Author Topic: Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"  (Read 1507 times)

wac137

  • New Member
  • *
  • Posts: 5
  • Karma: +0/-0
    • View Profile
Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"
« on: November 10, 2011, 09:58:20 pm »
I work in the business of estate sales so i see alot of antiques but i dont know alot about them. my boss told me that this lamp is from the 1880's or 1890's and is a gone with the wind style lamp. it is hand painted and is marked "The Meteor Lamp made in USA" on one side. it is an oil lamp and is supposedly worth a decent amount. if anyone can tell me more about this piece or maybe a guess at the value it would be appreciated.




snowflake

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 959
  • Karma: +4/-0
    • View Profile
    • The Flutter Bee
Re: Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"
« Reply #1 on: November 10, 2011, 11:31:40 pm »
You can find out about the company here:
http://www.edwardmillerkeroseneoillamps.com/brandsofthemillercompanyexplained2

About 2/3 of the way down the page. Can't help with value. Maybe someone else will be able to help you out.

They also say it is much sought after:
http://www.edwardmillerkeroseneoillamps.com/millervaselamps
« Last Edit: November 11, 2011, 12:03:12 am by snowflake »

talesofthesevenseas

  • Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 6124
  • Karma: +35/-0
    • View Profile
Re: Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"
« Reply #2 on: November 11, 2011, 12:59:25 am »
Well, there are different types of value.

Insurance value is the highest dollar figure. This is how much you tell your insurance guy it is worth and that is the amount it should be insured for.

Next highest would be retail value, this would be how much it would sell for in a retail store. This can vary greatly in different geographic regions. For example an upscale gallery in San Francisco would have a much higher price than a little antique store in Fresno.

Auction value is the amount it would typically be expected to sell for in an auction.

Then there is what I like to call "Craigslist value" or "Ebay value" which is the amount one person can realistically hope to get when they sell it to another person.

The value can be even less if it is sold to a person who is reselling it, because they have to be able to turn a profit. Watch some of the pawn shop reality TV shows to see how that works. Estate buyers do the same thing, usually buying several or many items for a lump sum.

So to research what the value might be, you look for similar items, in each of the above situations.

Here's one similar to yours but not exactly like it selling for $695 (retail) http://www.materialsunlimited.com/index.php?option=com_content&style=0&search_terms=&task=view&id=17&sview=store&category=0&page=59

and there are a bunch on Ebay, but the prices are all over the place, so further research would need to be done to deterine what the differences are and where yours fits into the scheme of things.
Antiqueaholic in recovery

Rauville

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1812
  • Karma: +109/-0
    • View Profile
Re: Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"
« Reply #3 on: November 11, 2011, 07:12:15 am »
One thing that affects value greatly with this style of lamp is whether or not the shade is original. There has been a cottage industry for the last 50 years or so of painting ball shades to match odd bases. It's hard to tell from a photograph, so look closely at the colors and brush stroke technique that was used for the shade.

mart

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 19849
  • Karma: +122/-1
    • View Profile
Re: Help with information on oil lamp "gone with the wind"
« Reply #4 on: November 11, 2011, 01:24:36 pm »
You will probably find many if you look on ebay for Gone with the Wind lamps !! You cannot go bu the asking or list price but look at actual selling prices by clicking on "ending soonest" !! Then if the actually sell you can check the bid amount !!