Ask the appraisers of Chesapeake Collectibles to share an insight and you get something akin to a masterpiece collage.
We proved this recently when we asked them to each pick a book they would recommend as indispensable or indelibly memorable for collectors. The results ranged from definitive reference works to art- and collection-themed novels you won’t put down once you start.
Before you print this out, we owe you some advice: Plan on your book budget going bust!
Kathleen Hamill (Modern and Contemporary Art): “The Art of Buying Art: How to evaluate and buy art like a professional collector,” by Alan Bamberger. Arguably the best reference book of its type.
Robert Harrison (Furniture and Decorative Arts): “Evaluating Your Collection: The 14 Points of Connoisseurship,” from the Winterthur Decorative Arts Series. Long recommended by Harrison for both clients and students.
Dennis Harter (Asian Arts): “A Cup of Light” by Nicole Mones. A suspenseful novel featuring an art mystery that ensnares an American porcelain appraiser.
Lisa Jones (Pottery, Porcelain and Glass): “The Rape of Europa: The Fate of Europe’s Treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War,” by Lynn Nicholas. “Have you ever wondered how the Mona Lisa didn’t fall into the wrong hands?” says Jones about the way the book grips readers.
Patrick Keegan (executive producer, Chesapeake Collectibles): “The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century,” by Kirk Wallace Johnson. A true crime chronicle about ... salmon fly-tying. Really!
Genice Lee (Generalist): “Furniture: World Styles from Classical to Contemporary,” by Judith Miller. Miller, who died last year, wrote more than 100 books on antiques and interiors.
Ed Moreno (Silver): “Utz,” by Bruce Chatwin. Another novel spotlighting porcelain, and in this tale the collection has “trapped” its owner in Communist Czechoslovakia.
Lex Reeves (Drawings and Paintings): “The Hare with Amber Eyes: A Hidden Inheritance,” by Edmund de Waal. A centuries-spanning family biography centered by a collection of Japanese netsuke.
Frank Shaia (Rugs and Textiles): “Oriental Rugs: Volume 1 Caucasian,” by Ian Bennett. A history rich in illustrations.
Allan Stypeck (Books and Manuscripts): “A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books,” by Nicholas Basbanes. An ode to books and those who adore them.
Patrick Redding (Firearms and Swords): “Flayderman’s Guide to Antiques American Firearms and Their Values,” by Norm Flayderman. Almost 800 pages of information and illustrations.
MPT Communication Department: “Saving Stuff: How to Care for and Preserve Your Collectibles, Heirlooms, and Other Prized Possessions,” by Don Williams and Louisa Jaggar. A guide for almost everything.
Happy reading and enjoy the world of discoveries within the pages of these marvelous books!
