Cast iron ashtray in rectangular form, sloping sides, sunken top with raised sides having a textured surface with two corner indentations for cigarettes. Opposite end of indentation is a grouping of four geese, fully formed, attached to top surface with screws. Entire surface is bronzed with a pattern of oblique stripes on sides.
Marked "144" on bottom. The Hubley catalog "Metal Art Goods" lists this ashtray as #144 and named "Goosie Goosie Gander." The description notes it has "an unusual bronze finish".
Provenance
Owned by J. Roland Gilbert (1888-1940) and inherited by his daughter the donor (1916-1992). Donor writes: "acquired in the late '20s or early '30s and 'possibly' a gift from Mr. Joseph Breneman, a Hubley Exec." J. Roland Gilbert was president of Lancaster Press Inc. and general manager of the New Era Publishing Co.
Pewter dram bottle, canteen or flask. Flattened round body with flat bottom having a thin oval foot. Seam at center of rounded sides. Very short, tapered, threaded neck has a fitted and threaded 3/4" high thimble-shaped cap. Decorative concentric circles incised on flattened sides.
Touchmark stamped on bottom is "I.C H/ LANCASTER" in lettering with serifs. Mark is a Laughlin touch #532, 533.
W. King Street, Lancaster
Provenance
Bottle was in the attic of Samuel R. Haldeman's home until he died and Harry, the youngest son, surreptitiously took it along with other belongings to Buffy's Auction in Lebanon where the bottle was sold in a box lot to Mahlon Keith for 30 cents. Keith later sold it to friend William Snyder of Bleak House in Paradise for about $400. Snyder then sold it at the Bleak House sale through A.R. Cox Antiques of Kinzer on May 4, 1965 to donor Dr. Scott, who purchased it for $5,000. Heritage Center purchased at Scott sale (Christie's) for $18,400 on June 10, 1994.
Miniature toleware tin box with hinged, domed lid fitted with a hasp at front and a pull ring at top. Red painted ground. Red striping separates upper and lower panels on front: above is a yellow ground with a stylized foliate design of red and green; below are yellow banana-like crescents which continue on box ends.
Strong paint losses overall, cracking and flaking. The left rear hinge is detached, despite the attempt to resolder it. Solder joint at right rear corner of lid is broken and joint separated.
Object ID
G.98.14.3
Place of Origin
Probably Southeastern PA
Credit
Gift of Drs. Irwina and M. Susan Richman, Heritage Center Collection
Tole painted tin box with hinged, domed lid fitted with a hasp at front and a large ring pull at top. Red painted ground overall except underside. Front painted with a stylized design of yellow and black leaves with a pink and white flower at each end. Ends have a "twisted rope" decoration in an X configuration. Lid top has similar twisted design of black and yellow bordering a central foliate design of yellow and black.
Interior solder repairs on hinges and pull ring. Extensive points of paint loss due to chips, scratches and other abrasions. Lid is especially weathered with oxidized paint. Inside strongly oxidized at bottom and sides.
Object ID
G.98.12.5
Place of Origin
Southeastern Pennsylvania
Credit
Gift of Mrs. S.R. Slaymaker II, Heritage Center Collection
Low rectangular softwood box with top and bottom boards extending beyond sides. Constructed with glued butt joints and square head nails. Painted black with large tulips of yellow, red, white and green decorated top and sides. Hinged lid attached with wire hinges and secured at front with handmade tin hasp. The initials "I R" are painted at upper center of lid. The unpainted bottom is inscribed in pencil, "Jacob H. Reist 1800." Interior unfinished.
Border of Lancaster and Berks counties.
Paper inside: "This box attributed to Heinrich Bucher 1770-1800/Reading, Berks Co."
Provenance
Unknown. Presumed to have been collected by donor at a sale in this region. Heinrich Bucher is now believed to have only been an early owner of this box type, not the maker.
Nov. 15, 2002 - Peter Seibert and Susan Kleckner compared about ten Bucher-type boxes & observed that this box is painted with larger flowers and also there is repetition in the use of flowers, unlike the other nine boxes. Perhaps this box was done later in the maker's career.
Roughly fashioned polychromed softwood miniature trinket box of rectangular form. Domed lid hollowed out underneath and ends fitted with conforming caps. Wire hinges and wire loop at front with missing tin hasp. Corresponding wire loop for hasp on box front. Box sides constructed of rabbet joints secured by two wood pegs at front and two at back. Beveled bottom board attached with two pegs and extends beyond box sides. Top and four sides each have a floral motif of dark green, cream, ochre and red all on a tan ground. Glossy varnish overall except for bottom and interior. Indecipherable initials painted on bottom.
Probably Lancaster County
Provenance
Purchased by donor at Lancaster County sale. At least four other examples known. See example in collection #1973.003.2
Possible maker is Peter Brubacher (1816-1898), shoemaker and woodworker in Clay Township.
Trinket box of softwood constuction covered by German newsprint outside and a coarse blue-green paper inside. Glued over the newsprint are strips of straw of various tones arranged in geometrical designs on domed lid and sides in a technique very similar to marquetry. Newsprint visible on underside as well as where straw pieces are missing. Lid has hinge of coarse linen under laminate. Bent wire hook on lid fits into wire loop on box front.
