Featured What are These Exactly? Carboot Find

Hi all! Finally picked up something worth showing here, I found these stuffed in a box of paintings at this morning's carboot. They were more expensive then my pocket money and my limited knowledge of antiques in general normally allow but my gut went against my brain with this one.

Both are leather, the red soft and pliable and the brown is more stiff. Obviously the red one is well worn/damaged, but they're so beautiful I didn't mind. Not sure theres much market for such items anyway so these will most likely end up in my personal collection. I googled G. Regnier but nothing comes up at all. It is a G, though looks like a Y in this photo, though I did search Reynier and came up with a Parisian glove company, but the signature is different and I found no info on the company itself.

I added pictures of the post card that was inside the red one, hoping it could help to dating it. However I looked up the restaurant, owner, and address with nothing coming up. Currently the address is vacant so its not there anymore.

To clear things up I am located in France!

Apart from just showing off my little purchase, I have a few questions:

Age? General family consensus puts the storks in the Art Deco period and the red one 1890s/1910s, but we don't know much about these sorts of items.

What are they? I bought them as document/paper holders, but they could also be book covers. Similar listings online say all of the above.

To clean or not to clean? Im holding off on doing anything to them until I know I wont ruin any value they may have as is. Looking at the photos again Im surprised how scratched the storks are, they're blaring here though in the hand they arent very noticable at all!

Does anyone recognize the mark on the storks? Like I said above I cant find anything so far. Is it possible its not a makers but either the artist's or owner's signature?

Thank you for looking! I hope they're as nice to the experienced eye as they are to mine ​

 

There was a French artist Gustave Reynier

 

Lovely!

 

I think they are decorative book covers. Common souvenir items from leather working centers. Pretty to look at... not particularly practical.

 

@2manybooks. What are your thoughts.

 

The bottom two are Moroccan book covers and should be from the 1960s-1970s. They're typically made out of camel leather. The top one is especially nice of its type.

Debora

 

Apparently the Restaurant Barcelona was around into the early 1980s.

Debora

 

I've got notebook covers like this. Bought new in Spain in the 70s.

 

The top one is, to me, particularly LOVELY!!! I have my Mom's bible, which was her father's, and she has a dark red leather cover similar to your top one with the family crest embossed in....I love and treasure it!!

 

From the cloud treatment, I'd guess the top one is Art Deco.

Debora

 

Very pretty ,Id have bought them .

 

Spot on. 2manycats says he has encountered such items, and that one downside is that they can discolor the binding of the books enclosed.

The second one is most probably, as @Debora says, from the tanneries in Morocco (or elsewhere in North Africa). Probably finer goatskin, rather than camel though.

 

Yay I'm glad that you all see some quality in them! I'm new to this and I have, shall we say...an eccentric taste so what is nice to me is often hit or miss to others. That aside perhaps my eye has learned some things from all the lurking I do here!

 

I did see him and wondered if there was a connection, but upon further inspection of the signature it is most definitely a Y not a G.

 

How fun! Im in rural france so its always interesting when things come from the likes of Morocco, though perhaps not unsurprising given France's connection with Northern Africa. Thank you both for your input

Where did you find that info? I did all the searches I could think of and came up with nothing!

Yay! Perhaps I scored on that one then, it really stood out to me at the stall. Im normally not someone attracted to storks but they were so lovely!

 

I agree re goatskin. Camel more romantic but... a bit of an urban legend.

Debora

 

Yes, Moroccan, and sheep or goat skin. Camel skin is used for some Tuareg leather items, it is very thick. The Tuareg also use goatskin btw.