A cross-section of collecting interests, pottery by George Ohr highlights the 188-lot event at Rago and Toomey & Co.
Taureau, c. 1860, by pioneering feminist artist Rosa Bonheur, 1822–1899.
Image courtesy of Rago and Toomey & Co.
A curated 188-lot collection belonging to Terry and Ralph Kovel, the “duke and duchess of the antiques world,” including rare ceramics by George Ohr, paintings by pioneering female artist Rosa Bonheur, and American Renaissance Revival furniture by Alexander Roux, heads to auction Wednesday, Nov. 1, at Rago and Toomey & Co.
A fine Louis XVl Revival music-themed cabinet, c. 1865, attributed to Alexander Roux.
Image courtesy of Rago and Toomey & Co.
The Kovels are widely known throughout the antiques and collectibles world, establishing a beachhead in the collecting space in 1953 with their first book together, Dictionary of Marks: Pottery and Porcelain. In the following 70 years, the Kovels name became synonymous with the antiques and collectibles hobby, thanks in large part to the more than 100 books they published, including Kovel’s Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide, which has sold more than four million copies as the bible in the collecting field. Through their work, antiques and collecting were made accessible to the masses.
The Kovels were incredibly diversified in their interests, collecting everything from banana stickers and textiles to furniture and American art pottery. Of all the work championed by the Kovels, they clearly had a close connection to George Ohr and the man who sold the potter’s work to the world, James Carpenter. The Kovels discovered Ohr pottery while researching in the basement warehouse of the Smithsonian Museum. Fascinated by his work, they wrote the first article to appear on Ohr, published in May 1972 in The Western Collector magazine. As popular as Ohr is today, such radical work was a very hard sell back in the dark ages of pottery in 1972-73.
An exceptional vase standing 8 3/4 inches tall by George Ohr.
Image courtesy of Rago and Toomey & Co.
Billed as “The Life Collection of Terry & Ralph Kovel,” the auction represents a cross-section of many of the Kovels’ collecting interests, a compendium of what America was hunting once the baby boomers came of age and started nesting. Still, as diversified a glimpse as this sale offers, at its heart, it is mostly about the mad genius from Biloxi, Miss., George Ohr. These pieces are presented for the first time in half a century and only the second time since they left the Ohr family in Biloxi.
In addition to the more than 30 pieces by Ohr, the auction includes pottery from Taxile Doat, Martin Brothers, Fulper, and others; furniture, silver, tableware, and even a whimsical collection of Pixieware from Holt-Howard.
A rare and exceptional glazed porcelain vase by Taxile Doat.
Image courtesy of Rago and Toomey & Co.
You can preview the auction in person at Rago, 333 N Main St Ste 4, Lambertville, N.J., from now until the day of the auction, or view lots online at RagoArts.com. The auction begins at 11 a.m. EST, Nov. 1. For more information, call 609-397-9374 or email info@ragoarts.com.
Happy Birthday, Terry Kovel!
The Birthday Girl!
If you see Terry Kovel this week, wish her a happy birthday. Terry turns 95 on Friday, Oct. 27, which means, technically, she is not an antique. You can call her vintage if you like, but to her many, many friends throughout the antiques and collectibles field, Terry will always be rare, a one-of-a-kind joy who enriches everything we hold dear in the hobby.
Terry officially “retired” late last March, but anyone who has spent the vast majority of their life exploring estate sales, researching fantastic finds, and generally informing the uninformed about antiques and collectibles never really retires. This hobby is far too interesting for such nonsense, and Terry is far too curious.
Terry and her late husband, Ralph, were pioneers in a postwar America that knew little about antiques or what exactly was a collectible. After publishing their first book in the field 70 years ago—and following it with 100 more—the Kovels name is synonymous with the field.
So, after all that Terry has done for us, it seems the least we can do is wish her a happy birthday and hope that she is as generous with her birthday cake as she has been with her knowledge.
Happy Birthday, Terry!
Welcome to a new beginning, the debut of Kovels Antique Trader.
We’re delighted to have you with us on this exciting adventure that brings together two proud, pioneering brands to create a new collector experience, a new brand and a new monthly magazine that colorfully covers the antiques and collectibles community with vigor, insight and curiosity.
As many of you know, earlier this year, Kovels sold their assets to Active Interest Media, the parent company of Antique Trader. “It was time to entrust the Kovels brand to a new home,” founder Terry Kovel, 94, said at the time of the sale. “We couldn’t think of a better place than with Antique Trader, a publication like ours that collectors trust and enjoy learning from.”
