Topic: Old English with "K" cane

[KevinH]

Mod: This message has been created from parts of another (hopefully I have got it right!)

Kari,

While browsing your excellent images in the photobucket site, I stopped suddenly at the "K cane close up" one.

If it has not been discussed before, could you please you post a separate message in here about that weight. I am sure that many of the folk using this forum will be very interested to see an Old English (possibly Arculus?) with a central "K" cane. Quite unusual, I suspect!

[Kari]

I'd be happy to post a new thread, but how would you like it to be presented?  I'm not great with pasting, etc., but as moderator...

Anyway it was an Ebay win, and I was told by other collectors that it couldn't possibly be a "K" - no such animal, but when it arrived, it sure looked like my initial to me!
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p241/kkrives/Img2370paperweights.jpg

Did that link work?

[Derek]

Hi Kari/Kev

Thats a very nice Old English weight you have there Kari and I agree with Kev on the possible attribution.

However I think that the "K" cane could be just an optical illusion. Turn the central "K" cane through 90 degrees anti-clockwise and what do you see - a clowns face ! In either of the other two orientations it looks like a distorted 7 and 6 cane, quite common in Arculus/Walsh Walsh weights. In fact the second ring in from outside in your weight is made up of distorted 7 and 6 canes.

Best regards

Derek

[KevinH]

I would agree that the most likely scenario is a distorted form of a "geometric" cane. I suspect the original cane had four separate round elements at the centre, each with white around a dark circular rod. During the making these types of cane can get "squidged" in various ways. In an enlarged view, the "K" does show two round-centred parts to the right with some apparent slippage of the dark colour that, by chance, links it all up as something else.

I believe that is also the case for what have become known as "7/6" canes (spoken as "seven and six", alluding to pre-decimal UK currency 'seven shillings and sixpence') and also some of those known as "window canes". Those descriptions are now accepted as part of the identifying features for many Arculus weights. I think the original setup of those canes was very much like that for the "K" cane shown here.

Derek's "clown" view is just as convincing as the "K" and maybe, if we see more of this particular cane, it too could enter the paperweight collector terminology as either "The Clown" or "The K".

I like this sort of thing - particulary when a "C" is found in Murano weights (see other messages in this forum) and is offered as proof of attribution to Clichy! 

[Kari]

Right, I was told while "watching" it on Ebay thazt it was likely 7 6 canes, but in person it reallly looks like a "K".

Still, the colors are appealing to me, and my husband who isn't a big fan of that type of weight really likes that one.  I'm really glad that it's inspired discussion, and I'lll have to take a closer look at that outer row.  Thanks for your interest!

[tropdevin]

Hi All

I was away when this thread was going on, but I show a 'K' cane in Arculus and Walsh Walsh weights in the article I wrote for the 2006 PCA Bulletin titled 'Alphabet soup'.

In that article I explain how the 7/6 cane is made, and how as a result you can find the 'letters'  A, B, C, D, H, J, K, V and numbers 1, 6, 7 and 9 at least!  They are all accidental, but can be realistic.

Alan