Wardian cases hard to find but valuable
House plants were popular with our ancestors, but indoor plants took a lot of work. No bug spray, no packaged topsoil or plant food, not even a good selection of pots was available. In 1829 Dr. Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward of London invented the “Wardian case.” His ferns were dying in London’s smoke-filled air. Then he noticed that some of the sealed test tubes he was using to germinate seeds also held other seedlings starting to grow. So he created a large glassed-in enclosure to grow his ferns. The Wardian case, named after the doctor, soon became popular not only with botanists, but also with the general public. They were featured in many homes. At first, ferns were the most popular plant to grow in the cases, but scientists and explorers also used them to bring new plants from other continents.
It is said that tea and rubber plants made the ocean trip to new countries in the cases, were planted and started new agricultural industries. The Wardian cases used in homes were made of glass and iron. Some sat on a matching table or stand, and some were made to look like small houses. It was the first terrarium – a closed space to let plants grow – and the condensed moisture kept them from drying out.
Vintage Wardian cases are not easy to find, but they’re available.
Copies were made, too, and they’re still being made. A case made by the well-known American firm of J.W. Fiske, a Victorian maker of iron furniture and garden fountains, sold last fall for $5,795 at Neal Auction Co. in New Orleans.
Q. We have an old wooden dining room set that includes a table with one leaf, four chairs and a china cabinet. The only mark I can find is “Jefferson Woodworking Co.” on the table’s extension rails.
History and value?
A. Jefferson Woodworking Co. was in business in Louisville, Ky., in the late 1910s into at least the early 1920s. It did not make your table. It made table extension rails for various furniture manufacturers. Still, your set is close to 100 years old and could sell for more than $500 if it’s in excellent condition.
Q. My Mary Gregory pitcher is titled “A Clear Day for Flying.”
But it’s missing some of the painted artwork that should be on the piece. It has the boy flying a kite, but it’s missing the sky and ground art as well as the artist’s signature.
A. Your pitcher isn’t old. It was made in 2008 by the Fenton Art Glass Co. of Williamstown, W.Va. Fenton was one of several U.S.
glassmakers that produced “Mary Gregory” glassware beginning in the late 1950s. Everyone used to think that old Mary Gregory glass was named for an employee at the Sandwich Glass factory in Massachusetts, but researchers have discovered that the style – white paintings of children on clear or colored glass – actually originated in Bohemia in the late 1800s. The style continues to be popular, and Fenton made
1,250 limited-edition pitchers like yours in 2008. We have seen the pitcher for sale at prices ranging from $100 to $125. If the paint on yours has simply worn off, it would sell for less. If it’s an early prototype by Sue Jackson, the Fenton artist who designed the limited editions, it might sell for a little more than a limited edition.
Tip: For every 24 inches of horizontal shelving in your bedroom, den or library, fill the space with about 20 books. Books need air.
• Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
• Cigar box label, Los Inmortales, Washington, Lincoln, Grant, eagle, 5 x 4 1/2 inches, $30.
• Occupational shaving mug, man in touring car, sportsman series, 1953, 3 3/4 inches, $60.
• Zenith radio, wooden, table model 6D-525, surround tube, 1941, 11 1/2 x 7 x 7 3/4 inches, $75.
• Gulf service station panel sign, plastic, orange, white, blue, 48-inch square, $96.
• Abbot & Costello movie poster, “Lost in Alaska,” Belgium, frame, c. 1950, 26 x 21 inches, $120.
• Peking glass cups, green, gilt-leaf frame, 4 x 3 1/2 inches, pair, $130.
• Royal Doulton character jug, Bootmaker, D6572, 1960s, 7 1/2 inches, $175.
• Monark bicycle, tank model, lime green, Firestone balloon tires, girl’s, c. 1957, $374.
• Earrings, Cartier, 14K gold, two colors, round, clip, 3/4 inches, $470.
Write to Kovels, Observer-Reporter, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.