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Sep 29, 2011

NORTH POLE Padlock ~ Admiral BYRD Commemorative

Here is a second North Pole Commemorative padlock.






Beautiful old brass padlock commemorates Admiral Richard E. Byrd's Antarctic expedition. Manufactured by J. Walter Miller Lock Co. of Lancaster ,Pa. ( Company stopped producing padlocks in the 1930's ). There is no key, and the previous owner oiled the lock inside and out. The hasp has quite a bit of play, yet seems like it would be hard to close; there is a slight gap/bend in the outer plate near the joint. Looking inside, I see a rough edge where a piece of brass has been broken. I'm not a lock person so don't know the name of this part, but will try to show it in my photos. Cosmetically, apart from a bit of green paint, and the usual nicks and dings, this is a very handsome piece. - eBay (8 Aug 2011)
This padlock had a high bid of $356.33 (Plus $7.95 Shipping).
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Sep 26, 2011

1860 LILLY HANDCUFFS

These Lily Irons don't come up for sale every day.






---- ORIGINAL -- RARE set of LILLY - HAND IRONS - that are approx. - 10 3/4 inchs in lenght and the iron bands are approx. 1 3/4 inch ...........they are in super nice condition with a great dark old patina complete with the original LEAD PLUG at the bottom of the keyway barrel................they have OLD ORIGINAL markings of - l X - on all THREE bars on the underside..... one bar is also marked --- J. H. L. (which i believe stands for the name of the INVENTOR of the LILLY -- JOHN HORACE LILLY -- who it is said that HE died with a set of his own invention on as it is said that he died of the SAINT VITIS disease..........LILLY cuffs were made just before and DURING the civil war by the U.S. NAVAL MILITARY and also at prison camps like ANDERSONVILLE etc etc ..... they are also FAMOUS for being used on the assinators of PRESIDENT LINCOLN ........ . cuffs open & close great........and come with a WORKING KEY - eBay (25 Sept 11)
This set of Lily Irons had a Buy-it-Now price of $2,750 (Plus $20 Shipping) but failed to get any bids. Is this the same set as this one here? If so, the price has been greatly reduced. But what is a fair price for this item?
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Sep 12, 2011

Photos of a Collector's Collection

I recently received some photos from a reader who would like to shre images of his collection. It is an impressive collection indeed.






You are also welcome to email photos of your collection to share with the greater community.