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$100 Gets These Off Your Chest

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By JAY MOORE

Tribune correspondent

Published: January 11, 2009

Please tell me about my doll that still has the original clothes and box. It is in excellent condition. It is marked "Debteen" and was made by Uneeda. It has been in the family for years.

T.S.L.

St. Petersburg

The original Uneeda Doll Co. manufactured dolls from 1917 to 1991 in New York City. Over the years, the firm produced many models. Most were made of cloth, composition and vinyl.

This Deb doll with a wedding dress was manufactured during the late 1960s or early '70s. The original box adds value, especially because the doll never has been removed and played with. It would retail for $100.

I would like information about my hand-carved camphorwood Chinese chest. A relative who traveled while in the U.S. Navy handed it down to me. It is marked by a San Francisco firm.

J.B.

Tampa

Your chest was made in the 1950s or early '60s and imported by a company in San Francisco. Most of these chests were left in a natural state, but this one was painted ivory.

It would retail for around $100. Camphorwood chests are still being made and imported. Sizes vary. Early camphorwood chests are very plain, with brass banding and corners. They were used as shipping crates.

Have a question about antiques? E-mail a complete description with a clear, high-resolution digital image in .jpg format to baylife@tampatrib

.com. Include a name, address and daytime phone number. Regular mail can be sent with clear photographs (not computer printouts or Polaroids) to Jay Moore, BayLife Magazine, The Tampa Tribune, P.O. Box 191, Tampa FL 33601. The large volume of mail may mea

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