Tuesday, September 4, 2012

The Oldest Thing I've Ever Found at a Yard Sale

Aside from a set of agate bookends or that geode (which would be millions of years old), the oldest thing I've bought at a yard sale (for just $5) was this 17th century German Bellarmine jug, circa 1650s. The stoneware jugs draw their name (and possibly likeness??) from Cardinal Bellarmine (1542-1621), a very unpopular figure at the time. They were used as serving jugs in taverns, carrying liquids between casks and mugs. It sold for $284 on eBay.
I think the next two oldest items would be a 1770s Sons of Liberty-printed newspaper called The Massachusetts Spy, and a circa 1810s jasperware urn commemorating the British Naval heroes Howe and Nelson. Cool stuff.

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