Getting to this point has taken months and months of planning and work. We’re confident you’ll enjoy the results of that effort. Kovels Antique Trader is a full-color and stylish magazine brimming with the best of both brands. Our goal? To create a lively, informative and dazzling collector experience just for you.
We live in a visual world, which is why a key feature of Kovels Antique Trader is its visual approach to storytelling through photography and design. The antiques and collectibles world is big, bold and beautiful. Your experience with it should be as well.
If you were a subscriber to Kovels On Antiques & Collectibles newsletter, you’ll continue to enjoy the authoritative coverage you’ve long depended on, only in a 52-page magazine instead of a monthly 12-page newsletter.
Kovels Antique Trader continues a Kovels’ tradition: the Sales Report. This longstanding coverage of important auctions from around the country on an array of fascinating topics anchors these pages. You’ll also find the popular Collector’s Gallery, a reader-generated question-and-answer feature, as well as the invaluable Dictionary of Marks designed to help you better understand your new discoveries, and possibly your old ones as well.
Those features will be new for longtime Antique Trader readers, but we’re confident you’ll become fast friends. Sprinkled in among these standards are scintillating stories from a host of gifted writers – such as Pamela Wiggins Siegel, Wayne Jordan and Kris Manty, to name a few – who expertly cover everything from costume jewelry to the business of antiques, and vintage clothing to the latest collecting trends.
I’ve been editorial director of Antique Trader for more than four years. Before that, I spent more than 20 years publishing books on antiques and collectibles. By nature, I am curious, and I like to have fun. My promise to you is that Kovels Antique Trader will provide captivating work with style and substance. The magazine will showcase the traditional and the eclectic, the emerging and the conventional, the coveted and the playful.
We will celebrate the antiques and collectibles field. As with any good celebration, we will offer something tasty with every issue. You’ll savor expert insight, transcendent content, professional perspective, dynamic design and unbridled enthusiasm for where we’ve been and where we’re heading.
In all the revelry of the new, if I’m honest, there is some sadness. Terry Kovel and her late husband, Ralph, were newlyweds in the dizzying days of postwar America when they launched into the great unknown of an antiques and collectibles world shrouded in mystery. Together they informed millions, building a legacy built on curiosity and commitment.
I met the Kovels more than 25 years ago when I started in this business. I feel fortunate that we can still turn to Terry and her daughter, Kim, as we move forward on the shoulders of these giants.
More than 65 years ago, Ed Babka published the first edition of Antique Trader in the basement of his Decatur, Ill., home. That humble four-page tabloid would evolve into a force in a burgeoning hobby. Ed died June 20, 2016, at the age of 88. In some fashion or another, I’ve been a part of what he started in 1957 for more than a quarter of a century. That’s a lot of history to unpack.
And yet, these trailblazers remain with us, wed to a new vision and a new magazine. There are sure to be bumps in the road as we explore the new, but there is sure to be much to discover and much to revel in.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please, drop me a line. My email address is PKennedy@aimmedia.com.
It’s going to be a grand adventure! We’re happy to have you along for the ride.
Paul Kennedy
Editorial Director
Kovels Antique Trader
Dear Lee,
Well, this is different. After a lifetime of receiving letters from your mother, you’re getting one from me. Fortunately, I’m not a complete stranger. Even so, it must be a little weird.
I remember the first time we talked a few years back. I had just written a cover story about Terry for Antique Trader, and you told me how much you enjoyed it. That was nice to hear because I so enjoy your mother and wanted to do right by her.
You probably recognize the picture of the mustache cup here. When we chatted, Terry told me about its history, how when she was a kid vacationing in Niagara Falls with her family she bought it as a souvenir, not knowing what she had but happy to have it.
She paid a quarter for that ceramic cup decorated with purple and gold flowers. It has a strip across the rim on one side, designed to protect a gentleman’s mustache from getting soaked when sipping a cup of coffee.
No child could possibly know that, but kids know what they like. So, the cup went home with your mom. The great thing is, she still has it. That little girl remains in your 94-year-old mother.
It’s funny what we hold on to in life, and what we let go. Often, it’s not an easy choice. And so it was when the decision was made to sell Kovels to Active Interest Media, the parent company of Antique Trader, at the end of March.
“After 70 years it was time to entrust the Kovels brand to a new home,” Terry said of the sale. “We couldn’t think of a better place than with Antique Trader, a publication like ours that collectors trust and enjoy learning from.”
