Arts
More Artwork 2021, Part Two
6 months on from my last article, I thought I would write another but this time include information on artists and art I aspire to own, rather than just focus on recent purchases, giving me [more…]
Collecting
Arts
Pyrography
Background Known as “pokerwork” until the late 19th Century, it is believed that this form of applied art has been practiced since Prehistoric times. At its most basic, it involves the burning of pictures or [more…]
Collecting
Going for Gold – Part 9
As well as buying precious metals for their intrinsic value there are many people who collect coins, bars and other items and pay far more than their value in weight because of a perceived value [more…]
Collecting
Camping, Backcountry Knife choice
I recently reread two of Bertram Gilfoyles articles – the first teaching us about Japanese knives and the second helping us understand how to keep them sharp. His knowledge is far deeper than mine especially [more…]
Collecting
Pocket Torches
Following on from my article on pocket knives, here is one on my pocket torch collection. As with the knife article, I will focus on form and function rather than a lot of technical information. [more…]
19th Century
Codswallop
Codswallop! This article is about a type of Victorian bottle invented by Hiram Codd, a British bottle inventor. Invention of the ‘Codd’ Bottle. Hiram Codd worked for the British and Foreign Cork Company and during [more…]
Collecting
Going for Gold – Part 8
Prior to becoming interested in precious metals I had never visited the inside of an auction house, let alone placed a bid. However, during the last lockdown I discovered that auctions can be a rich [more…]
Collecting
Going for Gold – Part 7
I had vaguely heard of the Latin Monetary Union and decided to do some research for this article after viewing some gold coins from this period on an auction website. The Latin Monetary Union (LMU) [more…]
Collecting
Going For Gold – Part 6
Previous articles in this series have focused heavily on coins. This time I take a look at the history of bullion, ingots and bars for a change. What is Bullion? Claude de Bullion, became the [more…]