THE KOVELS \ Antiques and collecting Eggs stand proudly in tableware from Victorian era

The Victorians liked to serve each type of food in a special dish. From 1861 to about 1900, George Jones, a prominent English maker of majolica wares, made special dishes for table use. Along with sardine dishes, figural teapots, Stilton cheese dishes, game-pie dishes and oyster plates, his company made egg stands. Boiled eggs had long been a popular breakfast food. The elaborate stand had six removable egg cups set into a tray. A tripod of tree limbs held a flower-decorated, larger bowl at the top for sauce. The 10-inch-high stand was made to look as realistic as possible, with tan branches and light-blue glaze as trim. George Jones & amp; Sons remained in business until 1951, although the company made very little majolica after 1914.
Q & amp; A
Q. I am coming across glassware marked "E.O. Brody -- Cleveland, O." I can't find the name in any books on glass. I've even found a few pieces of pottery with the same marks. I'm not much of a collector, but when I see Brody pieces, I buy them. Are they collectibles?
A. The E.O. Brody Co. was founded in Cleveland in 1958. Ernest Oscar Brody started the company to sell utilitarian glass floral containers to wholesalers. In 1971, the company was taken over by Lancaster Colony Corp. of Columbus. Lancaster moved Brody to its housewares division in Cincinnati in 1988. New Brody glassware is still being made, and pieces are being sold in Internet auctions.
Q. I have a small paperback cookbook titled "Media Rare: A Collection of Favorite Recipes from Dallas Personalities." It's 5 1/4 by 8 1/4 inches and has 74 pages. Inside are photos of Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, team coach Tom Landry and Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, among others. Each personality submitted a recipe for the book, which was published by the Dallas chapter of Women in Communications.
There's no publication date. The latest date I can find in the book is a reference to Staubach's winning the Brian Piccolo Award in 1979. The cookbook's introduction starts with this sentence: "If you have purchased this cookbook, it is possible you have acquired ... a valuable collector's item that by the year 2004 is expected to fetch up to $300,000 at auction, enough for 10 gallons of gas." So, I'm wondering -- because it's 2004 -- am I rich?
A. You have a collectible cookbook that could sell for what 10 gallons of gas costs today. The fact that the cookbook pictures football stars helps its value, especially in Dallas. Staubach's last season with the Cowboys was 1979, so it is likely that the cookbook was published in 1980.
Q. I inherited a large metal trunk that I think qualifies as an antique. It has four vertical hardwood slats on the front and back, and five across the domed top. The label has faded, but I can make out the name Secor. Have you heard of Secor trunks? What can I do about finding a key for the trunk's lock?
A. M.M. Secor was one of the largest U.S. manufacturers of trunks during the last couple of decades of the 19th century. The company was founded in Racine, Wis., in 1861 and by 1880 was mass-producing more than 80,000 trunks a year. You'll have to take the trunk to a locksmith to find a key.
Q. I've been weeding out stuff in my closets and came across some old board games. One is a Parcheesi game that must be close to 50 years old. What's unusual about it is that the "home" circles on the game board are ads for Coca-Cola. Does that make my game valuable?
A. Your game would appeal to collectors of old Coca-Cola advertising and to collectors of games -- so, yes, the Coke ads increase your game's value. If you have the original box and all of the game pieces, and if the game and box are in excellent condition, it would sell for about $125. The Coca-Cola Co. often gave gifts of games and toys to bottlers and distributors.
Q. My grandfather owned a drugstore in the early 1900s. At the soda fountain in the store, he stocked a set of potbellied Hires root-beer mugs picturing a toddler wearing a blue robe and a white bib. The words "Drink Hires Rootbeer" are printed across the top of the mug. The bottom is marked with a green crest that reads "Villeroy and Boch" and "Made in Germany." Can you give me some history?
A. Charles E. Hires concocted a drink made from roots and herbs in the early 1870s. He sold his root-beer syrup to soda fountains and grocery stores, and promoted sales through advertising items, like your mug. Some of the most valuable Hires pieces today feature the "Hires boy," the child pictured on your mug. The way the child is dressed helps date the mug. The Villeroy and Boch mark belongs to the German company that also made the famous Mettlach steins. A mug like yours sold for $600 at a 1997 auction.
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