Q Is my four-piece Pyrex bowl set from 1959 worth a lot of money? I read an article about Pyrex bowls that quoted $125 for 1967 bowls. I use mine often, and they are in good condition. I have two yellow and two white bowls.
— Carole, Washington, Maine
A If you find someone willing to pay $125 for those bowls, sell! I suspect the gist of the article was that vintage Pyrex is an emerging collectible. But that amount seems high.
In "Pyrex: The Unauthorized Collector's Guide," by Barbara Mauzy (Schiffer, $29.95), a four-bowl Pyrex set from the late 1950s with original label quotes at $55 to $80.
Introduced in the late 1950s as the 400 Multicolored Mixing Bowl set, which included yellow, red, blue and green bowls ranging from 10 inches to 5.5 inches, the set remains the classic configuration for collectors. Produced in a variety of color combinations, the hardest to find and most pricey are sets in opal white and one with a pink 4-quart bowl.
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Smart collectors know that when items are still plentiful and easy to find, buyers are mighty picky. Top dollar goes to new merchandise in its original box, or to what collectors call old store stock (for example, when a jobber buys stock from a store that closed or is out of business). Pyrex used and washed for more than 40 years has surface wear and loss of color.
Q Can you identify this piece for me? It is marked Bugetti and made in Italy. There is a lion with wings, too.
— Mary, Racine, Wis.
A The image sent shows small tongs with one traditional cupped serrated side. The other arm is longer and has a flat, elongated end with a convex surface.
With the elongated end and scoop surface, the reader's tongs appear to be a dessert lifter. Think of using them to daintily serve petits fours or a special chocolate.
Italians were not celebrated for their silver work, and the Bugetti stamp seems a play on Bugatti, the celebrated family of artists and designers. Add the generic cipher, and the piece is identifiable simply as a decorative 20th-century serving utensil.
FYI: "Yesterday's Silver for Today's Table: A Guide to Elegant Dining," by Richard Osterberg (Schiffer, $49.95), shows a huge variety of period dining implements.
Q I can't find any info on Stangl pottery birds. At one time they were popular collectibles. I want to sell mine, or make sure my family is aware of their value. I also need info on Carnival glass.
— Marilyn, Tucson
A The New Jersey-based Stangl Pottery made dinnerware and giftware, novelties and artware.
Introduced in 1940, the firm's "Birds of America" was based on the series by John James Audubon. The series resulted in 58 different pottery birds before it was discontinued in 1955. Copies of existing birds were made until the pottery closed in 1978.
Hand-decorated in natural colors, Stangl birds were known for quality. Artist-signed, each figurine depicted the bird perched on a nature base."Collector's Encyclopedia of Stangl Artware, Lamps and Birds, 2nd Ed.," by Robert C. Runge Jr. (Collector Books, $29.95), shows many birds, quoting values from $60 to more than $1,000. For a more realistic range, check completed sales on eBay.
"Standard Encyclopedia of Carnival Glass: 10th Ed.," by Bill Edwards and Mike Carwile (Collector Books, $29.95), is an excellent guide to identification.
The Smart Collector
By Danielle Arnet
» AUCTION ACTION
Faberge, the Russian jeweler that produced jeweled Easter eggs for the Russian Imperial family, also made a variety of household and personal accessories. A very unusual 3-inch-high scent bottle in the form of a gnome with a peaked cap recently brought $1.3 million at Christie's. Using a single block of carnelian, the carver created a face, beard and suit, all in differing colors. Tsarina Alexandra's cipher is carved on the bottom.