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Original boxes and packaging are desirable among many serious collectors of any item. Merry Mushrooms are no different. The sturdy boxes that Merry Mushrooms were packed in are just as interesting as the pieces themselves and went through design changes over the years.   The Merry Mushrooms wall tiles pop up from time to time on eBay, but these were the first I've seen new in the package. In the catalogs, and confirmed by the packaging, the tiles are described at being .02 inch thick aluminum with a baked epoxy finish. Sold from 1978 to 1984, the pack of 24 tiles included 14 plain white tiles, 4 tiles with a large mushroom decal, and 6 tiles with a small mushroom decal.   This item sat at a very modest price until a bidding war sent the price up to $129.50 plus shipping! They sold on November 16, 2020.
Turning any item over is instinctual for collectors. Is there a maker’s mark? Import sticker? A date or artist initials? All these are clues to identifying, verifying authenticity, and dating the object. update-merry-mushrooms-makers-mark.htmlMany Merry Mushrooms are backstamped, or marked, with some variation of “©Sears, Roebuck and Co.” and a variation of “Japan.” Some have printed or hand lettered text in black, others have a one of three stickers. Other variations are with or without a year, or a comma after "Co.". Maybe it has a makers mark. To keep things interesting, a few pieces seem to have no marks at all. This is a huge topic with many unknowns that will, hopefully, become known as this investigation deepens. You can help by sending photos of marks on your pieces.
In an effort to keep things organized, I'm planning a series of posts about marks, each one focusing on a single product that documents the different marks. And I picked a doozey to be first! For more on this topic, see UPDATE: Merry Mushrooms Maker's Mark. |
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