Dear Donna,
I believe this was from my first communion in the 1950s. I just realized the flowers are wax. I think my sister who is older used it as well. Can you give me any information on floral crowns? Can this be cleaned to pass down to my grandchildren?
Meg
Dear Meg,
Thanks for the pictures. They really help.
I would start off asking more questions of family, and looking at even older pictures. Sometimes crowns could start in one part of a family like a cousin and then get passed through to yours. This could have even been part of a wedding crown, dating it back to the early 1900s. So this could have a lot more family history. Wax flowers fall under millinery. They were commonly used with, on and for headwear — decorative flowers etc. The values on older pieces of wax flowers are in the age, detail, design and, as always, condition. The more details and colors the higher the values. I found values of wax florals like yours to be in the $40 range.
I think, Meg, your flowers look to be in good condition. Discoloration is expected so I might leave them. Cleaning them could result in some damage. Meg, I would see if I could find out if this was from family and where the crown started. This will give your grandchildren more appreciation for it as well. Family history of items is priceless!
Featured photo: Courtesy photo.