This new metal toy tea set features scenes from Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It has full color printing on red trimmed backgrounds. The same metal blanks are used in a similar reproduction set featuring Little Red Riding Hood(see ACRN April 1997). The new sets consist of 13 pieces: four 4 plates, four cups, four 2 3/4 saucers and a 3 tall teapot.

Norm Truesdell of Texas wrote ACRN about a great way to detect forged makers marks on vintage leather holsters and other Cowboy and Western leather items. He described how he uses a black light when examining these items.

David Hunt, author of A Guide to Collecting Hunting and Fishing Licenses of New York State reports a California firm is making New York fire ranger and fire warden dies from original old molds. The new badges are selling for about $25-40. Firewardens were appointed by the Conservation Commission/Department for the purpose of preventing and fighting forest fires in the drought season. Davids book is available for $21 ppd. by writing the author at: PO Box 654, Margaretville, NY 12455.

Research by Richard Cushing

This new cast iron alligator and black child is 6 long, 3 1/2 high; the childs head moves. This piece has been offered as a toy, a paperweight and wedgestyle door stop. It arrives new with a distressed finish including paint chips, scratches, simulated stains, etc.

The name "Stickley" has appeared on American furniture for over one hundred years. In the past five years the present furniture company using the name of Stickley has been making virtually exact replicas of original Stickley Arts and Craft designs. This article will briefly describe current production, list a history of Stickley marks and compare some typical new and old pieces.

Prices of 20th century modern designssuch as Art Deco and the 1950s look have been rising steadily. New reproduction carpets with these designs are now offered by a large home furnishings mail order catalog.

A mail order firm specializing in reproductions from the 195060s is currently selling large CocaCola cardboard cut out (diecut) signs. Original signs of this size were used in store windows, aisles and around soda fountains.

In January of 1994, sulphide marbles with previously unknown figures began appearing on the market. Some of the figures include a robed lady (some have likened to Lady Godiva), a seahorse and a skull. Some of the figures are in marbles with latticino swirls which is also a previously unknown combination. A number of these marbles have already sold for prices as high as several thousand dollars and more. Some marble collectors and dealers, however, are beginning to question whether the marbles were made in the Victorian era. Skeptics are wondering why so many previously unknown marbles are now appearing in relatively large numbers.

One of the appeals of 19th century leaded glass lamp shades is the dark pattern of lead joints created when the lamp is turned on. These dark joint lines were as important to the overall design of a leaded shade as the color and layout of the glass itself. But the high cost of skilled labor required to individually cut and join each small piece of glassas firms like Tiffany and othersmade most leaded lamps too expensive for the general public.