Hooked rugs were probably first made in the 1700s in the American colonies, but few remain that date to before the 1850s.

Early rugs were hooked on burlap that had first been a sugar or grain bag. Some backings were several bags stitched together, and it was the backing that determined the size and shape of the rug. A design was sketched on the burlap, then loops of cloth strips or heavy yarn were pulled through the backing. The strips of cloth used on early rugs were colored with vegetable dyes that faded. Burlap with a rug design traced in place was sold by Edward Sands Frost after the Civil War. He eventually stenciled the designs in color, making it even easier for a housewife to make a rug. Frost rug patterns were still being sold after 1900. The early, housewife-designed rugs are the most sought-after today, but any old hooked rug in usable condition is wanted by collectors.

Q: My 13-inch boy doll is dressed in a blue shirt, denim overalls and a denim cap with a brim. The cap has a “Lee” label on the front. Who made it? When?

A: Check the back of your doll’s body. If it’s marked “Buddy Lee,” it’s an advertising doll for Lee jeans. Buddy Lee was introduced in 1920 by the H.D. Lee Co. of Kansas City, Mo. Your doll is wearing a Lee railroad-engineer outfit. Buddy Lee dolls were made of composition until 1948. After that, the dolls were hard plastic until production stopped in 1962. A Buddy Lee doll, no matter what his age, is worth about $500 if he’s in excellent condition and wearing original clothes, including his cap.

Q: When I bought a marine retail business in 1962, the seller included an old advertising sign for Elto outboard motors. The framed sign is 40 inches high by 22 inches wide. The color ad shows a man carrying a small motor while walking toward a rowboat. There are two inset pictures of the motor, one showing it folded for carrying and the other showing it unfolded. Across the top are the words “Super Elto Lightweight.” Under the inset pictures is the phrase “Folds Like a Jackknife.” There’s an open area at the bottom advertising “N.E. Calhoun, Ocean View.” What is the sign worth?

A: The value of an advertising sign depends on its condition, size, age and the brand advertised. Elto is not a familiar brand today. If your sign advertised Evinrude or Johnson outboard motors, it would be more valuable. A Wisconsin man named Ole Evinrude invented the outboard motor in 1907. He founded the Evinrude Motor Co. that year, then sold the firm in 1914. In 1921, he formed the Elto Outboard Motor Co., which made a lightweight motor that was easier to carry than an Evinrude. In 1929, Elto and Evinrude were among a group of companies that merged to form Outboard Motors Corp. The Elto brand name was discontinued shortly after World War II. So, your sign dates from between 1921 and 1950. If it’s in excellent condition, it could sell for about $100.

Q: I bought a 10-inch pottery vase in a small antiques shop and hope you can tell me something about it. The background color is orange, but the painted decorations, including a butterfly and frog, are bright blue, red, yellow and green. The frog is really a sculpture that extends from the top half of the vase. It’s blue and yellow, with dots all over. The signature on the bottom of the vase is hard to read, but I think it says “Ellen Redznick, New York.”

A: The signature belongs to Ellen Reznick (without a “d”), an artist who has been working in New York City for about 25 years. She calls her line of dishes and vases Rezware. Your wheel-thrown, terra-cotta frog vase, which Reznick has made in many different color combinations, is probably her best-known design. New frog vases sell for $200 to $260.

Q: My husband is 72 and owns a large glass bowl that belonged to his grandparents. The rim has a flat edge, and there’s a square handle on one side. The clear bowl measures 4 inches high by 7 1/4 inches across at the top. A mark, “TEGCO,” is embossed on the bottom so it can be read from the inside of the bowl. Can you tell us anything?

The design of the house and the complicated borders suggest that this is a 20th-century hooked rug. It sold for 02 at a sale by Eldred's Auctions in East Dennis, Mass.

A: It is likely that you have a child’s chamber pot. It probably dates from the early decades of the 20th century. The mark has been used by a British glass company that’s still in business, the Technical Glass Co.

Q: I bought an orange-and-white guitar decorated with a big picture of Roy Rogers and his horse, Trigger. What is the guitar worth?

A: If your guitar is an original child-size Roy Rogers guitar from the 1950s, it could sell for close to $300. But during the 1990s, copies of the guitar were sold all over the country and packaged as “limited editions.” Those sell for about $10 today.

Tip

Santa Claus was often pictured in a mauve or blue suit before 1930. Any Christmas toy, postcard or decoration that shows Santa wearing a suit that is not red is worth extra money.