Antiques Collectibles Books

Good starter book for collectors and cabinet makers. Helps provide context for the how and why for 18th century American furniture.

This is a great book at an extraordinary price. I would prefer that more of the pictures were in color but that would have increased the price of the book, maybe, beyond what I was willing to spend. If you want to learn about 18th century furniture making, this is the best there is. Greene has a writing style that is very clear and a pleasure to read. I cant say enough about this book.

This book has an excellent selection of photographs of fine furniture of the 18th Century. The most notable thing about the book is that the author has exhibited fairly good taste in his selection of specimens to include, and has largely ignored the more shabby pieces of the era. This is in contrast with Nutting's "Furniture Treasury", which has truly extensive selections of photographs of all furniture of the era (good, bad, or indifferent). Greene's book also contains good historical information on the furniture trade of that era, and has an excellent bibliography of furniture books written in the 18th Century (some of which remain available).

The author is a former mechanical engineer, who now hand crafts replica 18th Century furniture for a living.

This is a simply fabulous book. Its split into two sections; a furniture history section and a "how-to" section, describing basic techniques. These two sections make the book a great, informative read. BUT what makes this a "must buy" are the appendices. Greene shows exploded views of virtually all the basic furniture types. While these pictures aren't project plans, they provide invaluable information about the guts of antique furniture. The other appendix I like is the one showing 18th century recipes for finishes. I tried a few and they work great.

Greene's book does a good job of providing a woodworker (or others interested in period pieces) with solid information on many selected pieces from the era of the title. He does a good job of selecting pieces of good taste, and gives a lot of information on various details with just the right amount of how-to. There is also a lot of historical background info for those who like to know about the history of a piece or style before they build it. The pictures and exploded drawings (showing joinery) are excellent. Though not a comprehensive encyclopedia (it's not intended to be one) it is a good read from start to finish or a good reference book. Well worth the money.

This is a great coloring book! The gowns/dresses are fun to color, detailed and varied. The only caution I have is that not all of the 1st Ladies are pictured in gowns. Some are pictured in streetwear. But it is still a fantastic book and great fun. Dates and details are listed about each 1st Lady and her gown. It is great fun and very accurate. Snap this one up!

The next best thing to buying a colt revolver itself.

Excellent in every respect and well recommended.

This book is chuck full of great high quality color and some black and white photographs, showing the detailed craftmanship of old Colt firearms, from the quality engraving and inlaying to metal and wood working. It gives a complete history of every gun Colt created.
Great for collectors and gun enthusiasts alike! I am not a gun collector but I do appreciate great craftsmanship, and this book is full of examples to demonstrate both Arts and History.

This is the book if you collect Colts.It has all the early serial numbers.

I bought this book sight unseen based on my interest in the subject matter and from seeing other offerings of RL Wilson and liking them. First off, this book hasn't been updated since it was produced in the late 80s. Lots has changed since that time. First off, I need to claim my biases. When it comes to Colt I am primarily interested in Single Action Armies, 1911s, and the Python/Diamonbacks. That said I couldn't believe how little photography was devoted to the 1911. By far the most numerous of Colts ever made due to WWI and II production. There were very few photos of standard production 1911s and those that were there were of well used and weatherbeaten ones. There were more of the decorative/unique 1911s. I am fortunate enough to live near a collection of Frank Phillip's (Petroleum) Colt's in the museum in Bartlesville, OK. I couldn't believe Wilson would not photograph their Colts. They're pristine, covering every major variant. The Peacemaker was given fair coverage. The Python and Diamondback were given very little coverage. At the time the Diamondback was current production and more blah in his opinion, I am sure. Looking back on it, it was a classic since it was the last affordable, working man's revolver made by Colt. Now, to me, it marks the end of an epoch. Yes, Colt still makes Pythons but they are so expensive, hard to find and production is so limited they are not hardly worth talking about anymore. If you are into the early guns primarily this is probably a great book. Based on my interests this book was a bit of a disappointment.

Look, you can't get Wilson's seminal, collectible The Book of Colt Firearms because it is out of print, costs $1000 if you can find one, and your wife would kill you.

Get this book. This is as close as you can get and is widely available. I use it all the time to look up the date of manufacture of any Colt's I might want to buy. The illustrations are quite outstanding.

If you don't know, Mr. Wilson is the most famous Colt expert, who must be incredibly rich to have built his collection. Most of the items shown are from Wilson's own collection, worth millions. He doesn't need the money from this book. It is a labor of love.

I have 8 prints that don't appear in the book from 1865-1870. Want to find more info about my prints to include their value (at least an estimate). Pictures in the book are beautiful and pretty true to the actual work...except the real ones have a little "browner" paper. The history in the beginning is also very well done, and helpful in knowing the art. Thanks JoAnne.

