As one of the world's oldest recreations, dating back to at least 2000 BC, it is not surprising that there is a growing interest in collecting the diverse memorabilia which the sport of fishing generates. The art of angling - or fishing with a rod, line and hook - lies not just in knowing where the fish Read more [...]

In the early nineteenth-century aristocratic world to which Sir John and Lady Jane Franklin belonged, science was an intrinsic part of European collecting cultures. Science motivated, justified and explained European voyages of discovery and reconnaissance. Natural objects were on a par with antiquities Read more [...]

The basic facts relating to the Book of Kells can be stated with some brevity. In the early Middle Ages, Gospel manuscripts containing accounts of the life of Christ were produced in large numbers to assist in spreading the Christian message. 'Pocket' Gospel books were used for missionary work and private Read more [...]

In these days of acute focus on the origins and design sources of most aspects of the applied arts - now emulating that applied long since to the fine arts - it comes as some surprise that there remain subjects little explored. One of these is glass lighting. Chandeliers, candelabra, candlesticks and Read more [...]

The textile arts in Australia are a vital and dynamic force, which are regularly dismissed in our cultural history. In People magazine of 24 September 1952 Frances Burke (1907-94), founder of Australia's first registered screen-printing workshop in 1937, claimed: 'Its appeal is universal. It will be Read more [...]

It is thought by some that one of the worst fates for a spouse is to become a golfing widow or widower - but how much worse is it to be married to a collector of golfing memorabilia? After playing 36 holes on Sunday, chances are that the errant golfer will spend the afternoon gazing at his or her collection Read more [...]

Up until the early 1970s, celluloids (the transparent sheets of plastic now more commonly referred to as acetate) were either destroyed, reused by the animation studios for later cartoons, or simply thrown away. To the studios, storing celluloids already used in the animation process was expensive and Read more [...]

When my sons were little, my idea of an evening on the town was to attend an antiques show or an auction. I usually set a limit on how much I would spend, perhaps the equivalent of dinner and a movie. In a Tulsa auction house, an Imari bowl came up for sale - black background, colorful chrysanthemums Read more [...]

One of the things that a collector of prehistoric North American artifacts quickly learns is that very many artifacts are incomplete. That is, whether caused by long-ago use or more recent agricultural equipment, the artifacts are broken or damaged. A flint point or blade will have a missing tip, and Read more [...]

"Were composition dolls made in the 19th century?" a woman asked at a show several years ago. The exhibitor shrugged his shoulders and said that he didn't know. He was displaying the wax dolls he had made, and probably didn't know about antique dolls and the various substances of which they were made. However, Read more [...]