My son recently purchased a home in a foreclosure and it had several pieces that we have been trying to determine the value of, have sent photos to different dealers for help and only get back how much do you want for all of it with no indication of value. Not looking to get top dollar but also do not want to get taken advantage of. Have tried locating an appraiser to come to the house but have not been able to locate one in my area. The first mantle is in great condition, measures 60"w X 92"h, the second mantle is 61.5'w X 56"h and we believe the carved pieces are possibly ivory. I am located in southern NJ so if anyone know of an appraiser that we could have come out and look at the pieces he has that would be great also. There is also a carved frame beveled mirror, a piece of carved marble that looks like it would be part of a building and weighs about 100lbs, and a couple of old chairs which one looks like it was for a church and some stained glass windows.
Welcome to the Forum, Jim! If you check the first box only, by your photos, they will be easier to see. (Full size for all images) just that one box. Others who can tell you about your pieces will be along.
Can't help with the appraiser, but those pieces are handsome. Maybe try Angie's list to look for someone reputable. Not sure if they'd be part of that network, though. Best of luck.
This plant seems to have been taken over in 1912. You can find more info on google books. https://books.google.com/books?id=n...KEwiSycbv65jdAhUNJnwKHdCIDDc4ChDoATAGegQIARAk
The tiles may be worth far more than the mantles,nice though they are. Im curious,is this an old house,and if so,are you flipping it? Why rip them out if you are? The shepherd tile might be VERY special,do your research
I think they were more interested in the tiles than the mantles. Wonder if Rago auctions would be interested. https://www.ragoarts.com/sell
Thank You very much for your response, the house was built in 1988 and my son is moving into the house and it is believed that the original owners held church services in the house and was heavily involved with a local catholic church that was shutdown in the 1990's and that is where most of the items came from. He is not interested in keeping them and if he can make a few dollars from them to invest in the home all the better.
Forgot to mention that Rago is in New Jersey. https://www.google.com/search?ei=UA.....0....1..gws-wiz.......0i71j0i67.foSl-neCh1Y
Hi and WELCOME, @Jim T !! BOTH of those mantles look amazing to me!!!! The one with the light ornate carving you thought might be ivory.....any chance you can show nice clear CLOSE-UPS of that on them??? There are those here who are pretty good at checking that out with good enough images!!! I also took the liberty of lightening the one sideways image that 'inh' straightened........and YES, DO YOUR RESEARCH, before you let them go!!!!!!!
I will get additional pictures tomorrow and post them up. Its amazing I could get no help calling different auction houses and antique dealers and post up here and getting tons of info!!!! I thank everyone very much for your insight and assistance in making sure we do the right thing with these pieces!!
A mantle is a type of shawl worn round the shoulders. What you have are mantels. The key words for these are 'architectural salvage' and the people most likely to buy them are architectural salvage yards. Check to see if you have any such business anywhere near you (although the best ones will travel a good distance for valuable pieces.) There is a good demand for such material often from people with period houses trying to reinstate features previous generations ripped out as being old fashioned. If they were in an original building I'd say keep them in situ, good period features are always more valuable where they are than sold off piecemeal, but as you say they are in a modern house they might as well go. I cannot comment on value as I am in England and the market is probably very different in NJ. I would advise keeping them intact, if the tiles are valuable in themselves they may have that value for people wishing to restore old fire surrounds that have lost them, so the value would be enhanced by being in the original surround.
This was the scene these tiles were modeled after. I don’t know about yours. Someone familar with tiles could say. There’s some information here that need to be verified, as to the maker, and not sure if yours are this maker or some reproduction. https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/rare-antique-trent-art-tile-boy-playing-flute-and You never know how accurate the information in ads is, so wait for someone to verify this.
I’m close enuf to come pick them up if I thought the price was fair, so if u get close to selling them, let me know what my price is via private message. I have two plain brick fireplaces that’d be lots more interesting with those items.
Nice find! I’ve had the brown tiles and they were marked AE. Wether Trent or AE they will have the same value.