School Teacher by Day…
When I sat down with the Flacks to look over the catalog before it went off to the printer, Paul remarked that his favorite fraktur artist was Andreas Kolb. I too find Kolb’s work superior and I’ve laid out my…
Pick of the Week
After Houdon
So here we are gearing up for the Americana & International sale, which is right around the corner on September 14th and 15th. For my last pick I went out on a limb with a non-Pennsylvania piece, one that I…
Don’t put it on the floor!
Yet another successful online auction is over. The 1500 lots containing over 10,000 items are starting to leave the building and not soon enough! The next wave is coming and all the Pook and Pook employees are scrambling to get…
The Lucky Chosen One
Once again, I am sitting here on the floor in the balcony surrounded by toys. There are trucks, buses, cabs, dolls, board games, models, and a plethora of play things all around me. There is tin, cast iron, spelter, wood,…
S’more Toys
This week I head back into the toy box. As I dig around I found a great selection of pressed steel including Tonka, Chein and Structo toys, a lot of which were not left outside in the dirt pile like…
A Tale of Two Franklins
As our country prepares to celebrate another birthday this month, this week’s pick is an object steeped in American history and achievement, spotlighting a few famous Philadelphians and featuring two Philadelphia landmarks. My pick is lot 401 from our October…
Pick of the Week…or Month?
I know I have been delinquent in my pick of the week and I apologize. I have been very busy gathering, sorting, and cataloging future material that very well could be an upcoming pick of the week. I am silently…
Hello, Dolly!
6/9/18 – As the summer approaches, things are slowing down at Pook & Pook. However, our office continues to swell with antiques as we prepare for our June 13th and 14th Online Only Auction. Over the two day sale,…
Boardwalk Empire
Some collectors cherish antiques for the stories they can tell us. We get joy out of imagining the past life of a simple object, dreaming of all the events it has “witnessed”. Such is the case with this week’s pick…
Paroled Prisoner of the Army of Northern Virginia
5/7/18 – There is a change of pace this week as we finished up another successful Americana sale. Hopefully everyone who wanted to buy something was successful and for our sake I hope you paid too much! As we move…
My Cinderella’s Slipper
4/30/18 – Before cataloging this ring, I knew I had to try it on. For me, trying on new jewelry is akin to slipping into a new identity, if only for a moment. Just my luck – the 5 ¾…
Lions, and Soldiers?, and Unicorns? Oh my!
4/23/18 – Our April 28th, 2018 auction is filled with great objects. There is great American History with the George Washington and Thomas Jefferson signed documents and letters, but which for me are not eye catching enough for my pick…
New England Winter of Days Past
4/16/18 – When this week’s pick gets posted, all of the dust will have settled from the highly anticipated Ruth Bryson Auction. I am sure that there will be a few eyebrows raised at some of the results, perhaps more…
Becks & Buttons
4/9/18 – Yet another week of agonizing over my pick of the week. Do I dare limit myself to just pick one thing? No, I don’t think I can. Looks like it will two picks of the week again! My…
Dazzlers abound in Bryson Sale
Weber boxes, dower chests, and frakturs, oh my! I checked two off my favorites list last week and am down to a hundred or more still on my list. Looking at this catalog is like opening a box of Girl Scout Thin Mints,…