Active Interest Media publishes various collectibles titles in addition to Antique Trader, which celebrated its 65th anniversary last summer. I’ve been involved in the hobby for more than 25 years, first in book publishing and then as editorial director of Antique Trader. I’ve been a fan of Kovels for just as long, having met your mother and father when I first started in the field in 1997.
There’s more, of course, but I must run. There’s a lot of running these days. That’s what happens when you follow in the footsteps of giants. But before I can say goodbye, I have to say Happy Father’s Day!
Someone once told me that being a great father is a lot like shaving. No matter how good you shaved today, you have to do it all over again tomorrow. Unless, of course, you plan on growing a mustache, in which case your mother has a cup that just might come in handy.
Cheers!
Paul
Editorial Director
Kovels + Antique Trader
The souvenir mustache cup purchased by Terry Kovel as a child at Niagara Falls.
Terry Kovel
Terry was thrilled and honored to be featured on the cover of a recent issue of Antique Trader magazine. The magazine’s feature “Kovels’ Price Guide Remains a Collector’s Best Friend,” celebrates Terry and the 55th edition of Kovels Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide. As a young married couple Terry and Ralph Kovel were captivated by things they found in antique shops and became passionate about learning more about them. The Kovels turned their curiosity and research into their life’s work—and a great business was born. Part narrative and part question-and-answer, the article reveals how Kovels’ annual price guide is put together. And you’ll see how collecting impacted Terry’s life—and eventually changed the antiques and collectibles world. Plus, there are some fantastic pictures!
Find the article about Terry Kovel on their website, AntiqueTrader.com.
Photo: Antique Trader
Terry Kovel, our own “Grand Dame of Antiques,” is turning 94. Happy Birthday from all your faithful fans and staff!
Here is Terry with the mustache cup that started it all, purchased when she was only 9 years old!
What did Terry like each decade? See her picks below.
Toy Pedal Car, Mogul, Pressed Steel, Spoke Wheels, American National, 1920s. Sold for $1,650 (2016). Photo: Bertoia Auctions
1920s
Terry was only 2 so she didn’t buy anything in this decade but she would have loved riding in this pedal car.
Highlights of the 1920s
After World War I came a period of great economic growth. This was the dawn of the Roaring Twenties and the Jazz Age—both eras of great social change. Prohibition begins as the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution went into effect. The 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote is ratified. Charles Lindbergh flies solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Pittsburgh’s KDKA becomes the first radio station to broadcast regularly. Classic collectible toys from the 1920s include Tom Tinker Toys, all steel pedal cars, clockwork train sets, 3-wheel velocipedes (early bicycles), Erector Sets, Flossy Flirt dolls, cast iron toy cars, gyroscope spinning tops, and Magic Lanterns.
1930s
Bakelite was popular in the 1930s and Terry had a favorite necklace that was a chain of many colors, just like this bracelet!
Bakelite bangle bracelet, multicolored bowtie pattern, inner diameter 2 1/2 in. by 3/4 in. w., sold for $1,750 (2022). Photo: Ripley Auctions
Highlights of the 1930s
The Empire State Building is completed. Amelia Earhart disappears over the Pacific Ocean during a circumnavigation flight attempt. Orson Welles’ radio adaptation of The War of the Worlds is broadcast. Babe Ruth retires. The very first Superman story appears in Action Comics. The beloved film The Wizard of Oz premieres. Depression Era toys: balsa wood kits, vintage steel toy trucks, planes and airships, Lionel electric train sets, Studebaker farm wagons, Teddy Bears, windup train sets, stereoscopes, stick horses, BB rifles.
1940s
Terry loved her Polaroid instant camera. She took it everywhere.
Polaroid Land Camera, Speedliner, with leather case & more, Model 95A, 1940s, untested, sold for $70 (2022). Photo: eBay, rsxtim20
Highlights of the 1940s
The War. The ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), the first programmable electronic computer, is unveiled at the University of Pennsylvania. Department stores begin to sell Tupperware food containers. The Polaroid instant camera is demonstrated. 45 RPM records are introduced. Toys of the 1940s include model airplane kits, Rose O’Neill Kewpie dolls, crystal radio sets, steel Radio Flyer wagons, Tiddlywinks, farmyard sets.
1950s
Terry didn’t buy Holt Howard Pixieware when they were new. But in later decades, it became a favorite. She even built a ledge in the kitchen to hold them all!
