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Kovels’ February 2023 newsletter features modern desks and planters, artist jewelry, bride’s baskets, tin advertising trays and classic design, all with photos and prices.

A recent art and design auction in Los Angeles featured unusual desks by prominent midcentury designers, and examples are featured in Kovels On Antiques & Collectibles February 2023 newsletter. Pictured with eye-popping prices are desks by George Nelson for Herman Miller, Richard Neutra, Lynn McLarty and Michael Kirchner, and Paul Evans, along with the priciest example—an executive desk by Gio Ponti—that fetched $37, 500.

The same Los Angeles auction included more than 20 modern ceramic planters. Kovels’ February newsletter pictures some that were oversized, like the “Pig” planter by John Follis and Rex Goode that auctioned for $7,000, and some that were smaller, like the sleek, square pot by Marilyn Kay Austin that brought $2,300, but all would add a unique, contemporary look to a houseplant’s home.

Among the lots at another Los Angeles auction were some innovative jewelry made by well-known artists such as Georges Braque, Sonia Delaunay and Claire Falkenstein. Kovels’ latest newsletter pictures some of the rings, pins and pendants pins in a wide range of prices that gave collectors a chance to buy unique and striking jewelry and little pieces of history.

Nearly 40 brides’ baskets, art glass berry or fruit bowls in decorative silver-plated frames, were offered at a Kansas auction. They were elegant gifts given to sophisticated Victorian brides. Collectors continue to love them and pay high prices when good ones come to auction. Find examples of cased glass, satin glass, and peachblow glass bowls in intricate figural silver frames and stands in Kovels’  February issue.

Old tin serving trays are popular with collectors and a recent advertising auction in New York offered many interesting choices. Kovels’ latest issue pictures an assortment of trays with interesting graphics from an old factory scene to pretty women and cute kids that advertised beer, soda and ice cream, along with their selling prices.

And last, but not least, Kovels’ reports on a show in Paris with beautiful and timeless works from European masters—lavish antiques from the 18th and 19th centuries that ranged from furniture and lighting to fine porcelain. You’ll find a visual feast (and the healthy market for the classics!) in Kovels’ February newsletter.

The Kovels go “on the road” to Design Miami 2022 to experience contemporary art firsthand. The February Dictionary of Marks identifies marks used by European porcelain companies. The Collector’s Gallery answers reader questions about a vintage pop-up valentine, a shaving bowl, an antique linen press, and a German-made punch bowl with a “toddy lifter” ladle. And more than 70 antiques and collectibles are listed in the February Buyer’s Price Guide.