u/Civil-Measurement245

Found this 20 x 24 oil-on-canvas portrait at a secondhand store in Maryland for $7, and I was drawn to the composition and vibe of the woman with a crow.

The painting itself feels midcentury to me based on the canvas and stretcher, but the clothing seems much older. Maybe Victorian or Edwardian inspired.

The woman looks elderly, dressed in white, with this dark bird shape behind her shoulder.

I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be a crow, raven, or something else entirely.

That’s what makes it so interesting. A crow or raven wouldn’t really be a normal pet, so it feels intentional and symbolic.

Maybe an omen. Maybe a memory. Maybe a theatrical prop. Maybe part of some character study.

I could see it being an art school piece, a costume study, or something inspired by literature or theater.

It’s rough, unframed, and has fraying canvas edges, but the mood is incredible.

There was also a same-size painting of an older man found with it, likely by the same hand, but this one felt much more significant.

The expression, the bird, and the strange quietness of it made it impossible to leave behind.

I found these two 20 x 24 inch oil-on-canvas portrait paintings in Maryland and am trying to identify the artist and date.

The signature is hard to read, but it looks to me like it may say “Joan K. Nathan” or possibly “Joan K Nath…”. There may also be a date or inscription below the name, but it is very worn.

Details:
- Found in Maryland at a secondhand store commonly handling estates
- Both are approximately 20 x 24 inches
- Medium appears to be oil on canvas
- Two portrait/figure studies, likely a pair or from the same hand, though only one is signed
- Unframed, rough condition
- Frayed canvas edges and surface wear/grime
- Back has some pencil markings but no obvious label that I can read
- My rough guess is mid-20th century, maybe 1950s-1970s, but I’m not sure

Photos include the front, back, edge, and close-up of the signature. Thanks for any leads.

Picked up this matching framed set of Victorian era design references for $17 total.

At first I thought they were just decorative prints from Homegoods.

Then I noticed the tiny text in the margins and how smooth the printing is.

They’re chromolithograph plates from The Practical Decorator and Ornamentist, published in 1892 by Blackie & Son and designed by George Ashdown Audsley and Maurice Ashdown Audsley.

They weren’t made as standalone art.

They were pages from a Victorian design manual, used by architects, painters, and decorators as reference for interior ornament.

Think:

ceiling panels
wall borders
friezes
corner details
painted decorative patterns

The style is late Victorian Aesthetic Movement: stylized leaves, vines, scrollwork, symmetry, muted color, and a lot of architectural balance.

Not quite Art Nouveau.

More structured and historicist, but definitely part of that beautiful late-1800s world of ornament and interior design.

After digging around, I found similar individual Audsley plates listed by print dealers around the $75 range, though actual resale is probably lower. Either way, not bad for $17.

I’m pretty thrilled to have found three little pieces of Victorian design history!

Picked this up recently for $3 and thought r/oldbooks might appreciate the story.

This is Morgan Robertson’s The Wreck of the Titan; or Futility, 1912 edition which usually contains an autographed insert from the author.

The original version of the story was published in 1898, fourteen years before the Titanic sank.

That alone would be interesting, but the similarities are what make it famous.

Robertson’s fictional ship is a huge luxury ocean liner called the Titan. It is treated as practically unsinkable. It crosses the North Atlantic, strikes an iceberg, and sinks with catastrophic loss of life. One of the major factors is that there are not enough lifeboats.

It was not literally a prophecy, but after April 1912 the parallels became hard to ignore.

Because of that, the story was re-released in 1912 after the Titanic disaster brought new attention to it.

This copy appears to be the 1912 Autograph Edition. The spine is still clearly marked “Autograph Edition,” and the text appears complete through page 243.

Condition is rough but interesting. The binding is red leather or leatherette with an embossed ship on the front board. The spine has wear/red rot, but the boards are still attached. Unfortunately, the autograph leaf and the title/copyright preliminaries are missing. My guess is that the signed leaf was removed at some point, or the front matter was lost as the binding deteriorated.

There is also a 1922 ownership inscription on the contents page.

Even with the missing prelims, it feels like a fascinating survivor.

I mostly wanted to share the story, but I’m also curious if anyone has a sense of value for a copy like this, given that the text is complete but the autograph/title leaves are missing.