Auctiva Emporium: Gizmos Scientific Emporium

The story

A Dealers Trials and Tribulations

A few weeks ago i visited one of my usual auction rooms in Cornwall. On this particular occasion there was a large cardboard box containing a quantity of meat covers and assorted general brass and plate. Many dealers and car-booters visit these rooms as the variety is good and the auctioneer moves fast through the lots, so there is not much chance for me to catch a nap like quite often done in the provincial rooms. Happily i bought the box of plate and soon it was in my den being researched. the contents was basically six silver plate meat covers, two large meat plates and a tureen plus the usual auction house "top-up" items to fill box and get rid. Engraved on the meat covers was a logo and the meat plates were hand engraved on the base "Headland Hotel". It does not take a brain of Britain to locate their origins, it was the Headland Hotel of Newquay. For further interest please click on the following link :

http://www.headlandhotel.co.uk/history.html

As the items at a latter date will be sold i contacted the Headland Hotel to ask if they could confirm my findings. It was not long before confirmation arrived by email with advice that the owner may contact me. My initial and natural thoughts being a dealer is that the company may be interested in buying back a part of its heritage. I took no further action and sent the items off for restoration as they had suffered from the usual mistreatment by cleaners and waiters.

Now back from the workshops all is presentable and further research is started. Soon it is revealed that they were produced by Elkington & Co.

 For further interest please click on the following link. interest: http://www.ascasonline.org/#marks

The date indicates 1900 , the hotel opened its doors in June 1900. All is now listed as a single lot on ebay in my auctions. Please see..: Item number: 120160443370

Most ebayers if they list an item which may be of interest to a potential buyer will send a link by the ebay thumbnail "email to a friend". I did this as more of a courtesy to the owner of the hotel. Soon my mobile was ringing and it was the owner who politely asked where the items came from and was i aware that the hotel did not sell off its silver plate. i do not wish to blog too much on this matter but wish to point out a few facts of life:

The Headland Hotel-Newquay is in my opinion well managed and presented. None of which would have possibly been made possible without the ownership of Mr and Mrs Armstrong who took on the mammoth task in 1979.

But how can the present owner possibly know all the transactions of goods and chattels since the hotels formation in 1897?

If you purchase a silver plated item from the RMS Queen Elizabeth or a Coat Hanger stamped Hilton Hotel are you committing theft? In my opinion the answer is no unless the present owner can show proof of ownership in his companies name. The National Trust and English Heritage would have a wonderful time if they could claim all that was originally in and on the estates which they now own.

So at present the auction is running and hopefully there will be no ebay auction withdrawal. One thing is certain if no sale is made I will be very happy to sell the set in my shop.

Please do not hesitate to comment on this blog.  

Start Date 4th September 2007. Perhaps i should not call this a diary as a daily record of events would bore me and you to tears. a journal in mainly lower case and i am sure poor grammar is how my diary will unfold. as i add my story to the cyber world please do not hesitate to contact me with any input you may have. communication is the essence of life and the human race has developed the technique to beyond the outer limits of our solar system. Unfortunately because of our social environment which is manipulated by the television/computer/car and all electronic goods; we are quickly forgetting how to communicate with our next door neighbour. strange isn't it, mankind supposedly improves the world we live in by developing/improving and inventing all kinds of interesting gizmo's however are we not causing a serious degenerative factor for our future generations?

My business is my life which i adore, worts and all. i am a dealer following on in my fathers footsteps. as far as i know our family have been traders since the sixteenth century traveling from Spain to the Netherlands as Sephardi Jews. eventually arriving in england and granted citizenship by oliver Cromwell providing we taught our trade and lived ten miles outside a cinque port.

since leaving the air force as RAF bosun in Hamble, Hampshire in 1974, i have tried to earn a living selling all kinds of scientific and philosophical instruments. the trade of antiques and its people is a colourfull, hard and exciting profession to be in. definitely not for the feint hearted unless you are retired and have a good pension and wish to play at it. knowledge and communication are two very important factors if you want to succeed. i doubt if there is a day that goes by that i do not learn something new. the intense excitement of recognizing an antique item yet being unable to unfold all its patinas of mystery instantly gives me a great buzz. for example: a Vesta box (early form of match case).

THE STORY: In Cornwall i normally view three auctions every week. trolling through the catalogue of a particular sale room and scanning the various show cases, i home in on many interesting items which will deserve a "punt". among the worthy "punt" items are three brass Vesta cases. two are the same and are cast in the form of a well dressed mid nineteenth century character and the other is of the same quality but a "Barbary pirate". the sale commences and i am fortunate to buy all three for a "happy price". The win of Vesta cases now requires research. with the help of an eye glass and "google" the folds of history start to unravel. you first have to establish whether they are reproduction (preferably before you start bidding on the item). the Barbary pirate appears to be damaged as there is a hole where the barrel of his gun should be. But after a little research the following information is unearthed or excuse the pun "brought to light". The two similar Vesta cases of a nineteenth century gentleman are almost certainly modeled on a Charles Dickens character from David Copperfield, Mr Dicks. one has already sold on Ebay for a healthy return and the other is currently listed and will hopefully achieve a similar result. the Barbary pirate was even more interesting because in my opinion he was far rarer. the damage of a hole where the barrel of his gun should be is not a break but a place to put the spent match. research revealed this item was in fact a "go to bed match safe". another happy win and the American buyer who found the item listed in my auction was also very pleased with his win.

more to follow

Since January 2009 I have moved my stock to the following pub where my stock can be viewed virtually 24/7. It is the Rising Sun at St Mawes in the Roseland Peninsula, Cornwall. Also at Tregony Antiques, close to St Mawes but please phone first 01872530225 or visit Ebay and Auctiva Commerce My ID is gizmo23230 here you can view and buy on line.