Early 1900s

Q: Enclosed is a photograph of a porcelain figurine that has been in my family for more than 75 years. It is 11 inches high. Her aqua, pleated dress is trimmed with a white lace collar. The base is decorated with multicolored flowers. On the bottom there is a sunburst mark and the words "Heubach -- Made in Germany."Could you please tell me what it might be worth?A: Your porcelain figurine was made by Heubach Brothers, Lichte, Thuringia, Germany, in the early 1900s. The firm manufactured dolls, doll heads, figurines and piano babies.

100 Years Ago Rolling out the welcome mat In the Times social column: "Mr. Henry J. Bender has returned to his home on Rolling Road after visiting friends in New York City. Mr. and Mrs. C. N. Davis have returned to their home on Rolling Road after spending several days with friends in Baltimore. " Mr. Bender and the Davises lived on Rolling Road before its hills, vales and curves were straightened out. The road lived up to its name then and traveling it you could easily imagine those hogsheads of tobacco bumping and rolling down it toward the deep, wide, 18th-century Patapsco River where they were loaded onto ships.

Q: Enclosed is a picture of an antique chocolate set. We estimate its age to be about 90 years. It consists of a pot with six cups and saucers. It is marked "O.C. Co., -- Limoges -- Porcelain." I would appreciate any information you can give me.A: Your chocolate set was made by the Ohio China Co. in East Liverpool, Ohio, about 1900. It would probably sell for $165 to $185 in an antique shop.Q: This mark is on the bottom of a porcelain vase that I would like to have identified and evaluated.

I wish I had met Bosley Wright three years earlier. Back in 2008, I embarked on a do-it-mostly-myself kitchen renovation that included adding architectural millwork around the door and window frames. Easy enough, except that I wanted to match the existing original millwork installed in 1918. They didn't have anything even close at Lowes or Home Depot. Faced with what I thought was no other inexpensive option, I purchased raw lumber and then cut, chiseled, planed, and sanded the lumber to match.

Q: This lovely vase belonged to my mother. So far, I have been unable to determine its age or value. It is 8 1/2 inches high. It is cloisonne, made of a silver base with shades of green enamel.A: This appears to be a beautiful example of French cloisonne, probably made in the early 1900s. It might sell in the $500 to $600 range.Q: The enclosed mark is on the bottom of a crackleware vase. It is bulbous with a short, straight neck. It is decorated with pictures of butterflies. Can you tell me anything about its origin and value?

Poster show -- Gallery 44, 9469 Baltimore National Pike, Ellicott City, will hold a Vintage Poster Show and Sale, with rare authentic pieces from the early 1900s and later, today through Sunday. "Satin Skin" (above) dates from before 1920. Similar posters were produced from 1903 to 1919. Hours are from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. today, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. tomorrow, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. 410-465-5200.

Q: I inherited a teakwood stand. It is 25 inches high, and the top is 11 inches in diameter. The top has a pink marble inset. A paper label on the underside has the words "Fau & Hing -- Made in China."What is its approximate worth?A: Carved teakwood stands were made in China for export in the early 1900s. They are generally seen in antiques shops in the $200 to $300 range, depending on the condition.Q: I have a porcelain creamer and sugar bowl that are at least 70 years old. They were made in Japan and decorated with multicolored flowers against a white background and trimmed in orange.

Q: This picture shows six of 12 plates that I have. Each plate has a different game bird painted in the center and all are in excellent condition. On the back of the plates are the words "Copeland -- Spode -- England."I would appreciate any information you can give me.A: In the late 1800s and early 1900s game plates were very popular. They were used to serve fish or game.These plates were made by W. T. Copeland & Sons Ltd., Staffordshire, England, in the early 1900s. They would be worth about $1,200 to $1,500 for a set of 12.Q: Enclosed is a picture of a chair that we have had since 1950.

Q: I have enclosed a picture of a porcelain vase that belonged to my grandmother. It was hand-painted by a friend. The height is 13 inches and is marked "T & V -- Limoges -- France -- 1917." I am interested in your appraisal.A: Your vase was made in Limoges, France, for Tressemanes & Vogt in the early 1900s. Limoges was a large exporter of porcelain, and the United States was one of their best customers. Also, blanks were shipped to the United States and decorated by amateurs. China painting was a favorite pastime for ladies of leisure in the early 1900s.

