Featured If this wasn't so close... another estate sale.

It's right around the corner, but in the expensive part of town. Three story sale - ususally that puts me off, but it's about as local as I can get - under 10 minutes door to door uncluding a detour since it's one a one-way street. The predicted weather is also a turnoff. Wintery mix nastiness. The jewerly is being sold by the lot and I'm not seeing anything crazy, but they do have railroad photography and tie bars and I'm a rail nut's daughter. I strongly suspect the last two images are silver, but if so they're going to want a pile for them. The estate runners have a Massachusetts area code.

Anyone seeing anything in the jewelry or the bottom floor that I missed?
https://estatesales.org/estate-sale...eclectic-hartford-estate-sale-2003339/gallery

https://forecast.weather.gov/MapCli...=41.8167&textField2=-72.7333&e=0#.YfmUPerMIdU

 

On second read of the "description" the silver I thought was silver IS silver, and they know it. Dagnabbit. The pattern is desirable, but I doubt I could flip it locally for what they'd want for it. They're going to have about $300 on it.

 

well I can not help with jewelry at all, but the sale looks interesting.
This is what caught my eye.
Looks like there may be some Vaseline Glass there.
There is what may be a vintage hard candy tin that might be nice
There is a red and white plaid cookbook, depending on condition and if it smells.
and on photo 231 I like those glasses with the leather holders.

JMHO

 

I saw the vaseline glass too. I'm half thinking of going Sunday right after church, for half price day. They're going to want a mint for those barware glasses with the leather holders. These companies who come in from out of town always try to get top dollar.

Most of the jewelry doesn't look worth my time. It's being sold in lots, and only one lot looks worth the effort. With my usual luck someone else would buy it before I ever got in the door. I only strike gold when a company doesn't advertise the jewelry and I'm one of the first 10 in the door. (that's what happened the last time - no advertised jewelry at all, yet there it was, and there was a pile of it in the TRASH.) They're giving out numbers at 8AM for a 10AM start and there's sleet in the forecast. With my MS/nerve damage that's a bad idea.

 

I love boxes of jewellery like that as they usually can’t be bothered to check out every piece and they miss nice stuff.
What about those perfume bottles? I wouldn’t know enough to say if they are good ones or not but they do seem to sell.
I like the trousers (teapot?) and that aluminium airplane thing would be worth looking at twice in case its collectible.
Aside from that it’s quite sad seeing someone’s life and personal items for sale in their own home. Over here it all gets shipped to auction or goes through a house clearance person like Davey so it’s less personal.

 

Sometimes when I buy a lot of glasses, I split them up into pairs and sell them that way instead of collectively. often times that brings more money and I can make a good profit. I do that with Culver glasses.

I give you snaps for going out in this horrid weather.

 

Looking at this chest, and the rest of what's offered in the house, I'm not real positive this is authentic.....and is the red blanket hiding any damage???
@James Conrad, @Ghopper1924, @verybrad, et al ???

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I'm thinking of going Sunday instead. The box lots can be good, but only one here looks like it has any promise at all. The glasses I'd have to flip locally and sell as a lot, so I only buy if it's cheap. As for the chest, I think it's stencil work and not as old as it wants to be. Nothing else in the house looks more than 100 years old that I saw.

 

The unicorn and men-on-horseback design on this painted chest are motifs often depicted on marriage chests created in Berks County.
Patricia J. Keller determined that at least eight different cabinet shops and four different decorators were responsible for the approximately forty known forms comprising the “black unicorn” group.
It's a rather famous PA German design, the one above is most likely a repro, many have been built over the years
Here is a period one at the MET, C 1780
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/3395

 

Looks like my old IBM Selectric typewriter in there!
Select NONE of the paintings that I could see..
The clothing looks very picked through already.
Likely, everything has been picked through, if the clothes have been!
I would want the Chet Atkins record album, it's an oldie but goodie!
I would NOT actually buy it though!
I doubt pic 153 is very old, doesn't look it to me.
Some of the furniture looks very nice, and some small pieces.
I wouldn't be able to hobble to it quickly enough to be able to buy it!
Oh yes, agree with Pearls on the Vaseline glass!

Yes. This^^

 

Fun pix! Would love to stroll around through this stuff.

Nevertheless, @Aquitaine , due to the rather middling nature of most of these goods, I'd guess the trunk is an old-ish fake. Yes, there appears to be damage on the top.

Having said that, I'm not an 18th century trunk expert, and the O.P.'s trunk seems to be virtually identical to the one in James' post. Did these guys ever make exactly the same trunk twice?

 

It is virtually identical, although painted by 2 different artists. May have been an assembly line process!

 

Thanks, @James Conrad !! AND @Ghopper1924!!!

 

Actually if you blow up both images of the chest, the one from the estate sale that @evelyb30 posted DOES NOT in any way have the same level of detail as the chest that @James Conrad posted!!! Glad I compared the two!

 

that's still a lovely chest !!

 

Doubts anyone was trying to deceive here, there are hundreds, maybe more copies of that design floating around of different quality, they are still being reproduced today.

No, similar in that they all have "Black Unicorns" but not the same, I'll post the last 2 that were sold recently, one at Pook in 2018 and one at Christie's in 2019 from the Rockefeller collection.

Indeed, not everyone can afford a period example and these chests are considered folk art & many of those collectors have deep pockets.
Repro's are the next best thing to a period example and very affordable.

 

Sold at Pook for 280k 3 years ago, notice the human figures on the drawers



Sold at Christie's from the Rockefeller collection for 300k



“The chest at Pook is undoubtedly the finest of all Black Unicorn chests,” said Kilvington, “but the Rockefeller chest is in better condition. We will probably not touch it. I like its history—Abby Aldrich Rockefeller bought it for Williamsburg, which did not find it suitable, so it went to her son.”



Christie's
Live like a Rockefeller — An 18th-century unicorn chest | Christie's
https://www.christies.com/features/Live-like-a-Rockefeller-An-18th-century-unicorn-chest-8829-1.aspx

 

Lots of goodies at that sale ... I like the GM EMD locomotive designation plaques, the vice in the garage if not broken and in working order, the old dunlop grinder would be fun but not OSHA approved....lol.... I like the one "cowboy" hat , a dead ringer for a Spanish American War army issue hat ...... lots of nice brass and brown furniture , to bad It's not in California, too bad I have limited funds, too bad I have not a big house ........

 

Repro sold in 2015 for $425.
One of MANY revival chests that has the "look" of a period unicorn chest but not the 1/4 mill price tag.
https://www.invaluable.com/auction-...-black-unicorn-blanket-chest-528-c-b9443728cf

"The form consisting of a six board chest over two drawers resting on bracket feet. The case painted with elaborate imagery typical of this group of blanket chests including black unicorns, mounted figures, tulips and flowers. A paper label notes "Made and decorated by MacIntosh/Lyons/N.Y."

 

I would get in line early both days. I have done this to scout out what I could pick up cheaper the second day. That turquoise cuff is gorgeous.