For well over 100 years, chalk ware, or molded plaster, has been used as an inexpensive alternative to expensive ceramics.
These days, however, old chalk ware items are admired in their own right as charming collectibles and evocative decorative accents.
Antique chalk ware can be divided into four categories: 19th Century American folk art chalk; Late-Victorian/Edwardian decorative ware; Mid-20th Century decorative ware; and carnival chalk.
Some collectors will specialize, but many are attracted by any artful chalk ware.
American folk art chalk has long been a traditional collectible. It was sold from door to door by itinerant immigrants, mostly Italian and some German.
Because so much of it has been found among German families in Pennsylvania, people have mistakenly called it Pennsylvania Dutch chalk.
Late Victorian/Edwardian (ca.1880 through the 1920s) decorative chalk is a personal favorite of mine.
Most of these pieces were made for the parlor, a gentleman’s library or for the solarium. They were products of the Arts and Crafts Movement on some level, and seem to be proudly chalk, not just an imitation of something else.
Look for doorway and wall plaques, plant hangers, figural scent sconces, and figurines of literary personalities and characters, decorative busts, candlesticks, etc.—all quite elegant.
Some of these pieces will be artfully hand-painted. But many pieces are in a natural finish, coated with varnish or beeswax.
The years have given these a distinctive patina that often has folks wondering what the item is made of.
Chalk ware made a comeback in the 1940s and early ’50s, perhaps because of the scarcity of imported ceramics due to World War II.
For the parlor, there will be some marvelously pompous wall plaques, featuring 18th Century costumed aristocrats in grandiose courting scenes.
Fashion plaques for the bedroom featured more exotic or contemporary ladies in movie star hairdos.
Kitschy chalk ware for the kitchen included wall plaques, potholder hooks, clocks, spoon rests, string holders, etc. These can be found in barnyard themes or in the Mexican, South American, and Black Americana motifs that were popular at the time.
Carnival chalk ware figurines from the 1930 through the 1950s could be won at resort and boardwalk game booths.
Brightly colored in pastels and sometimes glittered with gold specks, these dogs, cats, pigs, bunnies, and so forth were often banks.
You had to break them to get your money out, so there are not a whole lot of these around. Still, there are other figurines around, and-in-all, these are the best chalk ware bargains.
Appraisals: Folk art chalk is still the most expensive, with pieces ranging from about $150 to over $1,000. Victorian/Edwardian decorative chalk ranges from $100 to $500, depending on artistry and originality.
Decorative chalk from the 1940s and ’50s runs from $25 to $100. Carnival chalk ware can be had from $20 to $50.
Carnival clown bank, 1950s ($65); Scotty dog bookend, 1940s (pair, $75-85); Dog, Spaniel, ca.1890 ($225); Stag head wall mount, ca.1900 ($350); Carnival Felix the Cat, 1920s, rare ($450); Mirror, round with eagle, 1930s ($125); Uncle Sam figure, 1930s ($175); Bust, Ulysses S. Grant, late 19th C ($1,000); Porky Pig, 1940s ($90); Doorstop, basket of fruit, 15-inches, 19th C. ($1200); Carnival Snow White, 1940s-‘50s ($100).
—Arthur Schwerdt, a certified appraiser, is the author of “The Antique Story Book: Finding the Real Value of Old Things,” and co-owner of The August Farmhouse Antiques on Route 9 in Swainton. Send your comments, questions and appraisal requests to aschwerdt@cmcherald.com.
