Sentimental Value

From the August/September 2008 issue of Reminisce

Cast-iron Trivet

I found this item in a dump, in the 1960s. I call it a trivet, but with its circular depression, I’m not sure what it is. —Eleanor Dunlap, Anderson, California

This utilitarian, cast-iron trivet does not have large value, but its beauty of purpose cannot be questioned. Factory-made trivets replaced hand-forged items during the 1800s and were placed on tables to hold hot pots and pans or flat-irons. As cookstoves replaced most hearth cooking, trivets were no longer needed to keep food hot near the fire.

What sets this trivet apart is the recessed rest for drinking vessels, specific smaller teapots or saucepans. This is a multipurpose hot plate.

The rectangular shape has a four-leaf pierced motif; flat-button, attached tri-legs; and openwork throughout. The decorative porringer-shape handle makes it easy to carry to the table while hot, and it could hang when not in use.

By 1900, foundries sometimes turned to trivets with stamped advertising for themselves and others. The first American cast-iron toys, in 1825, were small irons with trivets, miniature garden tools and a few wheel toys. Most likely, your trivet is English. Value: $95.

 

Darwin Tulip Lamp

This lamp was given to me by a lady who would have been 105 this year. The lamp had belonged to her parents. —Ruth Grohler, Fort Collins, Colorado

“Splendid illumination” describes many lamps from the 1890s to the 1930s. Your shade, with the flattened shape and pierced-metal framework, is integral to the lamp’s lovely overall design.

The silhouette-border overlay is a surrounding field of long-stemmed Darwin tulips. The bent slag glass is labor-intensive and adds one more technique to the four caramel-color panels.

The base, a stylized flower urn, appears to be hammered bronzed metal with a weighted bottom. While you found no markings, it’s worth the effort to scrutinize the entire lamp for any markings. Place a blanket on a table and dismantle your lamp carefully with lots of direct lighting and a magnifying glass. Higher values are placed on lamps that are signed, labeled or embossed by the foundry, artist, manufacturer or retailer. Value: $1,400.