Vintage Barbie dolls were auctioned in Ohio and are featured in a sale report in Kovels on Antiques and Collectibles September 2016 newsletter. Since 1959, Barbie and her fashionable clothes and accessories have reflected the styles of the times. See pictures and prices of pre-1973 Barbie dolls, as well as Francie, Barbie’s “mod” cousin, that sold from $10 to $2,000. Smoking may have fallen out of favor, but the market for tobacco-related antiques sure hasn’t burned up. Smoking-related items were sold at a California auction where figural lighters sold well. Kovels’ latest issue pictures lighters shaped like devils, dragons, a hunting dog, an art deco bartender, and even a desk holding a love letter that brought over $3,000. And prices were high for French post-war ceramics at two spring auctions in Paris. Pieces with clean, modern lines by prominent makers Georges Jouve and Roger Capron are pictured with prices—some in the tens of thousands—in Kovels’ September newsletter.

Art Nouveau furniture with its curvy lines and naturalistic decoration always attracts collectors and a Maine auction featured its largest offering ever. Included were pieces by Emil Gallé and Louis Majorelle, two of the most desirable names in French Art Nouveau design. Find pictures of tables with delicate marquetry that brought prices up to $7,700 in Kovels’ September issue. And maritime antiques sold in an online auction from $50 to $10,000. The auction featured many nautical-related “crossover” pieces that also had appeal to collectors of scientific instruments, tools, folk art and other collecting categories. Kovels’ pictures examples with prices and descriptions.

A birdhouse made from a metal watering can provides a “new use” for an old item, and a reader shares a story about the unicorn fur clip she bought online. The popular illustrated Collector’s Gallery answers readers’ questions about a modernist style brooch, bronze letter opener, 1898 calendar, and a “whatsit” that seems to have stumped even Kovels’ experts. September’s Dictionary of Marks lists French makers of cameo glass. And prices of dozens of antiques and collectibles are listed in the Buyer’s Price Guide.

Kovels on Antiques and Collectibles is available as a print subscription, or as a digital version that is part of the Kovels.com Premium subscription.