"Imperial Crown China Austria" Candle holder with 2 pottery marks

by Winnie
(Altoona, Florida, U.S.A.)

"Imperial Crown China Austria" Candle holder with 2 pottery marks:- This candlestick holder is in my possession as handed down from my mother. She had an uncle, Joseph Simms, who travelled the world, lectured in several countries. He was a civil war veteran, graduate of Columbia Medical School, a physician, and then became something called a physiognomist.

He was born in 1833 and died 1920 in NYC in an apartment in the Hotel Empire which was, I believe from reading another newspaper clipping of the time, on W. Sixty-third Street in Manhattan.

I could go on and on about this person; but to get to the point, I believe he may have been the source of this piece of Austrian China. He sent home to my grandmother boxes and small trunks loaded with all sorts of weird things, even to things in jars of formaldehyde. He was quite eccentric; people believed he and his wife had little but at the time of death stock certificates, bonds etc were found under piles of papers in the apartment. Today he would make TV as one of the hoarders, I'm thinking.

This candlestick, regardless of it path down through history is quite pretty, now that I look it over again some years since and is in quite nice shape except for the piece that is at the top of the handle. Looks like it may have been in the shape of a leaf?? Don't know but it is obvious it was broken but my mother, being an artist and have gold paint in her wares, somehow smoothed the rough edges and painted over the place damaged.

You know, I feel rather odd pouring out all this information; some of which is kin to gossip, but you asked for it. I now have to try to get a couple of decent pictures to help identify the piece and show the bottom and its' two marks. I am especially looking to find when the piece may have been made and where; and why the two (2) marks are on the bottom.

Best regards

Winnie

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Peter (admin) says:-

Hi Winnie

I love your beautiful story of this eccentric man, Joe Simms thanks for telling us. For me, it is these stories which make the website interesting, so thanks for sharing and taking the time.

As for your mark, Joe was obviously no slouch because I believe you have a very nice quality studio item made by a firm called 'Bawo and Dotter' (1883 - 1914). They decorated blanks at their studio in Fischern, Bohemia. Thsi explains the two pottery marks. The one saying 'Vienna' denoted where the blanks came from.

Bawo & Dotter exported to the US and had offices in New York and also a decorating plant in Limoges, France. People collect Bohemian wares and they fetch good prices.

The town they were based at is now called Rybáře and is located in the Czech Republic.

Nice post, thank you.

For general free advice on how to research your collection, I wrote this page:

value of antiques.

My vintage and antique china values page

Peter (admin)