Syroco Wood Western Horse Head Tie or Belt Rack This Western style wood composition belt or tie rack was made by Syroco (Syracuse Ornamental Company) in the late 1930s to 1940s. The top decoration is a horse's head in a horseshoe shaped frame. The entire piece has a carved, antique wood appearance. The 12 metal hangers are secure and swing to both sides without problem. Two holes at the lower corners enable you to mount the rack on a closet wall or back of a door. The original black and gold foil label reading "Syroco Wood, Made In U.S.A. Syracuse, N.Y." is present. The back has some scuffing and wear. The front looks fine. An ideal vintage gift for the Western, horse, or cowboy fan in your life, male or female.

Circa: 1930s - 1940s
Country of Origin: US
Manufacturer: Syroco, Syracuse Ornamental Company  

Ornate Chrysanthemums Scrollwork Syroco Wood Trinket Box This beautiful old fancy trinket box is genuine Syroco Wood, made by Syracuse Ornamental Company. It's made of a molded wood fiber and resin composition, and has the highly detailed look of hand-carved wood. The color is a beautiful shade of redwood. It measures a little over 6" by 4", the interior is about 4" by 3" by 1" deep. It can hold jewelry, cigarettes, coins, whatever you wish and was probably marketed as a dresser or vanity piece (not quite the right size to be a true cigarette box).

The entire outside of the box has a lovely, ornately carved wood effect. The lid is completely decorated with scrollwork, flourishes, chrysanthemums and other flowers in an Art Nouveau style. Little brown felt dots on the bottom protect your furniture from scuffs and scratches. The gold and black foil Syroco Wood label on the underside dates the box to the 1940s, perhaps early 1950s. In excellent condition with no chips, cracks, or scratches.

Circa: 1940s
Country of Origin: US
Manufacturer: Syroco  

Arts and Crafts Royal Rochester Cherry Wood Inlaid Serving Tray A beautiful cherry wood and glass serving tray from the Arts and Crafts era by Royal Rochester. The tray has a super Arts and Crafts stylized design in the center. It looks inlaid to me, though it's hard to tell under the glass - it could be a combination of inlay and gold gilt or paint. The tray measures 17" by 12" not including the two side brass handles, 20-3/4" wide with handles. The underside has a pyrographic cartouche mark reading Royal Rochester with the number 011752. Four raised wool felt bumpers at the corners protect your furniture.

The tray is in wonderful condition for its age, with only a tiny scratch or two to the glass surface and minor finish wear to the corners of the wood. My apologies for the glare in the photos, it was hard to keep reflections off the glass and still show the beautiful red grain. The first photo was taken without a flash, the others with flash for better detail.

Circa: 1905 - 1915
Country of Origin: US
Manufacturer: Royal Rochester  

Syroco Wood Flower Bookends These 7" by 4-1/2" composition wood book ends were made by Syroco (Syracuse Ornamental Company) in the 1940s. The design on each is a spray of delicate flowers framed in a rectangular scalloped cartouche, made to look like finely carved wood. The bookends have metal stands and felt bottoms. Each has a small nick or chip to the back edge but the fronts show no wear or damage. One has a foil Syroco Wood label on the back, torn but readable.

Country of Origin: US
Manufacturer: Syroco, Syracuse Ornamental Company  

Antique Whitewashed Woven Wood Picnic Basket A wonderful old white washed woven wood picnic basket with a great primitive look from a Montana estate, 13-1/2" by 12" by 8" high not including the two bentwood swing handles. The lid is secured by two metal hinges at the back and a metal hook and eye closure at the front. I'm not sure if the whitewash paint is original but it looks it - it's definitely old, not applied recently. The bottom of the basket has one broken slat, not all the way across so it still holds - see the closeup photo.

Country of Origin: US
 

Miniature Carved Hand Painted Dutch Wooden Shoes, Holland Souvenir This hand carved, hand painted Dutch wooden shoes from Holland have hanging hooks on the back to use as wall decorations. At 5" long with about 3" or so of foot room inside, they could be used as doll shoes. The shoes are decorated with painted windmills, clouds, trees, and the word Holland on one side. One has a faint blue stamped mark on the bottom reading Made In Holland. Good vintage condition.

Circa: 1950s
Country of Origin: NL
Manufacturer: Mid Century Holland Tourist Production  

Antique Carved Wood Black Forest Style Thermometer Barometer I'm not sure if this antique European (probably German) carved wood wall thermometer would be considered Black Forest or not, as the design is not the typical rococo style. The shape and decoration have definite Arts and Crafts elements. The wood appears to be oak. The very dark finish is original. Measurements are 19-3/8" long by 6-1/4" wide.

The white porcelain enamel thermometer is marked for centigrade and Reaumur scale, an obsolete European unit of temperature measure. It works but I don't know how accurately. Note the wonderful spiral coiled thermometer bottom. The aneroid open face barometer has German or Dutch wording, I don't know whether it works. The beveled glass cover is original and undamaged. The wooden case is in excellent condition with only one scratch on the back. It has not been refinished. The only thing that might be considered a condition issue is that the thermometer plate slides a bit, exposing less than 1/8 of an inch of what looks like old paper behind it with columns of numbers (see picture 3).

Circa: 1895 - 1910
Country of Origin: DE
 

Souvenir Yellowstone Cedar Wood Trinket or Powder Box with Hand Painted Scene This nice old turned and polished cedar wood trinket, jewelry, or powder box was a souvenir of Yellowstone National Park. It measures 5-1/4" diameter and has a white Bakelite knob lid finial. Above the knob is painted in script Yellowstone Park, below it is a hand painted scene of a bear with mountains, grass, and blue sky in the background. The inside of the box is lined with heavy parchment. The box itself is in very good shape with no chips, cracks, or serious wear, but the painted areas have signs of age. The word Yellowstone is a bit faded and the bear scene has a ring or bubble mark in the lower right corner - I'm not sure what caused it - perhaps something spilled on it. There are a couple of tiny nicks on the edge of the lid, nothing noticeable.

Circa: 1940s
Country of Origin: US
Manufacturer: Unmarked  

Blond Wood Serving Tray with Hand Painted Deer in Forest Scene This blond wooden serving tray was made in Japan in the 1950s. It measures 17" by 11" and has metal reinforced corners and raised sides with carry handles at each end. The railing is attached with wooden pegs, the holes on the underside nicely finished with putty filling. The surface has a hand painted scene of a buck and doe running through the woods with bare birch trees at either side and patches of snow on the ground. The artwork isn't signed but there's a foil label on the back which reads "Made For Standard Specialty Co. Japan".

The tray has a thin crack to the wood at one side (see closeup) but it doesn't affect the stability or functionality at all. The finish is in good condition with no scratches, stains, or noticeable wear. I picked this piece up on a buying trip in rural Montana, and couldn't help but notice what a perfect setting it was for a tray such as this. It would look great in a country, cabin or lodge-themed room.

Circa: 1950s
Country of Origin: JP
Manufacturer: Mid Century Japan Import