Antiques & Collecting: Patriotic decorations

American companies have used patriotic imagery in advertisements for more than 100 years. It appeals to customers and shows pride in American industries.

Current trademark law prohibits using the American flag in advertisements, but there are plenty of other patriotic symbols to use.

This tin lithographed tip tray, which sold for $2,010 at an auction by AntiqueAdvertising.com, is red, white and blue and features stars, stripes and the eagle-and-shield seal. Trays with this design were made by 1917. They advertise “Deacon Brown,” a soft drink made in Montgomery, Alabama, in the early 20th century.

The tray proclaims the drink “The King of Phosphates,” suggesting another American icon — the soda fountain. Notice that the young woman draped in red and white stripes is drinking from a glass, not a bottle.

Phosphates, popular from about 1870 to 1930, were soda fountain drinks made with acid phosphate, which gave the drink a slightly sour taste. Fruit flavors were popular, and cherry phosphate appears to have been the favorite.

Raise your glass to history!

I have an unusual cylindrical lamp that has a cast-iron base and vented cast-iron top. The sides of the cylinder are covered by a picture of a cabin in the woods. When the light bulb inside is lit, the inside of the lamp rotates and orange and yellow “flames” appear. It still works but the cord is old, so I don’t use it. What can you tell me about it?

This is called a “motion lamp.” When the lamp is lit, rising hot air causes an interior cylinder to turn, making it look like parts of the picture are moving.

Several companies made motion lamps from the 1920s to the early 1960s. The scene on your lamp is known as “Forest Fire.”

It was one of 11 motion lamps made by Scene-In-Action Corp. of Chicago from 1927 until about 1936. Econolite Corp. made a similar Forest Fire motion lamp after 1946.

It’s best to use a low-wattage bulb in a motion lamp to avoid damage. The lamp should be rewired if you want to use it.

Tip: Clean the inside of a bottle with detergent powder and a Water Pik.

Current Prices

Furniture, cabinet, apothecary, wood, green paint, three over three paneled drawers with labels, turned knob pulls, single board sides with arched and squared feet, 1800s, 29 x 60 x 19 inches, $245.

Basket, Nantucket, splint, trumpet shape, wrapped rim, painted, 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches, $370.

Quilt, Friendship, embroidered and pieced, alternating red and white blocks, red blocks each with embroidered quilter’s name, white blocks each with picture embroidered with red floss, red binding, 1920s, 86 x 74 inches, $615.

Mechanical bank, Jonah and the Whale, cast iron, painted, Shepard Hardware, 10 1/2 x 5 inches, $1,170.