KNOW YOUR ANTIQUES : EARLY FORM OF INSTANT CAMERA DEVELOPS INTO A CLASSIC.

Byline: Ralph & Terry Kovel

When Dr. Edwin H. Land announced the ``instant'' camera in 1947, many people proclaimed that the Polaroid Land camera was the first instant camera ever made. It WAS the first camera to use a paper roll to produce pictures right after they were taken, but there were earlier inventors who were able to make other types of ``instant'' pictures.

W.H.F. Talbot suggested a daguerreotype camera in 1839 with extra parts to hold mercury. The mercury was vaporized to develop the image almost as soon as the picture was taken.

One camera in 1855 had a built-in ``darkroom'' so the photographer could reach inside to develop the photographic plates.

The first successful instant camera was patented in England in 1864 by G.J. Bourdin. It was called the Dubroni. The developing fluids were put into the camera back with a small tube. The Dubroni was made in at least five sizes.

It is very rare. A complete camera with the entire developing kit would sell at auction for $10,000 to $15,000.

Q: My straight-back chair has been in our family for many years. It is marked on the back: ``L. Hitchcock. Hitchcocks-ville, Conn. Warranted R.'' Is it an original Hitchcock chair?

A: The letter ``R'' in the mark is a giveaway that your chair is a new one.

Lambert Hitchcock used that mark without the letter R on everything he made between 1825 and 1832. In 1949, The Hitchcock Chair Co. was formed to make Hitchcock-style chairs. It has used the mark you describe since 1952.

Q: Are rhinestones clear stones made to resemble diamonds? I've heard people refer to colored gems as rhinestones. Who's right?

A: Most dictionaries define rhinestones as colorless stones made from glass, paste or gem quartz.

Collectors consider faceted-glass artificial gems of all colors to be rhinestones. Rhinestones come in every color, plus clear and black.

Q: I have an old 7-1/2-inch silver fork with two tines that point out. It is useless to stab pickles or olives. I was told it is actually a baked potato fork. How was it used?

A: Victorian dinner parties were more elaborate than some of our state dinners. There were about 12 courses. Each course had special utensils for serving and eating. A complete silver tableware set for 12 could have as many as 1,900 different pieces.

There was an asparagus fork, an ice cream fork, a pickle fork, a lemon fork and many more, including a baked potato fork.

Your fork was used to puncture the potato and place it on a dinner plate. Some experts call it a ``sandwich fork,'' although how it might have been used to serve a sandwich is a mystery.

Eating out in Victorian times was an important social event. Those who had been brought up with ``old money'' and experience at large parties knew the correct fork to use. If you didn't know the proper silver piece to use, it indicated that you were not well-bred.

Today a fashionable table might be set with some of the odd serving pieces, but it is considered clever to use the server any way that works. A sugar sifter could be used for grated cheese, for example, or an asparagus server for small rounds of pizza bread.

A pair of sterling silver baked potato spoons sold recently for $225.

Current prices: Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.

Boy Scout walking stick, sterling head, 1920s: $50.

Hawaiian ceremonial bowl, hula girls and island scene, 1940s: $74.

National Women's Trade Union League postcard, 1903: $80.

Bit brace tool, No. 144, maple handle, octagonal chuck, marked ``Made in England,'' circa 1940, 10 inches: $85.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: This Dubroni camera is one of the world's rarest cam eras. It was sold recently at auction in Germany.