Antique ?s

I have come across an old ice box on the top it says the name Challenger and it says Iceberg on it. Can you tell me anything about this model? I'm wondering if it could it be worth anything? It's in very good shape!

If this is an oak model by the Challenge Refrigerator Company, which was located in Grand Rapids, Michican, the value would run from $350-500 in very good original condition, according to my references.

My dad has a copper ice box that his family used when he was a boy. It is about 3 feet by 4 feet with two doors on the front and a lift top. Do you have any information on cooper ice boxes?

I thought this would be easy to research but most of my sources didn't even have ice boxes listed under Furniture and there were no listings in the copper category for an ice box either.

Copper was very popular during the Arts & Crafts movement in the early 1900s. Yours sounds like a utilitarian piece that could be from that era (you didn't say how old your dad is). If your box had the mark of a major designer from that period (Stickley, Rohlfs, Wright or Roycroft) it would be very desirable.

The value could range from $450 (for a local unknown maker) to as much as $1,800 for one of the major designers. But this is just a sight unseen guesstimate. You will have to do some more research.

I have a polar air galvanized ice box. I have looked on line and I can't find out when these were made. I can find info on the oak ice boxes but not the one I have. This came down through my family.

Galvanized ice boxes were popular from 1910 through the 1920s for folks who wanted to an alternative from the wood models. Ice boxes were in use through the early 1960s.

"Ice was still being delivered when I attended college in 1962 in Kansas City. The home I rented a room in had a house across the street and I was very surprised to see the ice sign in the window showing how much ice the woman wanted. My landlady said the woman purchased one of the very late ice refrigerators which coolerator make until at least the early 50s and she just liked it. I don't know when they quit after that, but 1950 hardware Belknap catalogs still show ice boxes as available.

Here is a photo of my late model Vitalaire (at left) which was a designlike Coolerator and a few others that were made to look like and compete with electric boxes. This one is from about 1940.

I have some Ice Industry Modern Woman Magazines I just got a few days ago and they have some 1948 models that look just like a large old GE or something from the late 40s early 50s.. I know Vitalaire also made them that late because an Amish fellow near here at one time showed me his Ice Refrigerator he had in the barn, wasn't using at the time, to hot here in winter to freeze ice on ponds he said. It was huge and I would have sworn it was a freezer on top 50s electric, except it was a Ice refrigerator."

I have service for 8 of 150 year old Irish coin silver. I am attempting to find out what the approximate value might be.

"Made in Dublin Ireland by J R Neil between 1835 and 1836. This pair of Irish coin silver spoons are in excellent original condition measuring 9 and one quarter inches long. Each spoon weights 80 grams of coin silver. They are monogrammed with a W M B in a beautiful script. You can see very clear hallmarks on each spoons back and the hand made rat tail under each of the spoons bowls. True pairs of period antique Irish silver spoons are hard to come by. $ 375.00 pair"

The term "Coin Silver" did not come into use until 1830. Silver coins were melted down to 900 parts silver, 100 parts alloy and used to make household items. In 1860 the standard was raised to 925 parts silver and 75 parts alloy. This new standard was given the name of Sterling and the use of Coin Silver was over by 1900.

Makers of Irish Silver include: S. Walker, Graham, Dublin. Breading, Andrew Goodwin, Robert Calderwood, JS, and Laughlin. Check to see if one of these names is stamped on your set.

From the info above, it sounds like you have a valuable set (at the price listed above, your set might run from $5-$7,000) and it would be worth having it professionally appraised by someone knowledgeable in European silver.

I have a set of six ivory elephants mounted on a mahogony base. The elephants go from small to large. Can you tell me what their value would be?

The ivory ban was imposed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) after the number of African elephants declined by almost 50 percent in the 1980s. Some poaching has continued -- CITES recently estimated 4,000 elephants are killed for their ivory every year -- but elephant populations have stabilized in some parts of Africa.

Under the treaty and American law, trade in ivory collected before 1989 remains legal in most states, and that allows recently collected ivory to come onto the market undetected, Traffic's report concluded. It also said that the ivory sales were occurring over the Internet with little or no oversight.

If you have a receipt for the item dated 1989 or before, and it is ivory, you will have no problem selling it. A local antique dealer would need to take a look at the elephants.