Judy
Gold Post Medal for All Time! 677 Posts September 5, 20180 found this helpful
Mersman tables were made in the middle of the 20th century. This table is worth about $50, as it has some damage on the top.
September 5, 20180 found this helpful
I know they were made in Celina Ohio. Was trying to pinpoint the year this was made. I looked at Google images but have not seen this exact one . Mersman furniture is supposed to have a 4 diget number. This one has 5.
Pghgirl40
Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 196 Feedbacks September 6, 20180 found this helpful
Unfortunately figuring out the year of a Mersman is like finding a needle in a haystack. Even some of the big auction houses resort to just calling it mid century modern or pre 1930s or post 1950s.
Their numbering system was notoriously wonky. You have more of a chance of identifying the year based on how the name is written as the company had many names in its long and storied tenure. This article was helpful in understanding the different name:
www.harryrinker.com/col-987.html
If you had a lot of patience and access to information at the Smithsonian, you could search old catalogs and find an exact match to find the exact year:
americanhistory.si.edu/.../SILNMAHTL_30859
You can also check back to eBay to see if there is an exact match to yours (there was not one today either sold or active auction). Perhaps if the original owner was selling it, they would give the exact year.
As to valuing it....if you had an exact match of a sold piece, you could determine today's current market value. Anything else would be a guestimate.
If I were going to guestimate selling these in my market, I would guestimate that it would sell in the $30-50 range...yours has some condition issues which would have to be factored in.
If you are game to sell it online (like on eBay) you could always play the market and start the auction at 9.99 and see what the market bears for the item. If you felt strongly you wanted X amount, you could set that as a reserve....if you meet or exceed the reserve it sells, if not, it doesn't.
September 8, 20180 found this helpful
There were over 30 million pieces made during the life time of the company so it stands to reason there would be quite a few pieces of the same design.
- That does not necessarily mean you will see one exactly like yours up for sale or even that fact would make it more desirable or more valuable.
- The Mersman numbering system has always remained a mystery and no one has been able to come up with a list showing what the numbers mean but some have surmised that some numbers could mean the factory where they were made (there were several factories) and maybe the style but who knows? This does not seem to make the tables any more or less valuable so most just state they are mid century tables.
- The harp style tables are the most popular but most of the Mersman furniture runs in the $35 - $125 range. Some pieces sell for a little more money but those are mostly sold as "pick up only" so the value has a lot to do with the area where the table is located.
- The value of "common" furniture depends on several things; condition is very important, style, wood (color/stain may be more important than the type of wood), and last but certainly not least is the location.
- Shipping is very expensive and can sometimes be more costly than the item itself. That is why so many sellers list as pick up only or sell on local sale sites such as Craigslist, IOffer, LetGo, OfferUp, USA4Sale, or Facebook Marketplace.
- When listed on these sites the interested person can see the item and no shipping charges so these are good selling points. Most of these sites are free or charge small fees.
- I have seen many pieces of Mersman furniture with 5 numbers so it is not really that unusual and does not mean anything special but it may mean it is one of the later pieces to be made.
- If you decide to list on a local site I would suggest you take several pictures and be sure to show any damage as well as a picture of the Mersman name/number.
- You can always start at a higher price and lower it if no one shows any interest.
Here is a link to Mersman company history.
www.antiquetrader.com/.../
articles.mcall.com/.../3660941_1_occasional-tables-walter...
I would like to know the y\Year this table was made and it's value? It has number 134-02.
