"I'm Not Gaudy. You're Gaudy!"

I recently mentioned I was reclaiming a large room in my house that had been relegated to antiques storage for the past 10 or so years. Cram-packed, it was a daunting task. Making money was not my goal; it was simply to empty the room so I could give it a refresh. First, I asked friends to "pick" the room and take whatever they wanted. That barely put a dent in it. Then I connected with Melinda from the Peterborough Kiwanis Club and she has been my savior. First, acting as a middleman, she invited an antiques dealer she knew to go through the room and create a pile. They agreed upon a price and the proceeds went right to the club for their worthy charitable causes. Then she brought in some Kiwanis volunteers, and they loaded up two pickups and two SUVs with vintage items for future Kiwanis yard sales they have throughout the summer. And now, the room is probably 85% empty. There are large furniture pieces I'm keeping along with my physical musical collection and equipment. And, yes, I'm keeping my baby grand piano and two mannequins, Viveca and Margo. It is interesting to see what's still left behind though. Shaking off any indignity I might have felt about my stuff not getting picked, I'm sorting and re-picking some of it myself now. Boxes to be donated and a few boxes of things I'm going to keep and maybe re-introduce to the room once it's been overhauled. And there sat a lamp I'd bought at auction that I thought was very cool if somewhat over the top. It's an old pottery lamp with bright colors that somehow, I just thought had great appeal. Well, apparently others didn't feel the same way since here it sat on the floor. So, I decided to research what I have here. First, Google Images told me it was a vintage table lamp hand-painted in Sgraffito Majolica style, likely in Deruta, Italy sometime between the 1920s and 1950s. Well, oh my goodness, thank you! I then found a good antiques forum at antiquers.com that told me this style was produced for foreign export and that my lamp may have started out as a vase or urn and then converted. It also may have been a lamp from the beginning. Sgraffito means "to scratch" in Italian and Majolica is a tin-glaze that is usually identified with a classic cream background and vivid green, blue, yellow and manganese-red decoration. The handles I believed were gargoyles are lion-head mascarons, which was a typical decorative feature for Italian ceramics. Interestingly, the bird is considered a phoenix while I saw other examples of very similar lamps online that had more traditionally shaped birds. Apparently the sgraffito (scratching) happens after the intricate painting of the glaze, before being kiln-fired. Scratching through the glaze to reveal the clay's true color, each glaze color element is essentially outlined. I asked Google and ChatGPT for an estimated value of the lamp and they both placed it between $150-$400. On Etsy, I saw one listed for $440. More very similar lamps also came up on eBay and 1st Dibs in the same value range. Of course, the true value of any antique is what a buyer is willing to pay for it. Apparently my friends and Kiwanis folks just didn't see the lamp in the same way I did. For now, I'll keep it. Maybe find a better suited shade (I had the blue one on hand and thought it somewhat worked.) I'm intending my newly renovated large room to be a funky, creative space for music listening, project workspace and a dining space for larger groups. I think my old Italian vase will fit right in.