It has been a while since we shared some of our weekend treasures. Rainy weekends and life have really put a dint in our easy breezy travels.  However, this past weekend proved fruitful.

On Saturday, I headed out to one of my favorites, the Golden Nugget Flea Market in Lambertville, NJ. My first buy was an Alfred Dunhill Silent Flame table lighter with a gold finish. These were produced between 1935 and 1944 by Parker of London Ltd., New York City. The original 1935 patent lists it as an electric cigar lighter.

Marketed as “Aphrodite” it is sometimes called the “Fan Dancer” after the famed entertainer, Sally Rand.  And, it was extremely popular during the Art Deco period.

These are not particularly difficult to find but are still quite collectable and can be costly. The exception is the rare Superman version which can sell for thousands. This one was extremely reasonably priced so I snagged it.

The next treasure I picked up is this reverse painted frame. What drew me to this is the accent color.  It’s difficult to see, but what looks almost black, is ruby red. It is truly stunning in person and a fitting tribute to the Joan Crawford photo that was included.

So ends day one of weekend treasures.

Since it was a nice morning on Sunday, back to the Golden Nugget. And what did I find? Another Alfred Dunhill, Silent Flame Table Lighter. But this time, in the chrome finish. Even more reasonably priced than the prior one, home it came.

Anthony has a collection of the 1939-1940 World’s Fair memorabilia. I got this souvenir booklet although I was sure he had one already. It is in excellent condition (and doesn’t smell – always important when buying ephemera) and it was only $5.00.

My best buy, and the treasure of the weekend is this Chase Stratosphere Ash Stand. Designed by Walter von Nessen, it stands about 26 inches high and weighs about 7 pounds. Not fun to lug around in an open air flea market on a hot and  cloudless day. But more importantly, it is complete with the ashtray insert.

This is not an easy piece to find, and even harder to find complete. The Stratosphere normally sells for well into the hundreds of dollars. Asking price? $45.00. A no brainer but I still checked with Anthony and got a resounding, “YES!”

When I bought it, it was complete. Then it wasn’t. And then it was. Let me explain.

So, I bought it when I was about halfway through the market. I got back to my car, packed things up and headed home. But when I got home, the astray insert, the hardest and arguably the most valuable part, was missing. I checked my car and it was not there. I figured I left it at vendor’s table. The only way for it to be missing is if the top was open and it slipped out. The only place it was open was at the vendors.

Now there were two issues I faced. The first is that there is no way to call a vendor table in the middle of a field.

The other issue with this flea market is that many vendors arrive by 5 in the morning and tend to leave by 10:00 – 10:30.

It was 10:15.

Luckily, I live relatively close, about 25 minutes away. To say I tore back there is an understatement. 17 minutes later and I was happy to see the vendor still there. Well, his table was there but he was not.

I spent the next ten minutes retracing my steps around the market in case I didn’t lose it there. This included looking under parked cars.

Not finding it, I headed back to the vendor and still he was not there.  I knew if he found it, he would have set it aside. I looked into his (open) van. Nothing. I looked all over, and under, the table. Nothing. And then I saw a small paper bag that seemed out-of-place. I took a chance and there it was! The heavens opened and the angels sang – AAAAAAA!

I asked the vendor next to him to let him know I came back and got it.

The lesson to take away from this is to check and double check things with pieces before you leave the vendor and before you leave the market or store.

So, there you go. Another successful hunt for weekend treasures.

Chris & Anthony (the Freakin’ ‘tiquen Guys)