While it would be rare to find a Godey's book with every fashion print in it, this book gives you an excellent variety of the best dresses from Godey's. The descriptions give an idea of color mixes, fabric and decoration. This book is a great reference tool for the Lady Civil War or Mid-Victorian Reenactor or Costume Designer.

This book took a couple of reads to get the hang of. While the historical essays were interesting, a detailed description of how to use the guide, where the various identifiers could be found on respective pieces, as well as a tone geared toward the lay person could have made this book significantly more useful.

I will definitely take a look at other similar guides if given the chance, but this book will do for now.

Also, while this is the fourth edition, the beginning of the book makes it seem that the prices are only current with the printing of the first edition, which was in 1995 (?). So why weren't the prices updated with subsequent printings?

Overall it's very useful, but I wish I could have browsed and compared at local bookstores.

I'm just getting started collecting Griswold cast iron, and I bought this guide recently because I wanted some sort of reference point for assessing cast iron at auctions, flea markets, antique malls, etc. I'm not a dealer, and (so far, anyway) I don't purchase or sell any cast iron on-line.

I really like this guide, since it's descriptive, inclusive, and has photos and illustrations which are more than sufficient for determining what you're looking at when you're standing over the vendor's table. The major complaint that I've read about this guide is that the prices haven't been updated. That's true - it says right in the front of the book that the prices were gathered in 1995, even though this is the fifth edition and has supposedly been revised a few times since. But, I get the impression from what I'm seeing in the marketplace that, whether due to this book itself or due to the market for cast iron, the prices quoted are still fairly accurate for most pieces. At any rate, it still serves as a great relative pricing guide, to tell you how the various pieces compare to each other. People have said that the prices quoted in here are not reflective of on-line auctions for cast iron, though whether they're generally lower or generally higher, I don't know. Since I'm not buying or selling on-line, I can't really comment, but I do know that on-line bidders have a tendency to go haywire sometimes. These seem to me to be accurate prices for antique malls or flea markets, though. A few people have complained about the quality of the photos, but I think that this is a baseless complaint, since the photos and illustrations are very clear and easily sufficient to distinguish one piece from another. The authors even show a few select counterfeits, and do a side-by-side comparison of the genuine piece versus the counterfeit. They also included a nice informative blurb about the history of each company which is represented in this guide, and a list of part numbers for each line which is invaluable if you're trying to tell just what it is you're looking at. I wish I could give it four and a half stars - it deserves the extra half. I'd give it a fifth star if they'd put a little more effort into detailing some of the diagnostic features typical to pans of a specific vintage - I'm still a little in the dark about just which handle is the "old handle" and which handle is the "new handle," given that I've seen at least four or five handle styles on these pans, and I'd like to know a bit more about some of the skillets which were manufactured by Griswold but don't say "Griswold." such as Victors and Puritans, etc. The authors do give full pricing and photograhic information for those makes, but they don't really give any information about why they exist or why they don't say "Griswold" on them.

By the way, this review is mostly focused on Griswold. I don't collect Wagner, Favorite, Sidney Hollow-ware, or Wapak. On the whole, I would say that even though I don't collect these brands, this is a very good guide for Wagner as well, and an alright guide for the other three brands. Favorite, Sidney Hollow-ware, and Wapak don't get nearly the attention that Griswold and Wagner get in this book, but I get the impression that those companies weren't as successful and didn't have quite the diversity of products in the first place that Griswold or Wagner did.

Very pleased.

the book was very generic and boring. some of the things in it were very common items that are only a few years old. Not much for the serious collector

I found this book very informative of quite a selection of item. I really enjoyed looking at all the different items included in the book.

Mostly pictures with litte information, but what I really disliked was it was difficult to hold open and therefore no fun to even look at the pictures!

I received this book yesterday. For a newbie to collecting like me, it is just what I've been looking for. The pictures are amazing. The information in it is incredible. The categories make things easy to find. It is just the right size to fit in my purse while I shop. I'm going to enjoy using this book very much!

mr. yumoto's work is very descriptive and pictures fill the pages more than text does.

"Samurai Sword a Handbook" lacks an analytic quality that would bring togheter the social, historical, technical and martial dimensions of the nihonto.

last but not least, such an important - and relatively undocumented - subject as care and maintenance of japanese blades is simply and vaguely evoked in two pages that make up a ridiculous chapter.

all in all, yumoto's work is too old to be satisfying to comtemporary readers in search of a meaningful, concise handbook which would explain rather than describe.

A PERFECT SOURCE WHO WANTS TO LEARN ABAUT JAPANESE SWORDS AND THEIR HISTORY

This is a good, short overview of the basics of Japanese Swords. Recommended.

This is an awesome book for anyone wnating to know more about samurai swords and speaking as a beginner myself, I found that this book explained everything clearly and concisely - I now know a lot more about swords than i did before :)

I finished reading it yesterday. It is too much for beginner and not enough for intermediate or even expert...

