XV111 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



April, 1 9 1 3 



Floor Coverings 

 That Satisfy 



We have been trying for years to pro- 

 tect you against substituted imitations 

 of wire-grass floor coverings. 



CREX — the original and genuine — 

 now has the name woven (almost invis- 

 ibly) in the side binding on the round- 

 ed edge, as shown in illustration. 



Before you buy. look closely for 

 CREX on rug or runner — it's your pro- 

 tection and stands for HIGHEST 

 QUALITY. 



CREX coverings are sanitary and 

 durable — do not hold dust or dirt — are 

 reversible and easy to keep clean. 



They are suitable for all-year-round 

 use in any home — indoors or out. Xot 

 affected by rain or dampness — they lie 

 flat — never curl. 



Most dealers carry a varied assort- 

 ment. It will pay you to look at the 

 many beautiful and artistic designs. 

 The low prices will astonish you. 



To introduce CREX in your home 

 we are making a special size sample rug 

 12 x 30 inches which we will send, post- 

 age prepaid, on receipt of 35 cents in 

 stamps or coin. State preference of 

 color — green, red, blue or brown. 



"The Story of CREX" and catalogue 

 of numerous patterns in natural colors, 

 mailed on request. 



CREX CARPET COMPANY 



Dept. Ml 377 Broadway, New York 



Originators of Wire-Grass 

 Floor Coverings 



'PP7 f ^v^' 



fit'* i§ % r'*-?.-f*>> 



Iron Railing 



Entrance Gates and Wire Fencing of 



all designs and for all purposes. 



Unclimbable Fences for Estate 

 Boundaries and IndustrialProperties. 



Tennis Court Enclosures 



a Specialty. Lawn Furniture and 

 Stable Fittings. 



No order too large or too small for 

 us to handle. 



Send for our Fence Catalog of origi- 

 nal designs. It's yours for the asking. 



F. E. CARPENTER CO. 



856 Postal Building NEW YORK 



T-±-izz±- m. i_i_j 



Collectors 



artment 



Readers of American Homes and Gardens who are interested in old furniture, silver, prints, 

 brass, miniatures, medals, paintings, textiles, glass, in fact in any field appealing to the collector are 

 invited to address any enquiries on such matters to the Editor of the 'Collectors' Department," and 

 such letters of enquiry will receive careful attention. Correspondents should enclose stamps for 

 reply. Foreign correspondents may enclose the stamps of their respective countries. 



L. G. R. : The candlestick you describe 

 is of old Russian plated-ware by some 

 maker established near Warsaw — Var- 

 sovie, Warchau, being the mark of the 

 Warsaw makers. There is little value 

 to be attached to this as quantities of 

 like pieces would undoubtedly have been 

 produced by the same maker. 



N. V. : The pewter and brass lamp to 

 which you refer is probably a Jewish Han- 

 nukah lamp. The Hannukah lights (eight 

 in number) are lit in rotation during the 

 continuance of the Jewish feast of Dedi- 

 cation, or "Festival of Lights," observed 

 in the month of Keslew (December). 

 This festival was instituted by Judas 

 Maccabeus, B. C. 165. Several objects 

 of this sort were in the famous Drake 

 Collection recently sold in New York. 



L. A. A. : The faience "bottle" of which 

 you sent a pencil sketch is an old form 

 of hand-warmer such as early-day church- 

 goers used to carry with them to keep 

 warm the hands during the long services. 

 Less frequently they were made of 

 pewter. 



R. D. C. : The pewter pint pot described 

 in your letter is of nineteenth century 

 make, and the mark C. B. stands for the 

 maker, probably C. Bennett. 



L. V. N. : The pierced egg-shaped 

 forms of metal are nineteenth century 

 French spice-boilers. These were used 

 (and are still in use) by the French 

 peasantry for use in keeping spices, rice, 

 etc., apart when boiling them in broth. 

 An interesting specimen would probably 

 bring $2.50 in an antique shop. 



N. N. P. : The curious "Mower's Ring" 

 jug in your possession is probably of 

 Lambert ware, practically Gres de Flan- 

 dres or Rheinish ware. This appears to 

 be a very rare piece, the only one known 

 to us in America, although there are sev- 

 eral specimens to be found in the Euro- 

 pean museums. Your specimen would 

 appear to have been made about 1750. 



F. S. van der V. : Such an Adams 

 platter as you describe, of about 1800, 



could probably be had from an antique 

 dealer for around $15. The bowl about 

 which you enquire is old Staffordshire. 

 Its value is not over $10. 



M. L. : Fine specimens of old silhou- 

 ettes are eagerly sought for by modern 

 collectors and are becoming more rare 

 every year. Very fine English specimens 

 were brought to America in Colonial 

 times, but they are uncommon in good 

 preservation, particularly those of por- 

 trait groups. 



J. E. T. : The metal tea-caddy of which 

 you send a photograph is of Chinese 

 pewter, eighteenth century. Chinese 

 pewter forms, in itself, an extremely in- 

 teresting field for the collector. The 

 mark "Boardman, Hartford," to which 

 you refer as appearing upon a pewter 

 plate in your collection is that of Thomas 

 D. Boardman. Its date is about 1825. 

 The mark "Spackman" on the English 

 pewter plate is that of the London pew- 

 terer, Joseph Spackman, 1753. 



R. H. S. : There are many sorts of 

 samplers which present themselves to the 

 attention of the collector. Early Amer- 

 ican samplers will in time become more 

 and more rare. Any samplers in good 

 condition worked previous to 1700 are 

 truly to be counted varieties of the sort 

 no collector should neglect to acquire 

 when favorable opportunity presents it- 

 self. 



W. F. P. : Handkerchiefs printed with 

 pictorial scenes, allegories, portraits, mot- 

 toes, etc., form an interesting and little 

 appreciated field for the collector. Some 

 of the early specimens are of unusual his- 

 torical interest. One depicting the New 

 York City Hall and various New York 

 street cries recently brought $32 at 

 auction. 



J. H. L. : The old sofa shown in the 

 photograph submitted is probably the 

 work of an American cabinet-maker, and 

 its date may be placed between 1810 and 

 1820. It may have been manufactured 

 by an English cabinet-maker. The style 

 of the legs somewhat suggests the work 



