Q:Could you please help me identify the maker of my small cast-brass tray? It's 6 1/2 square and very heavy. The central figure in the cast design is a spread-winged grouse. The piece is marked on the back, "Copyright 1948, Grouse" alongside a monogram that looks like VM above a C topped by a flagpole. Any information you can give me would be appreciated.

A:The monogram on your plate was used by a Virginia Metalcrafters, which was in business in Waynesboro, Va., from 1890 to 2005. The company was founded as W.J. Loth Stove Co. and originally made cast-iron stoves and wood and coal heaters. It entered the giftware business in the late 1930s at around the same time it started using "Virginia Metalcrafters" as a trade name. By the early 1950s, the company was making licensed souvenirs for Colonial Williamsburg, Mount Vernon, Monticello and other historical museums. When the company was sold in 1953, the new owner changed its name to Virginia Metalcrafters. Some sources say the grouse dish was made from a mold designed by artist Oskar Hansen, who sculpted the winged figures on Hoover Dam. Your plate would sell for about $50.