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New Book: Warman’s® Political Collectibles
There’s no debate when it comes to the popularity of political collectibles, especially
in a year when the race to the White House is taking every sleepy little town and bustling metropolis by storm. Even in today’s ultra-electronic
and viably virtual society, the campaign trail is decked out in traditional “stumping” support gear including buttons, banners, pendants,
hats, pins, bumper stickers, and autographed candidate photos, among others – which are instant additions to the collectibles community.
So, as the 2008 Presidential race progresses forward there’s no better time to spend a few minutes looking back at where we’ve been.
Warman’s® Political Collectibles, Identification and Price Guide provides an innovative study of American history, and demonstrates
the presence of political campaign collectibles in every phase of social and economic life – from policy making to pop culture phenomenon.
The other day, I spotted Mikey looking at the photos and thought I’d see what he thought about the pictures. So, I walk up to
Mikey and make a few comments about the team's history. Mikey, responds, “Yes, but isn't it amazing how the teams always won
by just one point?"
Enduring Tchotchkes of Yesteryear: Glass Paperweights
Advertisers are always looking for a way to get that logo in front of you, preferably
on something you’ll use every day or at least see sitting on your desk. Well, it’s not only the 21st century that lies on the
clutter. As far back as you can go, promotional items have been, well, promoted. Thanks to the Rosetta Stone, we can now see that
the hieroglyphics on the wall read “Eat at Joe’s”.
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In the late 1800’s, the latest promotional gimmick was the glass paperweight. William H. Maxwell, of Pittsburgh, Pa., patented a process
in 1882 for making paperweights with the advertisement of a business or product by reproducing it on a milk-glass disk and encasing
it within clear glass. About ten years later, fellow Pittsburgh businessman Albert A. Graeser developed a process for sealing an image
to the underside of a glass ‘blank’ using either milk glass or an enamel-like glaze. (thanks to Wikipedia for the info)
As we move ever closer to another history-making moment with the election of the 44th President the same kind of gear and goods that
spread the word, identified a party, and simply touted the patriotism and persona of campaign cultures of the past, are dotting the
landscape today. Warman’s® Political Collectibles embraces that presidential history with fervor, providing a rarely-seen view of
campaign memorabilia from the 1860s through the 2004 Presidential election. Arranged into 12 basic categories, listings appear with
historical background, identifying details, and a range of collector values – when available. From the memorable races to the forgettable,
there’s a little bit of something for any political junkie, historian, everyday patriot, and average American.
A new portal for toy collectors has just launched and hopes to attract many of the 2.5 million toy collectors
the initiators believe are out there. Toy Collector combines the best of the various toy forums, an individual collector’s blog, Youtube,
EBay and other sites used by all of us today. All its content is created by the people who know best, the collectors themselves.
The author, Dr. Enoch L. Nappen, is a political science professor at New Jersey’s Monmouth University, a life-long collector of political
campaign memorabilia, and a founding member of the American Political Items Collectors. Having amassed an impressive private collection
of political campaign memorabilia and economic-social ephemeral items, he’s written a number of articles on the subject.
Gold God Janus Cup Found and Auctioned
For many years, John Webber had watched his grandpa, William Sparks, hide his small shiny cup
under his bed. Sparks who was a British junk dealer and dealt in metals such as brass and bronze, had gotten the cup at an auction
sometime between 1930 and 1940. Before Sparks passed on to antique dealer’s paradise, he gave the cup and a few other items
to his beloved grandson. This year Webber needed some cash and decided to take the cup to Duke’s Auction House for a quick sale
and as it turned out, he got better news than what he was expecting.
Turns out, the cup was not made from just any metal, but gold and old gold at that. It is gold from the third or fourth century
B.C. to be exact, from the Archaemenid period in ancient Persia. The cup is a relic with the double faced ancient God Janus,
two faces with braided hair and entwined snake ornaments representing the doors to both the future and the past. The cup realized
more than $100,000 a couple of weeks ago at the auction. The other two items were also significant, one was a figure of the
Greek hero Ajax and the other was a gold spoon with an image of a Roman emperor.
Toy Collector is the brain child of a small team, all of whom were or still are avid collectors themselves. Toy Collector plans
to significantly increase its functionality over the next few months, adding Toypedia, the database of every toy ever produced and
Toy Group functionality allowing any toy related group to organize itself better.
Dumb Mikey and the Memorable Photos
The university's gymnasium hallway displayed basketball team pictures from the past forty years. In every photo, one player, sitting front row center, held a basketball identifying the year of the team: 94-95, 95-96, 96-97, 97-98,
etc.
Quickly, this novel way to get your business name on everyone’s desk became popular and today there are many enduring samples of intriguingadvertisements, for everything from boots to ship-rigging equipment. You might ask, why a paperweight? Were papers flying about so
very much? Actually, yes, they were. In the 1880’s, the file cabinet as we know it had not yet been invented. Papers were kept in
long-term storage by folding them in thirds and inserting them in cardboard envelopes which were tied shut and stored in a pigeon-hole
system (hence, the term ‘pigeon-holed’, when you want to refer to something or someone who has been categorized and then forgotten!).
Papers that you wanted at hand were kept on a spindle or stacked on your desk or in a letter tray. A paperweight would be necessary
to keep them from flying out every time anyone walked by. (thanks to the Early Office Museum for this info)
So yes, those paperweights
actually had an important function. In any case, you have to admit, a heavy glass paperweight isn’t going to be tossed into the wastebasket
as quickly as a cheap plastic keychain or drink cozy (or even a rubber brain, no matter how attractive).
For a sample of advertising
and commemorative paperweights, visit Art Glass & Collectibles shop at http://www.tias.com/stores/agcs.