Q: I bought this bowl-and-pitcher set at an estate sale. Lettering and marks on the bottom are "Semi-Porcelain, W.R. Grindley & Co., England." The pictures give a fairly good representation of the set.Would you please tell me about what they should be worth?A: Your toilet bowl-and-pitcher set was made in the early 1900s. The W. R. Grindley & Co. factory is in Tunstall, Staffordshire, England.This set should sell for around $265 to $285.Q: I am enclosing a mark that is on the bottom of a porcelain bowl.

What happened to the Spivaks happens all too often. When they were out house-hunting, they equivocated over a particular home that struck their fancy. That was until someone else showed serious interest. Then the property became a "must-have." Jerry Spivak, a hematologist, had been immediately hooked at the front door of this Roland Park home when he took in the length of a wide center hall with grand staircase, the first landing ablaze in western sunlight streaming through leaded-glass doors opening onto a Juliet balcony.

During rehearsals this week of Rep Stage's next production, characters onstage explored the social and political upheaval of the turn of the 20th century while workers behind the scenes confronted the upheaval of breaking in a brand-new theater. The professional theater company in residence at Howard Community College is producing Tintypes in the black box theatre at the college's new Peter and Elizabeth Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center. In the show, which runs tonight through Nov. 19, a five-person company performs a string of musical numbers featuring songs from the late 1800s and early 1900s - including patriotic, ragtime, spiritual and vaudeville numbers.

Where Chad and Leah Gillespie are concerned, less is more. And this personal preference is evident in a minimalist style of home decor that is both artistic and functional. From street level, their rowhouse on Riverside Avenue in Federal Hill is a three-story brick structure, not unlike the thousands renovated in every neighborhood throughout the city. From the threshold, however, the interior sight is one of sleek openness, clean, natural, and sparse, yet elegantly decorated from front to back.

Poster show -- Gallery 44, 9469 Baltimore National Pike, Ellicott City, will hold a Vintage Poster Show and Sale, with rare authentic pieces from the early 1900s and later, today through Sunday. "Satin Skin" (above) dates from before 1920. Similar posters were produced from 1903 to 1919. Hours are from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. today, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. tomorrow, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. 410-465-5200.

U.S. Interior Secretary Gale A. Norton visited Annapolis yesterday to turn over the keys to the historic Thomas Point Lighthouse to a coalition of government and nonprofit groups. The 129-year-old beacon is the first Maryland lighthouse to be transferred out of Coast Guard ownership under a federal program approved by Congress four years ago. As lighthouse lovers and relatives of former keepers cheered and clapped, Norton signed the paperwork that gives Annapolis possession of Thomas Point, the only lighthouse of its kind in its original location in the United States.

After the Ball: Gilded Age Secrets, Boardroom Betrayals, and the Party That Ignited the Great Wall Street Scandal of 1905, by Patricia Beard. HarperCollins. 416 pages. $25.95. Patricia Beard started working seriously on this book in the late 1990s, as WorldCom, Tyco and the rest blossomed in rotten glory, and publishes it now, as the scent of scandal lingers in corporate suites. Good timing. Her subject - riches, envy and iniquity at the Equitable Life Assurance Society in the early 1900s - is a dandy, overlooked gem of business disgrace.

Q: The enclosed picture is of a chair that originally was one of a set of six or eight dining room chairs that has been in our family since before the Civil War; we still have three of them.We would like to know who made this style and in what city were they made.A: This chair would be classified as transitional between Empire and Victorian. It was made in the 1850-1870 period and would probably sell for $175 to $200.It is virtually impossible to tell in what city unmarked furniture was made.

Q: This is a picture of our oak kitchen cabinet. I would like to know who manufactured it, date of manufacture and current retail value.A: Since your kitchen cabinet is unmarked, it is impossible to identify the maker; it was made in the early 1900s and would probably sell in an antique shop for $800 to $900 in good condition.Q: The attached mark is on the bottom of a hatpin holder that is 6 inches tall and 3 inches in diameter. It is fine porcelain and hand painted with daisies and poppies.

If you combine this summer's film trends, the plot line for the ultimate flick would read something like this: For at least the second time, partially animated, talking criminal dogs from outer space travel back to either the early 1900s or the World War II era (your choice) and invade Paris or Vienna (or some other romantic, non-American place). There, they learn about life and love from former "Survivor" cast members, find their soul-mates and live happily ever after. But, instead of this all-rolled-into-one-movie plot, the summer movie roster features film groupings with the splintered elements.

TAKING A STEP back in time will provide family activities for a local community and extra income for a senior activity center. West End Place, a Westminster nonprofit organization that provides day care for senior citizens, has planned a May Day celebration from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 5 at its facility, 7 Schoolhouse Ave. Organizers thought of the idea when they realized that May Day celebrations at their facility, the former West End Elementary School,...