Holt Howard Pixie, Cocktail Cherries, estimated value; $90-$100. Photo: A Kovels Reader
Highlights of the 1950s
After the end of World War II and the beginning of the Baby Boom, the 1950s saw a dramatic increase in the amount and variety of now collectible toys. Girls’ options were limited to kitchen sets, baby dolls or fashion dolls. Boys’ items ranged from building sets to cowboys to space travel. Other Baby Boomer-era toys include Alice in Wonderland wristwatches, 1950s Pepsi Cola toy trucks, Howdy Doody’s TV games, Mr. Potato Head, giant Pan-Am Clipper planes, Smokey Bear, Betsy McCall dolls, Dick Tracy Siren Squad Cars, Mickey Mouse phonographs, board games, Revlon fashion dolls, plastic molding machines with Play-Doh.
1960s
Terry couldn’t resist the trolls. She bought them large and small and frequently gave them out as gifts.
Troll, 1960s, sold for $30 (2017). Photo: Kovels.com
Highlights of the 1960s
In the 1960’s, as popular culture became ever more important, toys start to reflect the television, movies and musical influences that children experienced during the decade. While the focus remained on the types available for children in the 1950s, more featured labels associated with popular characters or celebrities like the Flintstones or the Beatles. Other toys include Swinging Popcorn Maker, Flintstones pedal cars, G.I. Joe figures, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, board games, Barbie and Friends, transistorized phonographs, Matchbox Carry Case Car City, Lionel train sets, Hot Wheels car racing sets.
1970s
Terry is still using her transistor radio. In fact you can find it on her desk!
Vintage portable 1970s GE AM/FM Solid State Radio, Model P977E, sold for $40 (2022). Photo: eBay, cfltradingstation
Highlights of the 1970s
In the 1970s, major advances in computer technology started to influence children’s toys during the decade as evident in the simply computerized game of Simon and the development of the Atari computer and gaming system. Popular culture also continued to influence the types that were available, with many youngsters being able to recreate their favorite movies or television shows with matching actions figures and dolls. Barbie dolls & accessories, Atari 400 Home Computer Systems, Easy Bake Ovens, Hot Wheels Track and Cars, Silly Putty, Talky Crissy Dolls, eight-track portable music players, Hoppity Hops, Hungry Hungry Hippos, Simon Says, Charlie’s Angels dolls, Star Ship Enterprise, Pogo Sticks, Foosball.
1980s
Glass dealer friends traveled the world looking for great contemporary glass. Terry acquired a few colorful vases from them. You can find one of Terry’s flower arrangements in her front hall using one of those vases. Of course, the flowers are fresh from her garden!
Contemporary Glass Vase, Pink Flowers, Green Aventurine Ground, Signed, C. Lotton, 1985, 9 in., sold for $950 (2009). Photo: Cincinnati Art Galleries
Highlights of the 1980s
As technology boomed in the 1980s, computerized toys became more advanced and simple robots became highly popular. Video games also became more popular as the decade progressed, and more manufacturers threw their hats into the ring like Nintendo and Sega. Many popular toys were also expensive as the economy thrived during the decade and excess became the name of the game. Collectible items include My Little Pony, Transformers, Star Wars figure sets, Pound Puppies, Legos, Barbies, Weebles, Dukes of Hazzard, Talking Alf, Huggable Glo-Worm, Matchbox cars, Ghostbusters Table-top Pinball, Omnibot 2000, the first Sony CD player, Pac-Man and Frogger tabletop arcade games, Atari 5200, Sega Genesis.
1990s
I don’t know how it started but Terry began a Happy Meal Toy collection. Check out her basement and you can see we ate way too many happy meals!
Inspector Gadget, 1999 Disney McDonald’s Happy Meal Toy, Matthew Broderick, complete, sold for $15 (2022). Photo: eBay, jjsmm70
Highlights of the 1990s
As the economy grew, toys in the 1990s became bigger, more expensive and interactive. Video games and gaming systems continued to advance and handheld devices gained in popularity with the Nintendo Game Boy. The decade saw toy fads in which parents rushed to the stores to pick up the latest item, often getting news coverage for scuffles breaking out in stores and midnight rushers competing for the last toy (Tickle-Me Elmo, Furby, Beanie Babies and others). As parents became more aware of changing gender roles and women’s rights further advanced, gender-neutral toys started to appear in the market. Manufacturers began creating more ethnically diverse toys, especially dolls that featured a variety of skin tones, during the decade. Collectible 1990s toys include Nintendo Game Boys, Tamagotchi virtual reality pets, Tickle Me Elmo, Super Nintendo, Barbie’s Dream House, Polly Pocket Clock, Talking Barney, Teletubbies, Talk ‘N Play Zoe, Sony PlayStations, Furby, Jurassic Park Command Compounds, Teacher Barbie, Sega Saturn CD Game Systems, Nintendo 64 Game Systems, Pokemon Game Boy game.