It is definitely usefull for future reference in terms of finding more about your sword or swords you want to buy and using some of the criterias. Photos are B&W and crappy and references text-to-drawings are badly organized.

What is strongly missing is types of sword damage, how to eveluate type of damage and find it on blades etc...

I dont know when book was written but some information also seems bit obsolete...

If the book was hardcover, had two times more pages, colored photos to go with drawings, better organized and have more information, I would give 5. Now I give 3 of 5.

I highly recommend this particular book. The information is easy to read and there a many good quality pictures. You can find specific products and price information with ease.

Co-written by expert antiques dealers Joe Keller and David Ross, Jadite: An Identification And Price Guide informatively examines and showcases Jadeite dinnerware from the 1930s to the mid 1970s. Gorgeous full color photographs are combined with a comprehensively researched price guide to make for a marvelous compendium of Jadite works. Highly enjoyable for armchair connoisseurs of practical art and devoted collectors alike, Jadite is exhaustive, authoritative, "user friendly", and enthusiastically recommended.

I LOVE MY JADITE BOOK, IT'S VERY INFORMATIVE AND EASY TO USE TO IDENTIFY AND PRICE ANTIQUE PIECES. I COULDN'T FIND THIS BOOK ANYWHERE EXCEPT AT AMAZON.

This book has awesome photography with accurate color and well conceived layouts. It is well organized and easy to use as a reference and pricing guide. I would highly recommend this book to both the novice collector and the seasoned veteran.

One of the things I hate about price guides is the pricing. So many authors price items by what they have and what they want to have. If they have it, it's worth a fortune. If they want to have it, it's not worth anything. The reason for this is simple. If they want to sell something they have the price has been established and they'll ask the price in their book. It they don't have it and want it they price it low so they can buy it inexpensively. Keller and Ross don't do that. They are out there shopping, doing shows, going to auctions and their prices are generally right on the mark. That's a tremendous help to both collectors and dealers. The other great thing about the book is the photos. There are lots of them so it makes it easy to identify the pieces you have or are looking to buy. I like the organization by category which makes it easy to look up itemsIf you're a collector or a dealer this book is well worth the price.

For the builders of dollhouses as hobby, it's a must to read this book and to discover what can be done.

I must tell the reader that I have never seen the actual doll house, nor have I seen the other catalogs, so I cannot compare them, but this is a fascinating book. It is hard to believe that one is actually looking at miniatures, the detail is so fantastic! In some ways, this is probably better than, or at least a wonderful supplement to seeing the original. Tiny things are photographed in a detail that may not be possible in viewing it, and one can linger as I imagine one cannot at the real exhibit. The text explains that one views the actual dollhouse in cross-section, one side at a time. This book is organized more as if one was walking through the house, beginning with the Entrance Hall on the Ground floor and then climbing to the top.

The book has close to 90 photographs, almost all of them in color. The ones not in color are mostly historic. There is a floor plan, and a lengthy introduction explaining the history of creating the house.

A marvelous book that should interest anyone who likes dollhouses and home decor.

I was so enchanted by this book that I ordered Queen Mary's Dolls' House by Mary Stewart-Wilson simply because the cover shot isn't in this book, and I figured (correctly) that there would be other unique pictures. A very few of the shots are in both, but not enough to make them redundant for the person who wants all the information they can get. To compare and contrast the two, the Mary Stewart-Wilson book, with photographs by David Cripps, is longer, has more pictures, particularly more closeups of the tiny furnishings, etc., and is a hardcover. I am charmed by Cripp's method of showing scale: he poses the tiny cricket bat next to a regulation cricket ball, and the little golf clubs next to a real golf ball. Without considering price and availability (the S-W book is currently out of print) I would say that it is the better book. If you just want something to jog your memory or give you an idea of what the house is like, either would be adequate. If you are really interested, I'd recommend both: I think the Royal Collection book is a pretty good buy. I'm certainly not considering giving up my RC book now that I have the S-W. This book frequently shoots the rooms at an angle, giving one another view. I actually think the angled shot maintain the illusion better. To compare the shots of the Queen's bedroom, the Stewart-Wilson shot shows the entire bedroom. The Royal Collection shot, at an angle , reveals some additional details such as the fire screen and the chinoiserie cabinet, but cuts off the exteme left-hand side of the room. (Her Majesty has apparently been rearranging her decorative items since the S-W book.) Parts of many of the other rooms are cut off as well, but at times the view of what is shown is better. The S-W detail of the 18th century pietre-dure table concentrates on showing the design on the top. The RC detail shows more of the table and the objects normally on it. The historical sections, revealing how the house came to be built are the most different, and the RC book has more pictures of people who participated in creating the doll house and of the room in which it now sits with the Phillip Connard mural. The captions are overlapping, but not identical, and so one gains more information by having both.