Provenance
Collected by donor in Lancaster Co. According authority Clarke Hess, these boxes are plentiful, but not usually with newspaper lining. Clarke owns two of these boxes, both with Lancaster German language newsprint, and believes these boxes were made 1820-1840 in PA.
John Tannehill, expert in iron, reports someone told him these boxes were made in prisons.
Trinket chest of dovetail construction, hinged lid, turned feet and polychrome decoration. Bottom secured with square nails. Keyhole at front; key missing. On a burnt orange ground are 5 large decals (4 of fruit and 1 of flowers) and one small decal at front center of spread eagle, shield and banner. Chest sides and top have centered line decoration of 3 concentric rectangles with hollow corners (black, ochre, white). Feet are black. Edge moldings of lid and base painted black with yellow-green double line decoration enclosing leafy scrolling vines. Interior and underside unfinished.
Inked # 00.43.1 on bottom. Two old stickers: "65603" on back and "65625" on bottom.
Attributed to Joseph Lehn (1798-1892). South of Clay, Elizabeth Township.
Provenance
Transferred from the James Buchanan Foundation where chest was "found in collection" with history/provenance.
Paint soiled and darkened. Large scar on left end of lid molding. Arc scored into top at right front of lid. Wear/abrasions overall, especially lid and base molding. Loose left front foot and paint loss of right back foot. Pristine interior. One hing screw missing.
Object ID
G.03.35.1
Place of Origin
Elizabeth Twp.
Credit
Gif ot James Buchanan Foundation, Heritage Center Collec
Broadside commercially printed on wove paper in Pa. German script. Geometric border surrounds text block of 4 long paragraphs. Modern frame.
Title is "Kraftiges Gebet, / Wodurch man sich vor Kugel und Degen, vor sichtbarlichen und un- / sichtbarlichen Feinden, so wie vor allem moglichen / Uebel beschutzen und bewahren konne."
Place of origin is unknown.
Seller's translation: "A Powerful Prayer whereby one can protect himself from shot and sword, of a visible or invisible enemy, just as from all other possible wounds that one need protect against."
Rows of letters at bottom with more text with a title "Vor die fallende Sucht, oder Gicht," which seems to mean "For those who've come down with an ailment (addiction?), or gout."
Within a twisted foliate border is a central block depicting Adam & Eve flanking a tree with a serpent wound around the trunk offering Eve an apple. This is an engraving executed by Gabriel Miesse of Reading; his name appears at lower right followed by "sc" for "sculpsit", indicating the engraver. Two columns of verse flank the central block, telling the story of "the Fall" in conversational form. At top of broadside is the title in German: "Adam und Eva im Paradies." A subtitle reads: "Mel. Herzlich thut mich Verlangen, etc."
At bottom is: "Gedruckt in der Druckerey des Adlers von H.W. Villee, Lancaster, Pa. allwo alle Sorten Bilder, Bucher,/ Schriebmaterialien und Arzneyen zu haben find." This indicates the broadside was printed in the Lancaster Eagle's printshop (a newspaper started by Villee and Jacob Baab on Oct. 26, 1826). Villee was also selling pictures, books, stationery and even medicines out of his shop on N. Queen St.
See biographical info about Villee from Klaus Stopp's book in this file. He was born in France, served as a captain under Napolean, had to leave France in 1815 and ended up in America in 1820. Villee entered the printing business by working at "the Eagle," a newspaper in Reading. Villee was not successful as a printer in Lancaster, and he left sometime in 1832 or soon after, going to places like Lewisburg, Sunbury and Milton. After moving to Northumberland Co. and becoming a teacher, he finally died in 1842.
The Earnests note that Adam & Eve were popular fraktur subjects, especially among German-language printers of SE PA. They note that there are only about a half dozen Adam & Eve broadsides by Villee known.
Exhibited in Fraktur Exhibit in Masonic Lodge circa 2004 through 2007 (removed spring 2008).
See also P.01.60.1 and P04.48 for examples of a Heaven & Hell broadside by Villee.
North Queen St., Lancaster (printer); Reading, PA (engraver). Villee, Herman W., printer; Gabriel Miesse, engraver; unknown colorist
Paper darkened and soiled overall, wrinkled with fold lines and rough-edged with minor tears and folds. Stains scattered over surface with darkest stains within right text above center. Small hole at center of top foliate border.
Frame is homemade of stained and varnished tiger maple. Acidic cardboard backboard replaced with acid free matboard.
Object ID
P.04.48.1
Credit
Acquired through the generosity of Irene N. Walsh, Heritage Center Collection
Brass buckle of the sword belt used with the Civil War uniform of Jacob Pontz (1838-1929). Rectangular buckle is cast in high relief with a raised spread eagle with E PLURIBUS UNUM banner in his beak and an olive branch in one talons and arrows of war in the other. Foliate branches undergird eagle with a "U" formation. One brass clasp/clip of belt is loose - a part that would have fit end of now-missing belt and attached via clip on back of buckle.
See Pontz Sword #2015.031.1
Provenance
Passed from Jacob through his daughter Nelle who married a Pickering to the donor, the gr gr granddaughter of the Jacob Pontz.
