Ancient Throne Found In Ruins

iTaggit encourages our users to show off their antique furniture collection in our gallery, but this newly unearthed piece leaves most others in the dust. The remnants of the first known surviving Roman throne have been discovered 82 feet below the surface in the buried city of Herculaneum. Herculaneum was engulfed in lava and ash in the year 79 when Mount Vesuvius erupted, killing thousands. Luckily for our generation, the layers of volcanic ash preserved the sites and are providing historical information on what domestic life was like in the ancient world. Even more remarkable about this piece is that it was found in the Villa dei Papiri, a first century country home believed to have been the residence of Julius Caesar's father-in-law. Archaeologists first dug the two legs and part of the back of the wooden throne that was decorated with ivory bas-reliefs depicting Greek mythological figures absorbed by Rome's culture. It is also decorated with images of pine cones and phalluses, as well as images of the gods Attis and Dionysus. A throne of this sort had only been seen in artistic depictions before now. The fragile antique remains will undergo a lengthy restoration while the dig in the Villa dei Papiri continues. The Villa dei Papiri was named as such due to the hundreds of ancient papyruses found in a library, and the site has only been partially excavated.

Classic Rolls Royce Sets Records

iTaggit has several impressive vehicle collections in our gallery, and this classic beauty would fit right in. According to British reports, the world's oldest surviving Rolls-Royce set two new records this past Monday when a private collector paid 3.5 million pounds ($7.22 million) for it in an auction at Bonhams. The winning bid makes the classic not only the most expensive pre-1905 car purchase, but also the most paid for a Rolls-Royce. This shattered the previous record for a veteran car purchase, which was 1.76 million pounds for an 1884 De Dion Bouton, and also the previous record of 1.48 million pounds for a 1912 Silver Ghost Double Pullman Limousine.
The newly purchased RR was built in 1904 and is only the fourth vehicle produced by the landmark cooperation between Charles Rolls and Henry Royce, which is still one of the oldest lines running. It is an open-topped two-seater with a small ten horsepower engine. It is in perfect condition after being restored in the 1950s, but was first exhibited at The Paris Salon in the Fall of 1904. This particular car carries with it a pedigree of sorts, as it was the only Rolls-Royce qualifying on the basis of its pre-1905 date to take part in the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. It first ran the prestigious rally in 1954.
If you are curious about managing collections of old car parts, or cars in general, post your queries to our blog board. We can also help manage collectibles from this classic car era by providing knowledge about your items.

A Real National Treasure Mystery

The National Treasure sequel is coming to theaters in a couple weeks and it has entertainment collectors abuzz, but what they might not know is that we have our own national treasure mystery going on display this month at the Library of Congress. A Wadseemuller map from 1507 has puzzled researchers from the moment it was discovered. It is the only known surviving copy of the 500-year-old map that first named this land “America”. The 12 sheets that complete the map were purchased from German Prince Johannes Waldburg-Wolfegg for $10 million in 2003 from his valuable collection of historical documents.
The German monk Martin Waldseemuller drew them after he was approached by the Duke of Lorraine, 13 years following the first landing of Christopher Columbus in the Western Hemisphere. The result he and a group of scholars produced two years later was remarkably dead on. The shape of South America is mostly correct, to the point that key areas are drawn proportionally to each other within 70 miles of accuracy. Also, the map gives a mostly correct depiction of the west coast of South America, but according to our history books, Vasco Nunez de Balboa did not reach the Pacific by land until 1513, and Ferdinand Magellan did not round the southern tip of the landmass until 1520. So, from what we currently hold to be true, it technically should not have been possible to construct this map so precisely with the knowledge that we believe they were limited to, but this is only part one of the mystery.
Waldseemuller was very clear in his naming of this new land “America” after Vespucci, a famous Florentine navigator who wrote letters describing his journeys to this new world. But for some unknown reason, Waldseemuller began to have regrets about the name, and in an atlas he produced six years later, he refers to it as “Terra Incognita” or “Unknown Land.” A few years after that, he digressed even further by reconnecting North America to Asia, and renaming this land mass “Terra de Cuba” (Land of Cuba) in the north, and “Terra Nova” (New World) in the south. Some speculate that political influences of Spain and Portugal played a part in the differentiation between the maps. One thing is for certain though. This map is the modern standard by which all further maps were developed, making it a keystone map, and an important piece in the developing understanding of the history of western civilization.

Comic Book Organizing Has Never Been Easier

iTaggit Comic Collectors:

It has come to our attention that Amazon has made it even easier for you to organize your collection of comic books on iTaggit. Use our easy Amazon uploader through the Add Things button. Then type in the title of the comic you are looking for. We are currently unsure of how far back their library goes, or how extensive their variety of titles is, but at least it might save you some major time on your most recent acquisitions. Let us know if we can help you find your comic book's value through our “What's My Item Worth” collection.

