By Marty Steiner ATLANTA — Attending the Scott Antique Market in Atlanta is like attending an exciting three-ring circus. There is something going on everywhere you look. One cannot possibly take it all in, so you have to focus on what interests you most. With more than 2,500 books to explore at the show, there is something for every shopper in any price range or genre. While a few dealers will have a book or two, Ken Beebe has specialized in reference and collectible books for decades. Among his focus areas are military history, southern authors, and “extraordinary authors of the 20th- century.” Generally, he will also offer a few 50 percent off show specials. This visit found a signed and numbered (#77 of 100) copy of artist Steffen Thomas, originally marked $45 as one of these specials. Someone knowledgeable about this Atlanta based artist scooped it up, hopefully for the Steffen Thomas Museum located an hour out of Atlanta. Like most book dealers, Ken emphasizes collectible and out-of-print books with a focus on “books that you will want to read more than once." After you visit Ken and stock up on books, you will want to visit Yesterday’s News Antiques and select one of Roy Leverette’s vintage stacking bookcases to house and display your newest book treasure and library. Unlike today’s particle board units, Leverett’s units offer solid hardwood construction and vintage glass doors to protect your books. Prices ranged from $775 for a three-stack unit made by Weir — circa 1900 — to $1,275 for a five-stack by Globe Wernicke. Prices generally depend on the manufacturer, number of units in the stack, each stack unit’s height, and the usual furniture criteria of wood, maker marks, finish, hardware and glass. An unusual five-stack with leaded glass doors on all units was tagged $1,895. Other stacks substituted a writing desk unit in place of one of the bookshelf units. The Lamp Guy offered proper lighting to read book treasures. A pair of 31-inch baluster shaped alabaster table lamps were tagged $1,200 and a single 24-inch tall Murano glass pineapple form was $950. In addition to lighting, Todd Baker — known as the Lamp Guy — presented a number of original Icart prints. Atlanta has become a hub of southern folk art, pottery and country furniture. While John Joiner specializes in southern pottery, he also usually has a few fine southern country furniture pieces. This visit found a large pine lazy-susan table with poplar base at $900. Athens Classical Antiques (Athens, Ga.), on the other hand, offers dark, high style, professionally manufactured furniture and decorative accessories. Rosewood, flame mahogany, walnut and cherry case pieces fill Ron Evans’ booth. A number of small stands that qualify as lamp tables, suitable for the lamps described earlier, were offered at $395. Most of the dealers at Scott have the same booth every month. In addition to making it easy for customers to find their favorite dealers, it frequently brings about friendships and cooperative efforts among dealers who are longtime Scott “neighbors." Such a relationship found Judy and Will Hair of Columbia, S.C., inviting their Scott booth neighbor from Plantation Antiques to join them on their annual New England buying trip. The Hair’s booth presents a strong nautical flavor but also those moderately priced nostalgia items like wood handled kitchen choppers at $30 each, a Bennington pitcher at $135, and a pair of louvered wood window shutters with cutout pine tree panel for $135. Fabrics included a number of old quilts, most at $350, and an eye-catching cat hooked rug for $425. Neighboring Plantation Antiques, true to the hunting plantation traditions of South Georgia, offered antique working decoys and a number of vintage books about outdoorsmanship. One small bookcase held volumes that ranged from a first edition How to Take Trout (1952) at $30, Charles Hamilton’s 1923 Shooting Over Decoys for $125, and the Partridge volume from the Fur and Feathers 1893 series at $75 and Wild Fowl Shooting 1888 for $195. The trip to Scott for the November weekend encountered heavy rain and a cold spell and in December, the possibility of snow or even ice. If I had a working barometer or home weather station, I would have known what to expect. The Barometer Fair ownerJohn Forster may be among the most specialized dealers at Scott. Forster features dozens of vintage barometers that are decorative, practical and usable collectibles. From an era when weather forecasts were critical but not generally available, many homes had one. Barometers in his booth are mostly from the 19th century and are tagged in the $700 and up range for fully functional antique mercury units. An unusually large and rare English wheel barometer at $6,200 currently tops the Barometer Fair price chart. Forster also offers a variety of scientific instruments along with medical devices and equipment. A Scottish 1870 vintage surgeon’s kit with saw was tagged $2,895. The kit is housed in a mahogany case with original key and Young & Co. Edinburgh labeling. A cylindrical “computer” which resembles a cluster of slide rules was offered at $1,350. It was accompanied with an original descriptive note, “Thatcher’s Calculating Instrument, Keuffel & Esser Company, New York”. It is described as “by it’s use the tedious drudgery of calculation is avoided and the chance of error eliminated!” Perhaps this instrument would have helped keep track of how much one could spend over the four days of a Scott Market in Atlanta. A number of dealers will have a blanket chest or two, or even a large tool chest. One dealer only offered blanket chests and tool chests. The Atlanta Market is open on the second complete weekend of every month. Visit www.scottantiquemarket.com for details. |