26 ANTIQUE TRADER • www.AntiqueTrader.com • April 12, 2017
COLLECTOR FEATURE
‘Tiffany’ BelT Buckles: Cast From Fantasy and myth
Steve Evans
e Tiany buckles shown in this ar-
ticle are not what they appear to be. ey
are not 100 to 150 years old and were not
even made by Tiany & Company. ey
are fakes!
Several amboyant “myths” go along
with these belt buckles. Most stories
come from a history book about antique
buckles, but the book is just as fraudulent
as the buckles. It’s entitled “Tiany &
Gaylord Express & Exhibition Belt Plates”
by Percy Seibert, with a false copyright
date of 1950 (it actually came out in 1969
or 1970).
e release of these buckles into the
antique marketplace and then backing up
the authenticity with a book telling their
history, was a really big scam. e buckles
were selling for more than $100 each, that
is until word came out: “e buckles are
not legit.”
ey currently sell to collectors for $10
to $20 each, which is pretty cheap for a
50-year-old buckle. Sure, they have a bad
reputation, but it’s hard to ignore that
they are beautifully made of solid brass
and are originals, not copies. ey were
made to look as if they were produced
from circa 1860s to the early 1900s, but
none had been made previous to the
buckles shown in this article, which are
circa late 1960s/early 1970s.
ere have been more than 100 dif-
ferent Tiany models produced. ey
are usually pretty large, averaging 3 1/2
inches by 2 1/4 inches in size, and are
substantial in weight. e best examples
come with old-fashioned looking belt at-
tachments.
e stories that go along with the buck-
les are a combination of 30% actual history
and 70% hogwash. Markings on the back
of many Tiany buckles do make some
historical sense. On the back of the Abra-
ham Lincoln buckle it says “made by W. H.
Horstmann.” W. H. Horstmann actually
was a military manufacturer back in 1865.
e backs of other Tiany buckles are
sometimes stamped with the name A.J.
Nash alongside a beautiful Tiany logo.
Arthur J. Nash actually did manage Tif-
fany’s glass factory in Queens, New York.
is factory did not make belt buckles,
but did make the famous Tiany blown-
glass lamps, with early examples shown
at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago.
All of the buckles shown in this article
are stamped with the Tiany brand name
except for one – the Titanic Bon Voyage
buckle – but it certainly has the same
styling. Its brand is shown as “Deane
& Adams Mint, London, England,” a
name found on several buckles that most
likely come from the maker of the Tiany
fakes. Collectors generally agree that the
WELLS FARGO & CO. PONY EXPRESS
EDITION Buckle
The myth: This buckle came out in
1902 and was issued to all persons
connected with the U.S. Overland Mail
Service. It was made to commemorate
the 50th anniversary of the Wells Fargo
Pacific Division.
All photos courtesy Steve Evans
LANDING OF COLUMBUS Buckle
The myth: This buckle was made to
celebrate the 400th year anniversary of
Columbus discovering America and was
available at the Columbian Exposition at
the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The
buckle shows Christopher Columbus
setting foot on American soil with his
entourage.
SOUTHERN COMFORT Buckle
The myth: This buckle was sold for
one dollar inside the Machinery Hall
at the 1892 World’s Fair and was an
advertisement for the Southern Comfort
Whiskey Company. (The buckle has the
likeness of an 1871 painting called “A
Home On The Mississippi,” which was
an image actually licensed by Currier and
Ives to the makers of Southern Comfort
and used on labels of their whiskey
bottles.)
