Happy Valentine's Day. It's a lovely Spring day in southern Oregon and a good time to reach out to others with like interests.
There have been some marvelous Hendryx cages on the internet lately. I love to watch the cages come and go, sell or get relisted.
There's a gentleman 'out there' who is refurbishing the Hendryx scalloped cages. He's taking off the rust, refinishing them, stocking them with feeders and perches (original if available), and selling them on ebay as usable cages for feathered friends. He even includes a copy of the original care pamphlet that came with the cage when purchased.
There is a woman 'out there' who has impeccable taste in brass cages. I drool over the cages, bid on them, but she wins the bids. I'd love to see her home with the cages I've seen her purchase lately. Some are the best of the best.
Just when I think that I've seen the full array of Hendryx cages, something new comes up. Today I'd like to share with you an interesting, modified Hendryx cage. A woman contacted me recently about a cage she had. She was requesting information about the cage. She gave me permission to use it on the blog so that is what we are going to discuss.
Let's get some pictures in here first.
OK, what are your thoughts? What do you see? Interesting, isn't it?
The size of the cage is 12.5 X 15 X 15.5 inches. From base to top of scroll work is 24.5 inches.
The door tag has patent dates ranging from Oct. 27 (18)74-Dec. 20 (18)81.
The base has the Hendryx name on it.
I'm going to tell you what I see when looking at these pictures. You see if you agree. If you don't (remember, I'm just a Hendryx hoarder, not a professional), please write in and discuss what you see.
I see:
- an antique Hendryx cage that has after-market modifications by a metal artisan. A person with a creative mind and a careful hand modified this cage.
- I found this cage (unmodified) in my Hendryx trade catalogues from 1891 and 1904.
- The top scroll work has been added as you can see in the last photo. There's a nifty screw latch that holds the scroll work onto the cross bar of the cage.
- The bow has been added. On an enlarged photo, one can see solder marks on the cage near the bow. The Andrew B. Hendryx Co. did not use solder on their cages. They revolutionized cage making with their riveted construction. Bird vermin could collect and hide in the solder work and the company was very careful to build cages without using solder.
- The feet have been added. Although I haven't seen the attachment site on top of the base, my guess is that there is a screw to hold the feet in place. I've checked out my 4 Hendryx trade catalogues and haven't seen any cage with feet like this. The most elaborate cages had bases with open-lattice work or wooden bases. Most had the simple base with the slide clasps as seen in the photo, with either short cone-like feet or round nub-like feet.
- The finial has been added or modified. Hendryx finials incorporated a loop for hanging if the owner wished to do so.
- The in-bent wires where the feeders go have been cut to allow generic porcelain feeders to fit. This cage would have used the "T" feeders or the open opal glass feeders. This cage comes with Japanese feeders.
- This cage was well cared for. All the wires are intact except the feeder wires. The 4 slide clasps are present and in working order to hold the cage to the base. The scroll work was made to the size that would fit between the wires of the roof requiring only a little separation of the wires. The clean-out tray is still present. Most of the time these trays has been tossed by the time these cages come to market.
That's all I can think of at this time. It's a unique cage in excellent condition and it's for sale. If you are interested in talking with the owner, let me know and I will put you two together.
I would really appreciate comments on this cage. What are your thoughts about cage modifications? I talked on an earlier post about painting cages. What do you think?
Have a great Valentine's Day and a wonderful week. 'Til next time,
Hendryx Hoarder,
Barbara
2 comments:
Hi Barbara,
Appreciate your site! I have a question for you - according to your Hendryx catalogs, did Hendryx ever make copper or copper & brass birdcages?
Many years ago I purchased a copper Hendryx Dome Top Hanging Birdcage (no stand, however). I am going to be selling it (5 yrs of recession have taken their toll...), and received some information that I'd not heard before from an online dealer of pet-related antiques... I was told that Hendryx never made copper birdcages, and that the copper color was a defect in the copper.
Following that call I did a bit of research, and found the following information from two related sources relating to copper:
a) The reddish copper color that appears on brass pieces when subjected solutions containing liberal amounts of oleic acid, ammonia, acetone and water, can and will combine with the zinc in the brass depending on length of exposure, temperature and the electrolytic effects of other metal elements present in the cleaning solution. (brass is an alloy of zinc and copper)
The brass surface, "leached' of zinc will assume a copper or reddish color more or less depending on other metallic materials present.
b) Some of the cleaning solutions we use can leach out the zinc component in the brass alloy, leaving behind just the copper. This is why you get a "copper-plated" look from overly aggressive cleaning with these chemicals. The zinc is being dissolved into solution leaving the top layer of the brass with only copper showing.
The only way to get back the brass colour is to physically (not chemically) scrape off the layer of copper that is now showing on the part. This means using an abrasive, like Brasso or rouge. You'll have to test. Careful application with a small polishing pad on a Dremel may work but I would proceed very slowly starting with a fine abrasive and inspect the results frequently.
...needless to say, I don't know what to think about my "copper" birdcage, so any definitive information you may have would be most appreciated?
Thanks so much Barbara!
BB (I'm another Barbara, so "BB" might make communication less confusing!)
Dear BB,
Thank you for your note and interesting information. I am curious to know if the online dealer you spoke with was Mr. Cristiano of North Fork Pets. He has been helpful to me on several occasions. I respect the knowledge he has on cages.
I appreciate the research you did on the copper, zinc, and brass. That was very informative to me. I used to own a 'copper' hatbox and stand. The cage was a Hendryx and the stand was unlabeled. I would have bet you if you had asked me if it was copper or not. It looked just like it.
Here are the results of my trade catalog searches. I appreciate another reason (your query) to sit and pour through the catalogs. I do enjoy that time.
1891 catalog shows brass, gold bronze, and Japanned cages.
1904 catalog shows the same.
1926 shows cages offered in dull brass, polished brass, gun metal, and bronze. There were 4 cages--Mandarin, and the 3 Mission cages that were made in 'antique copper'. Then there were the Japanned, tinned, and enameled cages.
1930 catalog shows the brass, tinned, steel, and chromium plated as well as the aforementioned 'antique copper' Mission cages.
So, did Hendryx EVER make cages from copper? Yes, according to the last two catalogs I have. I have asked several times and gotten no reply for more catalogs. If anyone out there has later Hendryx catalogs,(post 1930) I would like to discuss obtaining copies of them.
The hatbox by Hendryx was definitely an Art Deco creation. Since I don't have catalogs after 1930, I can't give a definitive answer as to whether the copper one I had, and the ones on ebay, are really copper, or stripped brass. The same goes for your cage. If your cage is a pre-'30s Hendryx creation and you say it's not a 'mission style', I would say "no" as to whether it's copper. But that is only an educated guess from the books and experience I have with Hendryx. If your cage is '30s and later, or not a Hendryx, then it's anyone's guess.
I would certainly like to hear other people's input on this. It's an important issue to discuss. You brought up good information as to ways of stripping the brass of zinc. Maybe that's what happened to these cages 'back in the day'. I don't know. Please, anyone who's out there, reading this, and has information, write and help us out here.
I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful. I would certainly be interested in seeing your cage if you want to share some pictures. You could send them to 'tweetthings53@gmail.com.
Thank you, again, for writing and bringing up such a pertinent topic.
Enjoy your Spring.
Barbara
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