Early 20th-Century Bradley & Hubbard Lamp
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GUEST:
I inherited this lamp from my grandfather. He ended up with it in the 1930s, and I got it two years ago. All I know is that it's a Bradley & Hubbard lamp and that it's got a lot of stuff on it.
APPRAISER:
Bradley & Hubbard started in 1852 in Meriden, Connecticut. They were always known for high quality and artistic design. The company was eventually sold in 1940, so they had a long run in American history. How did you know it was Bradley & Hubbard?
GUEST:
I found a little mark on it.
APPRAISER:
Okay, let's take the shade off for a second here. And you had said also that you replaced this finial.
GUEST:
I did replace the finial, found it in a little shop.
APPRAISER:
Not the original finial, but it certainly looks like it's a comparable one. If we look here, to the mark, this is referred to as a triangle and lantern mark. It's typical for this company, Bradley & Hubbard. Bradley & Hubbard was always known as a maker of high-quality products. This was probably made in the first part of the 20th century. There was Louis Comfort Tiffany making very extraordinary lamps at that time, and then there were the other Tiffany-esque makers. So Bradley & Hubbard would be included in that, but they were the high end of their genre. The metalwork here is patinated white metal, and we have a lot of neoclassical motifs: we have the large urn and scrolling vegetation here and floral devices, ribbons, etc. And we have nice quality glass, curved rather than flat panel, which is a better level. This shade is above average. The base, again, an above-average base. We have these wonderful kind of mask-formed devices. And again, a very handsome neoclassical unit. Let's put this back. Nice, heavy piece here. So this is one of the best Bradley & Hubbard lamps we've seen on the Roadshow.
GUEST:
Really?
APPRAISER:
Let's discuss the restoration here. This was somewhat crude. Someone did it for you?
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
I would suggest you have somebody more professional do this. We'd kind of recast these moments, put that back altogether, color it well, and it would make a big difference in the presentation of the lamp. Do you have any idea what it might be worth now?
GUEST:
I've seen them online for couple of hundred up to couple of thousand.
APPRAISER:
I think in good shape, this would have a retail price of around $4,000 to $5,000. So you have a very nice example of a Bradley & Hubbard lamp.
GUEST:
Awesome.
Appraisal Details
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