Nantucket House Antiques and Interior Design Studios, Inc. Collectibles Curiosities

Very Rare 1925 United States Navy Sailor's Whimsical Certificate for "The Domaine Neptunes Rex" admitting sailor Allen Smith as a "Shellback" aboard the USS RELIEF. Sailors from man...

Large U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Chart A of the Atlantic Coast, 1877, re-issued in February 1881, a printed paper laid down on linen navigational chart of the U.S. Atlantic coast...

Tony Sarg Map of Residential Main Street, Nantucket, 1937, a black and white printed map of our historic downtown area, with images of each building, street names and whimsical figur...

Vintage Nantucket High-Ways, By-Ways and Not-Ways Decorative Map by Tony Sarg, (Nantucket: 1880 - 1942) circa 1930, a decorative tourist map of Nantucket Island with details of roadw...

19th Century Chart of New England Coast: the U.S. Coast Survey Sketch A - Section 1, a triangulation chart showing the progress of the survey and details along the New England coas...

Antique French Nautical Automaton, likely from Marseilles, circa 1860, a glass domed diorama with windmills and cottages on hillside, overlooking harbor with ship rocking on waves to a musical tune. The interior of glass dome has a hand painted landscape with trees, village and expansive sky; the diorama features a carved or molded cottage and windmill with figures winding along path down to the water's edge; a paper or papier-mache barque rides on a blue tissue paper sea; a pull-string activated mechanism plays music, rocks the ship on the sea...

19th Century Carved and Painted Ship's Billethead, second half 19th Century, a scroll carved and painted wooden ornament from the bow of a ship. A billethead was a smaller carving used in place of a figurehead, mounted under the bowsprit of a ship. As the 19th Century progressed and the age of clipper ships saw a move towards ever more extreme clipper bows, there was a need to eliminate unnecessary weight aboard ship, especially in the bow (to avoid burying the nose into every wave), so billet heads...

Antique American Darting Gun Toggle Iron Harpoon, made by E.B. and F. Macy, New Bedford, for the Larboard Boat on the Whaling Bark Sunbeam (1856 - 1908), having an improved toggle head with acute barb (standing nearly at a right angle), and an unusual ridged cheek, with the maker's mark MACY stamped on the right cheek (the mark of E.B. & F. Macy, blacksmiths of New Bedford: 1861-1904), the ship stamp BK SB on the left cheek (for the Bark Sunbeam, and the dot punched boat mark L B (for the Larboard, or Second, or Port-side Stern whale boat); mounted on a round shank slightly kinked from use, ending in the spike end necessary for use with a darting gun, and the loop for splicing on the iron strap. An amazing artifact retaining a tremendous amount of historical documentation. The harpoon remain in very good condition with a still very sharp cutting edge and deep brown patina and no corrosion. The head is frozen, but in the absence of rust it would very likely free up with a little lubrication if so desired. The tip of the front barb has a small chip off tip. The slight kink to the shank comes from use and is considered by most to be a a good feature. The Bark SUNBEAM was built in Mattapoisett in 1856 and enjoyed a long career in the New Bedford whale fishery of 17 voyages to the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Clifford Ashley...

Antique Hand Colored Photograph of Nantucket Street Scene by Marshall Gardiner (1884-1942), circa 1910, a period hand tinted photograph entitled "Nantucket Shearing Cart and Quakers" showing classic grey shingled houses on a cobblestone paved street, with a couple in horse drawn cart riding away from the viewer, and four women on doorstep and sidewalk, all dressed in period Quaker attire. It is interesting to note that the couple in cart are seated on antique Nantucket Bow Back Windsor chairs. The photograph was titled and hand signed in pencil across the bottom of the old acid foxed mat; the photograph is now mounted in new archival acid free matting, and a photocopy of the original pencil inscription has been preserved on the reverse. The photograph itself remains in excellent condition. H. Marshall Gardiner (1884-1942) was born on September 18, 1884 in Windsor, Ontario, and immigrated to the United States circa 1890, where his father W.H. Gardiner opened two photographic studios, one in Detroit during the winter months and a second at Mackinac Island during the more tourist-oriented summer months. Recognizing the potential of Florida's rapidly growing tourist trade, around 1894-95 he moved with his family from Detroit to Daytona, Florida which proved much more accommodating to the family's photographic business during the colder winter months. Marshall learned many of his photographic techniques from his father prior to going out on his own at a relatively early age. Whereas his father generally used wet collodian negatives, technology had advanced to where he was able to use gelatin dry plates in his earlier years, and later the less expensive and much more convenient roll film. Another very important lesson learned from his father was strategy of setting up shop in a tourist resort. Early in his career he traveled to Bermuda where he shot a series of beautiful Bermuda scenes that he hand-colored and successfully sold over a number of years to the local tourist trade. Around 1910, at the age of around 24, he first traveled to the island of Nantucket. The year-round population of Nantucket was then just over 2500, not nearly enough to sustain a photographic business for the entire year, so he opened a joint Photography and Art Supplies Store. Working as Nantucket's exclusive agent for Eastman Kodak, his business expanded to include the island's only photo-finishing service. However, with such a small year-round population, even the addition of a Gift Shop to compliment the hand-painted photographs, general portrait...