2020s
Terry’s predictions on what may become top collectibles:
Best wishes and Happy Birthday, Terry!
Guess what is on the cover of the December issue of Antique Trader magazine? Here’s a hint: It’s in its 54th year! The author is a smiling woman perched in a chair and surrounded by 20,000 books on porcelain, pottery, glass, Arts & Crafts furniture, Mid-Century Modern art and furniture and, well, everything from A-Z in the world of antiques and collectibles. It’s none other than our own Kovels Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide authored by Terry Kovel, “an indomitable 93-year-old,” and her daughter, Kim Kovel. The article details the history, endurance and importance of the Kovels’ annual price guides, published since 1953 and the remaining up-to-date source of current prices printed annually. The 632-page, 2022 Kovels’ Antiques and Collectibles Price Guide (a great present for the collector or antiques lover in your family!) is now on sale. It includes 12,500 listings and more than 3,000 full-color photographs. It also includes a special section “Collecting Trends: Twentieth Century American Studio Jewelry.”
What better way to prepare a 2022 filled with visits to flea markets, antique shows and events than to be armed with a resource on antiques and collectibles to help you find out what it is and what it is worth?
The June/July edition of AARP Magazine has a special treat for collectors: Terry Kovel is featured in a “Real People” story as a “walking encyclopedia.” Readers of the hundreds of books written by Terry and her late husband Ralph Kovel, as well as their TV shows and appearances, already knew this! In the article, Terry talks about how she and Ralph furnished their first apartment with flea market finds and how their first book, on marks, was written when they realized there was no good resource out there on marks! Terry also shares tips on collecting, selling and even how to find a trustworthy antiques dealer.
It started with a “mustache cup,” which protected men’s mustaches from getting drenched while sipping coffee or tea, and has evolved into a lifetime of sharing a love and knowledge of antiques. Now, Terry Kovel, 92, has been named the “Grand Dame of Antiques” by Antique Trader magazine. Terry and her late husband Ralph Kovel published their first book, Kovels’ Dictionary of Marks – Pottery and Porcelain, in 1953. Before that, antiques collecting was an obscure field left to dry experts speaking, well, dryly about the history and identification through marks of porcelain, furniture and other collectibles. Today, “the Kovel name … is synonymous with the antiques and collectibles field. The couple … were pioneers in the truest sense,” noted the article.
The article details how that first 25-cent purchase of a mustache cup at Niagara Falls by Terry as a child, and husband Ralph’s intuitive observation in the 1950s that there were no resources for average collectors, were the sparks that have made the Kovel name synonymous with antiques. In addition to millions of copies of the annual Kovels’ Antiques and Collectibles Price Guide, there are dozens of other books, the longest-running national newspaper column by the original author, a website, a monthly newsletter, Kovels On Antiques & Collectibles, articles in Forbes and House Beautiful, and last-but-not-least, former television series for PBS and HGTV.
The article also shows pictures of Ralph and Terry through the decades, including the couple gleefully waving pedestals found at a flea market that are still in Terry’s home today, and on home guru Martha Stewart’s TV show, with Martha intently reading a page in one of the Kovels’ books.
Terry Kovel on the cover of Antique Trader magazine, May 15, 2021, edition.
Have you seen many of the gorgeous enamels that are getting harder and harder to find? Enameling was a minor art form that included ashtrays, boxes, desk sets, bowls, plaques, architectural tiles and even jewelry.
Ralph and I received our first enamels as wedding gifts in the 1950s. As a result, we became curious about the artists and the simply beautiful, handmade techniques that were almost forgotten. Ironically, Cleveland (our hometown) was the epicenter of the enameling art world, so we were so fortunate to find incredible pieces right here. What’s more, we bought many of our pieces directly from the artists themselves, even at their studios. We got to know some of the artists personally and watched them work on their creations. My own collection was displayed on a wall. And the fact these things don’t break, don’t fade and are safe to hold makes for a collection that a busy home can handle.
As I reach the point in life where I am downsizing, I know I can’t keep any collection forever. So I’ve decided it’s time to let others enjoy our collection and build their own. You’re invited to go online and take a look at our special collection of enamels. Just go to the Treadway Gallery (treadwaygallery.com) to see this beautiful work. Or you can own a piece of art and history yourself by bidding at the auction of the Ralph and Terry Enamels on February 7, 2021, starting at 11:00 am EST.
Two plates from the Ralph and Terry Kovel Enamels