Five Elected To National Baseball Hall of Fame

The baseball card collectors have seen many ups and downs this past season, what with Bonds' record setting hit, to the Colorado Rockies' cinderella story, and the steroid scandal that made Americans question their favorite pastime to name a few. The off season has been considerably quieter and a historical vote has brought the classic baseball era back into the limelight. The National Baseball Hall of Fame recently revamped their rules and created a separate Veterans Committee ballot. On Monday, under these new rules, five managers and executives have been elected to enter the NBHoF. Joining the Class of 2008 will be World Series-winning managers Billy Southworth and Dick Williams, as well as former Commissioner Bowie Kuhn and owners Walter O'Malley and Barney Dreyfuss.
Williams played for the Dodgers in the 1950's, and as a manager, won the World Series in Oakland and pennants with Boston and San Diego. Southworth won the Series twice with St. Louis. They were both included on a ballot of ten that combined umpires and managers, and each received 13 votes from the 16 members on that particular committee.
A separate ballot of ten executives included O'Malley, who was the Dodgers owner during the teams' move from Brooklyn to Los Angeles 50 years ago. “I'm very happy and he would be very happy,” said O'Malley's son Peter, who sold the Dodgers in 1998. Kuhn is the fourth commissioner to be elected into the Hall of Fame and was active from 1969 to 1984. Dreyfuss is a former owner of the Pirates. He received 10 votes from the 12 members on the committee, while Kuhn received nine.
“This is a historic day for the Dodger franchise,” Dodger owner and chairman Frank McCourt said. “Walter O'Malley was a visionary who changed the face of baseball forever and we couldn't be more proud to see him earn his rightful spot in Cooperstown. We're very excited for both him and Dick Williams as they join the many Dodger players, managers and executives in the Hall of Fame.” Memorabilia from the era of any one of these influential gentlemen just had its stock rise a little more. If you have any items from a classic baseball team, be sure to post them on iTaggit.

Napoleon Bonaparte Love Story Manuscript

Historical documents always add great value to the collections of those who intently seek them out. Napoleon Bonaparte is one of the most infamous figures in European history, and he began his rise to prominence as a general during the French Revolution. He then staged a coup d'etat that landed him as the First Consul of France, which he parlayed into being the self-crowned Emperor. Later, by strategic alliances or by armed force, he gained control of most of continental Europe, which directly led to his disastrous invasion of Russia, followed by his infamous downfall at Waterloo. What most people don't realize is that Bonaparte was a writer, and before he moved on to political matters, he penned love stories. Recently, a single manuscript page from his 1795 short novel “Clisson and Eugenie” was sold for $35,400 at the Osenat auction house in Fontainebleau, France. The page had been part of a private French family collection and the buyer's identity was not disclosed at the time. “Clisson and Eugenie” was written while he was a 26-year-old general on his rise to the aristocracy, though it was never published in Napoleon's lifetime. It is believed he loosely based it on his brief romance with the sister of his brother's wife. If you have any items from a significant historical era, iTaggit is always prepared to help you manage your collections and value your collectibles within them.

A Fun Story Emphasizing The Importance Of Organizing Your Collectibles

Everyone has collectibles they value, and can recognize the little pang in your heart when one is misplaced. That is why we strive to get across the importance of organizing your collectibles so that you will never have one go missing again. Now, there will always be extraordinary circumstances that might happen, and for this original story in particular, it all came to a happy ending.
More than two decades after Aaron Giles lost his identity bracelet, he's finding how it was discovered tough to swallow. A meat cutter at Olson Locker in Fairmont came across the shiny object in a chicken gizzard and saw a name, address and phone number engraved on it. Giles had lived in Fairmont as a child and played hide-and-seek and other games with his brothers in their grandfather's barn near Sherburn. "I would spend most of my time out at his farm, and that's the only place I can think of that I would have lost it," Giles said about his bracelet on Thursday. The 31-year-old said he thinks the bracelet was lost when he was 4 or 5. The barn was dismantled a few years ago, and Giles thinks his bracelet was embedded in materials used to construct another barn in Elmore, about 45 miles away. The bracelet was found in a chicken that came from an Elmore farm. Giles, who now lives in Gloucester, Mass., said he received his old bracelet in September. "It was in pretty immaculate shape. Everything was working on it, and all the engravings on it were still legible," Giles said. "It was quite the surprise." Giles said he expects the bracelet to stay in his family for many years to come. "I have no plans on trying to lose it again."
I hope Giles' story brought you a smile for the coming weekend. If you happen on some old, perhaps lost, heirlooms, and need your collection valued, don't hesitate to add them into our “What's My Item Worth” section, and include your object's story in the notes for us to smile about.