Seascape with Clippership by George Howell Gay (American: 1858 - 1931), circa 1890, an oil on canvas bow view of a clippership under full sail, running with stun'sls and skysails set, on lively sea under blue cloudy sky, with a second square-rigger visible in the background, signed in the lower right, and titled on the reverse "Clipper Ship Before the Wind." A beautiful and dramatic painting with a cool, brisk feel. The painting is in fine condition, with one small patch along the upper margin and a tiny spot of corresponding inpainting. Measures:24 in H x 20 in W Framed: 29 in H x 25 in W George Howell Gay was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and educated in Chicago under Paul Brown and Henry Elkins, and in 1889 moved to Bronxville, New York. He worked in all media, but was especially fond of watercolor, which allowed him to capture the transparency of the ocean and the luminous qualities of sunlight and clouds. Gay worked along the Northeastern coast from Rhode Island to Maine, but also painted summer and winter landscapes throughout New England. Gay’s seascapes were exhibited at the Boston Art...

19th Century China Trade Seascape with a Junk, by Lee Heng, circa 1870, an oil on board seascape with large Chinese Junk under full sail in the fo...

Early Vintage Seascape with Portrait of a Schooner-Rigged Yacht, signed and dated Carl Schroeder, 1937, an un-tutored oil on canvas seascape painting with a port side view of a large schooner rigged racing yacht with all canvas aloft including topsails and staysails, smartly uniformed crew, captain and first mate visible on deck, a lookout posted on the foremast crosstrees, a burgee, pennant and flag flying on the fore and main peaks, with a one design class designation A-1 on the mainsail; a low-lying spit of land with red and white cottages is visible near in background beyond the bowsprit; signed and dated Carl Schroeder, 1937 in the lower right. The painting is in near excellent condition, with only a stretcher line visible down the left side and one small pin hole on the right side. The painting is mounted in a contemporary carved an gilded frame. The artist has not been identified, but the style and subject is consistent with either the American or Danish schools. The 1930s was a golden age decade for the J-Boats and other great ocean racing yachts. The A class designation suggests very large...

A military grade forged metal shovel with a protective leather cover used by the Swiss Army mountaineers during World War II.

19th Century English brass snuff box with copper top and bottom, remnants of old decoration throughout, circa 1850.

19th Century China Trade Pair of Portraits of Sea Captain and Wife, circa 1850s, matched pair of Chinese Export oil on canvas full length portraits of a Sea Captain and his wife, painted on commission in Hong Kong or a related China Trade port. The captain wears a double breasted wool greatcoat over a high collar white shirt with bow tie, black waistcoat...

19th Century Seascape with a Brig in High Seas, signed illegibly and dated 1857, an oil on canvas painting featuring a Brig laboring in heavy sea...

Antique grand banks dory fishermen seascape by Joseph A. Woods, circa 1910, an impressionist oil on panel seascape with two fishermen in dory in the foreground hauling back on their ...

Very rare 19th century Mayhew Family tree from Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, lithograph on paper laid on linen, printed in 1855, in form of liter...

Antique Louis XIV Siege of Arras floor screen, 19th century, a four panel screen with paper lithograph laid down on wooden panels, depicting the schematic pla...

19th Century Presentation Half Hull Model of a Whale Ship, circa 1850, a large plank on frame model of a bluff-bowed and wide abeam whale ship. The model wa...

Antique steel and brass quadrant, first half of the 20th century, made in London for the U.S. Navy, in very good condition with lenses, shades and scale. The essential mariner's navi...

Original program for the Nantucket Stage Company Production of "Dracula", signed by Edward Gorey, 1973. The Nantucket Stage Company (which became the Stra...

19th century child’s mahogany Bagatelle table, circa 1840, mounted on a period custom base. The shallow rectangular mahogany case is hinged to open as ...

English inlaid traveling chess board.

Antique American Marconi-rigged sloop Pond model with planked deck, double spreaders and full running rigging.

Canadian Pine blacksmith's tray with iron bar support.