4 replies to this topic

[Shini]

Today, I found something quite interesting.

 

An old box made of wood with the engraving "W. Ottway; London 1915." Curious as I am, I wanted to know more about the origin of this box. A fast search on the Google showed that W. Ottway was a well-known firm during that time for making telescopes and compasses. Surprisingly, my box contains four cups instead of scientific instruments.

 

So, I turned to reverse image search and could confirm that the company name on the cups was the same. On the other hand, I couldn't find any solid information or evidence of W. Ottway ever producing this type of box or even such cups.

 

Now, I find myself in a bit of a dilemma: are they real, or could they be unrelated to the company's historical reputation? More interestingly, what could their historic or collector's value be?

 

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Edited by Shini, 22 November 2024 - 09:21 AM.

[davidmcgo]

There is a lot of fake antique nautical themed stuff out of India these days.  Those kind of have that look.

 

Dave

[Couder]

There have been fakes (or more politely, copies) of things since there have been things. I agree, they have a new look.

[MisterDan]

My first impression upon seeing the "London 1915" emblem was similar:

"Uh-oh.  That reminds me of those collapsible 'Victorian Binoculars' often seen on the auction site."

 

An eBay search for "london 1915 brass" will turn up Dollond, Spitzer, and Ottway reproductions galore.  I'm guessing you may have discovered this, by now.

 

The box design is repeated for other products, as well.

 

"London 1915" on a brass plaque is an almost-foolproof indicator, I'm sorry to say.

 

Best wishes.

Dan

[Weisswurst Josef]

Definitely a fake. Typically made in India as said above.

The label looks much too fresh. And: ancient labels were engraved. This one is embossed.

For collectors it is absolutely worthless.