Collecting Books

The hundreds of wonderful, clear pictures are a delight to see and a tremendous help in identifying dolls and placing comparative values. Great fun just to look at and enjoy!

Although I am a little biased in that I am the grandson of the author, I have many fond memories of riding in the rumble seat of his 1932 Chrysler.

When we lived in England, we were constantly visiting old homes, stately mansions, and castles, and were always impressed by how deep the history went, especially in the oldest, darkest oak-paneled rooms. If those panels could talk, what a rich history going back perhaps six centuries they might tell, of what had happened in those rooms, what agreements signed, what assignations made, and so on. Some of those elaborate decorations were Jacobean, others were what might be called Jacobethan. I am only now learning that plenty were Jacobogus. John Harris is an architectural historian who let me in on this sordid secret (and the new word), in _Moving Rooms: The Trade in Architectural Salvages_ (Yale University Press), a documentation of a part of the antique and interior decorating worlds that does not otherwise get much attention. It's a story of centuries, money, and more than a little chicanery, and Harris has covered one room and one desecration after another. It is obvious that he has done copious research, and some of the text is mere listing of owners, rooms, and prices, as if he wanted to make sure that all the data got in. The patterns of the trade, and of deception within it, are fascinating, and the large-format, glossy book has hundreds of photographs well aligned with the text.

Much of Harris's book concentrates on the movements of rooms and room parts over the later nineteenth and twentieth centuries, but the trade had gone on long before that. Paneling was easily removed, easily reinstalled, and easily shuffled to fit into rooms of various sizes. Interior wooden paneling over walls had the same job as tapestries, to help insulate the room and keep drafts out. There were fashions in carving paneling, with some of the oldest being carved to look as if it had folds of linen on it. Thereafter, more fanciful decoration took over in the Renaissance. The French versions, called _boiseries_, were flat, broad panels with raised floral or geometric decoration around the edges, often gilt. Fashions change, and when paneling was taken off, it might be used again for a servant's room or an attic, or it might be put in storage. It could then be pulled out decades or centuries later for the express purpose of giving a room an antiquarian look. Paneling and other wooden parts were often installed in American museums, and some such rooms are careful and get Harris's praise, but other museums seemed to go gaga over rooms without a sense of curatorial judgement. Some museums joined in a spending spree for entire rooms, thereupon finding them too entire to install in entirety, or install at all. Many of them stayed crated up, and some simply became lost (there are many rooms here that no one knows where they are).

The presence who enters these pages more than any single individual is William Randolph Hearst. "So prolific was he as a magpie accumulator of salvages that it is difficult to evaluate his discrimination when the vast scale of his acquisition is considered. `Collecting' implies acquisition with a collection in mind, but so mind-blowing was the scale of his purchases, so diverse and unequal the quality, so grotesque the utter lack of self-discipline, that his motivation, beyond the lust of acquisition, is baffling." A compulsive buyer, he was lucky to have the services of his architect Julia Morgan, who incorporated much of it happily in San Simeon. Hearst gathered much more than he could ever use, or even ever unpack, and in 1941 it was catalogued for sale. Harris reproduces the nine pages having to do with "buildings and parts", and if you needed twelfth century Romanesque portals or a fifteenth century Venetian door knocker, you should have been at that sale. Harris's chapter on "The Great Accumulator" winds up this comprehensive tour of a specialized and peculiar topic. His lists of accumulations become entertaining as they are coupled with tales of lucre, deception, pride, and the folly of the rich.

This is such an incredible (and true!) spy-story. The writing is sharp, and keeps you turning the page. I usually don't read non-fiction narratives, but I loved this book. It is such a great story, and it is so well written, that you can't do anything but be caught up in this tale.

My First Forty Cars: An Automotive Memoir is a nostalgic reflection by Nelson Bolan of each of the forty cars he has held title to, ranging from a 1929 Chevrolet purchased for $100 to commemorate his brother's safe return from World War II, to a handy 1983 Dodge. Black-and-white photographs and a brief yet insightful reminiscence concerning each car model fill this engaging and uniquely personal memoir which is especially recommended reading for car enthusiasts.

My son has loved these books since he was about 9 - he's now 12. They are fun and easy to read together. They are good for reading on their own, also.

"Berkeley lecturer Dubin deserves congratulations for even attempting a clear overview of her thorny subject--the history and present state of the collecting and exhibiting of the objects created by the world's indigenous peoples of North America. That she has to a great degree succeeded is gratifying, so vast are the potential pitfalls. Dubin moves between the worlds of anthropology and modern art with equal confidence and does not mistake evenhandedness for blandness. Thus, for example, the naive collectors of "Indian Art" looking for a fix of authenticity are not isolated and condemned, but placed within a broad historical and cultural framework. . . . "Dubin's knowledgeably poised book is an invaluable contribution to cultural studies."-Publishers Weekly

Arrested by the photos on its cover, I picked up Sharon Weintraub's NAUGHTIES, NUDIES, AND BATHING BEAUTIES and bought it on impulse. I opened it, and almost instantly came down with collector's fever. The author's enthusiasm is contagious, and her personal collection breathtaking. The narrative on the history and manufacture of the mostly German, mostly bisque figurines is expert and easy to follow (infectious, you might even say). But familiarity breeds covetousness when it comes to this book, so beware!

Ironically, the "nudies" and "bathing beauties," originally novelties and souvenirs bought to shock and titillate, are probably most attractive today to women, especially those with feminist bents. This is because we see them now as depicting the wonderful time when women were tossing out their corsets and wearing comfortable clothing, when we got to feel the sand in our toes,to cavort like Isadora Duncan in the sunshine. The book begins with a fascinating, lavishly illustrated chapter about that period in our history.

With the caveat that you will want to spend your kid's college tuition on what you previously might have thought of as knick-knacks...buy this book.

I own a number of books described as "Collector's Guide"s and "Pottery Identification and Value Guide"s and most of them have a short history section and then some combination of catalog pages and photographs of examples, lines, and marks. Useful but limited.

However, this book contains evidence of substantial research into the history and aesthetics of various potteries and potters of North Carolina. He discusses various clay sources and, most important of all, offers numerous photographs of the bottoms of the illustrated pottery pieces. He also discusses the quite striking glazes used.

I was surprised to discover that certain unmarked pieces I had bought over the years in the Ohio Pottery area were in fact from North Carolina potteries.

Very recommended.

Edited just to add that Dr. James (his name is A. Everette James, Jr. not James A. Everette, Jr.) and his wife Dr. Nancy Farmer were awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by the Governor of North Carolina for their service to the state.

Another great book by Mr Burns! Well written, easy to understand. Wonderful photos. The history is a big plus for me too. Explains a lot in a small package! Another book I wouldn't trade for the world! A must have for the carnival collector to gain an invaluable insight into the specific houses & how they relate to each other.