Category Archives: What is it?

I found this on a crowded shelf at our local Salvation Army store. It looked old and interesting, so I took a chance for $8.50. After doing some research, I learned it’s an antique copper pitcher that was used in … Continue reading →

This is a Mexican carpet designed to be a wall hanging. It might have hung on a wall of a simple pueblo church’s or town hall’s cinder block walls. The symbols are representative of a mix of native tribal, Aztec, … Continue reading →

This balancing scale was in the apartment of Daniele’s Aunt Henriette in Nancy. Daniele lived with her during the school week from the age of about 6 through age 16. She recalls fondly the wonderful cakes and pies that her … Continue reading →

The vase is fused blown glass type labeled “Murano.” The 12” diameter glass bowl is also Murano and made, probably, in the Seguso factory. On the Murano glass website click here, they discuss the varying techniques used in making the … Continue reading →

If you guessed something from the ocean, you would be correct. The green object is a Japanese glass fishing-net float. I found it on Will Rogers State Beach after a pineapple express storm in the 1980’s. I’ve never seen another … Continue reading →

This is an old, large, copper farmhouse colander. Colanders or strainers date back over two thousand years. Roman or Pompeian commercial food shacks used ceramic ones to wash veggies. Today almost every kitchen has a strainer or colander or other … Continue reading →

One day in the 1980’s walking in downtown Nancy, France, I notice a large demolition bin outside of a well-known Patisserie that was undergoing renovation. I peered into the debris-filled bin and saw this cast-iron mold. Naturally, I climbed in … Continue reading →

Howard Yonet explained that this “What Is It?” story is bit complicated because it spans a thousand years. In the year 1007 AD the Chinese Qingming Emperor sponsored summer festivities for his citizens on a river. He was so pleased … Continue reading →

These are two American Civil War Cavalry Officer sabers. You can tell that they are sabers, not swords, because of the curved shape of the blade. Infantry officers wore straight swords with blades on both edges. This saber shape was … Continue reading →