Humidors kept cigars and tobacco properly

A reader sent us a picture of an item in an auction catalog that looked like a cookie jar decorated with racing horses, but it had a strange lid. What else could it be? Why horses on a cookie jar?

The lid and the size, 7 inches high, are clues. The jar is a humidor, a container for cigars, cigarettes, pipe tobacco and even cannabis that keeps the tobacco moist and shields it from sunlight, insects and damage.

Humidors were necessary and very popular in the late 1880s to early 1900s, when smoking cigars was a sign of masculinity. Most vintage humidor cases are made of attractive wood and lined with Spanish cedar, a wood that holds moisture and does not warp. It also has a pleasant odor and discourages tobacco beetles.

But humidors were also made of glass, ceramics, metal or even plastic.

The humidor pictured is marked with an "M" in a green wreath, the trademark used by the Morimura Brothers Co., a New York City import firm that operated from 1911 to the 1950s. The humidor is called the Kentucky Derby Scenic. It was probably made by Noritake, a Japanese company.

Q: What's the best way to clean a rubber doll? I've had mine for about 65 years, and it has a lot of sentimental value to me. It closes its eyes when it's laid down, cries when squeezed and has hair that can be combed. It's dirty from having been played with then left sitting in a corner. I cleaned it with Dawn detergent and water, but I don't think it did a thing. Is there something else I can use, or do I just accept that my neglect stays on the doll?

A: There are a few things you can try, but remember to test them out in an inconspicuous place, like the bottom of the doll's foot, first. It's better to have a slightly dirty doll than one that's ruined. Try rubbing off the dirt with undiluted detergent instead of detergent and water, or use a damp cloth dipped in baking soda and rub it on the doll. Other suggestions include rubbing the doll with an art eraser or using a damp "magic eraser." Just don't use anything that contains bleach.

A: Yes. You bought an Italian ice bucket made in the late 1960s by Fonderia d'Arte. The company made silver-colored barware with gold-colored trim designed by Mauro Manetti. Examples of this popular aluminum ice bucket sold for $400 to $1,000 this year.

Q: I have two curio cabinets labeled "Jasper." I purchased them in the 1960s from Harlem Furniture Co. in Dayton, Ohio. I was hoping that you could help me out with finding new keys.

A: If you don't see a key, check to see if it's taped in a drawer or on the back panel. Don't remove the lock, it will damage the furniture. Call a locksmith. Ask an antiques dealer or auction gallery if it can suggest a locksmith who repairs antiques. There are master keys for most types of locks — old or new, furniture, house or filing cabinet, even clocks and coin-operated machines.

Write to: The Kovels, c/o King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019. The website is kovels.com.

Prices are from shows nationwide.

Cut glass wine goblet, Val St. Lambert, Boris pattern, green cut to clear, crosshatching, diamond cut stem, rayed foot, about 1920, 7 inches, $150.

Advertising boot scraper, duck, scraping bar on back, Kendell O'Brien Lumber, Door & Hardware, painted cast iron, 17 inches, $275.

Rookwood pottery vase, yellow daffodils, dark brown ground, swollen neck, marked, Elizabeth Lincoln, 1907, 7 3/4 inches, $355.

Mechanical bank, Speaking Dog, cast iron, put coin on tray, girl's arm lowers, deposits coin, dog's mouth opens, tail wags, Shepard Hardware, 1885, 8 inches, $480.