A piece of the Statue of Liberty that was stolen by a construction worker restoring the statue in 1986 has been recovered. The piece of the balcony around the torch flame was offered on eBay. The piece, which was returned to the Park Service, had been inherited, so the seller was not charged with a crime. The recovery was made possible by a member of the Statue of Liberty Club who recognized it as original.
Prices for modern Steuben glass, the colorless sculptured pieces made after 1962, are selling for less than they did five years ago. Perhaps it’s because the eager collectors of the past are now at the time of life when they’re selling collections.
Necklaces sell best in hot weather, when women are wearing thin fabrics and pins are too heavy. Pins sell best during the seasons when jackets are worn.
Bottled water from Japan is being imported to the United States in Codd bottles that look like old ones. (The Codd bottle has a glass marble in the neck that seals the bottle.) The new bottles are marked “T3” on the bottom.
Floor-standing phonographs with room to store 78 rpm records were hot items at the Cleveland public television auction. The wooden cabinets were in fair condition and the phonograph turntables needed some work, but each one of the three offered brought over $700.
The Swatch watch craze is over. They are now just like any other new watch-there’s no resale demand.
The 1959 Barbie doll, the first, sells for over $5,000 in good condition. She had holes in the bottom of her feet so she could “stand” on a separate plastic piece. The stand was small and dangerous for young children, so the second Barbie did not have one. An original small black stand auctioned recently at McMasters Harris for $1,250.