many cameras and lenses on hand. But are these recent castoffs worth anything in the collectible market? That’s the big question.

Unfortunately, in the world of photographic memorabilia, recent 35mm cameras aren’t worth much unless they’re classic cameras or rare or unique models. Over 30 years after the introduction of digital cameras, the value of used 35mm cameras still hasn’t risen much.

So what types of cameras can be collected without breaking the bank? There are lots of modern cameras that have long ago outlasted their usefulness that can create an interesting camera collection. You can pick up a decent 100-year-old Kodak box camera for about $10 to $25 at flea markets. Folding cameras go for a bit more. 

Established by pioneering George Eastman in 1888, Kodak soon became one of the world’s most widely recognized brands. Photo historians credit Kodak’s first box camera  with broadening the appeal of photography to a wider audience, as these cameras were both less expensive and easier to operate than those designed for professional use. 

But since the appearance of digital cameras, people often ask about the worth and collectability of 35mm cameras, of which there are two types—rangefinder and single lens reflex cameras.

The first cameras to use 35mm movie film to create still photographs were called rangefinders. These cameras came outfitted with an additional rangefinder that allowed the photographer to assess distance in their frames to capture precise, clear images. But these rangefinders had a problem. The image the photographer saw in them was slightly shifted to one side, so the resulting image wasn’t exactly what the photographer saw. The Kodak 3A, which was introduced in 1916, was the first of the brand. The most famous rangefinder cameras were Leicas, precision optical cameras made in Germany. These became the camera of choice for photojournalists.

Though first patented in the 1860s, the single lens reflex(SLR) camera didn’t become popular as a consumer and professional camera until the 1960s. The SLR camera created crisp images with exceptional color thanks to its use of a complex combination of a mirror that moved with the shutter and a prism that refracted light to capture the image. 

Created in the late 1910s, primarily as a lens manufacturer, Nikon grew over the course of the 20th century to become one of the leading producers of both lenses and cameras. The company’s SLR cameras dominated the market in the 1950s with their modular camera systems that afforded users a variety of compatible camera components that could be changed out depending on conditions and preferences. So trusted was Nikon camera technology that they became one of the main suppliers of cameras to NASA.

The price of a vintage camera can vary widely, depending on the condition of the camera and its rarity. For example, prototype vintage cameras – those designed to pilot new camera models – tend to sell for more money because they are often few and far between on the market.

For more information on collecting cameras, read Collectors Snap Up Old Cameras.

To read more articles on antiques, please visit the Antiques Articles section of my Web site.  And to stay up to the minute on antiques and collectibles, please join the over 30,000 readers by following my free online magazine, #TheAntiquesAlmanac. Learn more about the "Pottery Through the Ages" in the 2022 Winter Edition, online now. And to read daily posts about unique objects from the past and their histories, like the #Antiques and More Collection on Facebook.

It's All in the Packaging

 

QUESTION: I’ve been fascinated with food containers, especially old ones since I was a young adult. When I go to the supermarket, I’m amazed at the variety of the packaging. In that sea of colors and textures, I wonder how I find the items I need. I like to browse through antique cooperatives. Many of the booths selling old kitchenware also have a variety of old food containers—cans, boxes, and tins. What is the origin of food packaging? How did it develop over the decades? And how collectible is it?

ANSWER: Food containers have been around for over 200 years. At first they were basic but over time food packaging developed into a necessary form of distribution. Not only did the containers keep the food fresh, the labels on the outside helped to advertise the product on store shelves.

Because the focus of the Industrial Revolution was on mass production and distribution, food packaging had to be durable, easy to produce, and accessible. Food preservation was also a high priority, as new transportation methods allowed businesses to ship it further.

Back in 1875, French General Napoleon Bonaparte offered 12,000 francs to anyone who could preserve food for his army. This led confectioner Nicholas Appert to invent the first “canning” technique that sealed cooked food in glass containers and boiled them for sterilization.

Later in 1810, British inventor Peter Durand patented his own canning method using tin instead of glass. By 1820 he was supplying canned food to the Royal Navy in large quantities.

The second half of the 19th century brought further developments in manufacturing and production—among which included food packaging. In 1856, corrugated paper first appeared in England as a liner for tall hats. By the early 1900s, shipping cartons made of it replaced wooden crates and boxes.

In 1890, the National Biscuit Company, now known as Nabisco, individually packaged its biscuits in the first packaging to preserve crispness by providing a moisture barrier. Kellogg’s introduced the first cereal box for corn flakes in 1906, eighty-nine years after the first commercial cardboard box appeared in England.

Leo Hendrik Baekeland invented the first plastic, known as Bakelite, based on a synthetic polymer in 1907. It could be shaped or molded into almost anything, providing endless packaging possibilities.

Eventually, food manufacturers began using packaging containers that consumers were reluctant to discard. A tin of Sultana Peanut Butter, which came in a large pail with wire handles, made the perfect sand bucket to take to the beach in summer. Other similar containers included the log-cabin-shaped tin holding Log Cabin Syrup. People reused biscuit tins to hold everything from petty cash to old buttons and homemade cookies.

Lambrecht butter, found primarily east of the Mississippi, came packaged in an attractive gray or white stoneware tub with blue script while Kaukauna Klub cheddar cheese came in a clay crock with a heavy wire clamp.

By the dawning of the 20th century, package design was an important way to draw attention to a product. Manufacturers of drugs, paint, oil, as well as food items worked to establish a visual logo or trademark. Labels and magazines ads were the only means of communicating the goodness of a product.

One of the first national trademarks was the Uneeda boy, a little boy in a yellow slicker that represented freshness from the elements. Soon after came the Morton Salt girl, Aunt Jemima, Dutch boy, the Fisk Tire boy in Dr. Dentons holding a candle, and many other memorable logos. These symbols are all very collectible today. 

The widespread practice of packing food in tin cans and containers was a direct result of the public's acceptance of the Germ Theory of Disease. In the 19th century, many Americans were still oblivious to the research done by Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch in food preservation.  

Today, some people look down on those who eat canned or processed food as something people without access to fresh food eat. But in the late 19th century, food in tins was highly desirable. Consumers considered it more sanitary, and therefore healthier, than food offered in bins or barrels at the General Store. That’s when branding became particularly important; customers learned they could expect a certain level of quality from, say, Kellogg’s.

At first, manufacturers covered tinplate containers with paper labels, which had a product’s pertinent information and advertising stenciled or printed on them. Machines that could trim and stamp sheets of tin had been introduced around 1875, and between 1869 and 1895, manufacturers developed a process that allowed them to use lithography to transfer images directly onto the tin containers. Coffee and tea, as well as tobacco and beverages and snack foods came packaged in tins.

Today, all sorts of historic food packaging is collectible. In fact, it’s one of the most affordable and pleasurable of collectibles. 

To read more articles on antiques, please visit the Antiques Articles section of my Web site.  And to stay up to the minute on antiques and collectibles, please join the over 30,000 readers by following my free online magazine, #TheAntiquesAlmanac. Learn more about the "Pottery Through the Ages" in the 2022 Winter Edition, online now. And to read daily posts about unique objects from the past and their histories, like the #Antiques and More Collection on Facebook.