Tales of All Hallows' Eve, Halloween
 by Dr. Jeffrey Lant
Excerpt from the Introduction:
One Fall day, when I was a student at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, a small party of my closest friends and I undertook to go out in the twilight fast falling, and see what we might see of the opening in the Earth's crust where every sort of noxious, evil, malevolent creature was waiting to come forward and populate the night scene with doom and despair.
 
We found ourselves in a small village, not a soul on the street, not a soul to be seen... but in one place: the cemetery. The cemetery was heavily overgrown with vegetation, heavy moss, and strangulating plants. The very aura of the place made us want to cross ourselves and implore “I beg of Thee, O Sweet Jesus, that at the hour of my death, Thou wilt show me mercy.”
 
There was something lurid about this place of the dead. And then we saw it. On an overturned tombstone, bright with creepers, this message: "Not Dead But Sleepeth". At once, we felt sure that that was a message for us to retire as quickly as possible back to the haunts of man, who craves the congregation of our still quick neighbors.
 
I have never forgotten that day, the haunted aspect, the omnivorous plants, the overturned tombstones, and the frightful possibilities which we saw clearly might emanate from such a place where death stands forth each Halloween and the aspect for all is frightening.
 
This is Halloween, and this, my book, is composed of stories that make it all explicable. Halloween is an acknowledgment that evil exists, and that evil is daily in confrontation with God and the Cosmos. Thus, each All Hallows' Eve, October 31st, the door to Hell swings open on rusty hinges releasing a terrible smell of burning flesh and brimstone, Prince Lucifer's luxurious perfume.
 
The doors to Hell swing open, bit by bit releasing the unlimited number of sad and woebegone creatures packed within 364 days a year, and released to carry on their noxious work. It must be done before midnight of the next day. And so smart people stay locked behind closed shutters, holding hands, singing psalms, and praying to God Almighty for relief, mercy, and absolution. For if the Devil is around this night, God is surely around as well.
 
All Hallows' Eve, most fervently celebrated by the Celtic peoples of Europe, is an indication that the great war between good and evil, between God and the Devil, is not finished yet. God ascends in triumph for all but 24 hours of the year. In these 24 hours, every transgression, every sin, every malevolence, is not only imaginable, but visiting your neighborhood to see who could be wooed to attend the macabre dances of Prince Lucifer, where burning flesh is the prevalent scent, because fire is the prevalent instrument.
 
We of course wish to think nothing on this terrible event which comes to call so many, and returns no one at all. Their motto: "Not Dead, But Sleepeth". And they wake up with a vengeance and a purpose on All Hallows' Eve.
 
This book offers five Halloween tales, each of which is intended to take you into this curious holiday, where the real meaning has been filtered out, leaving nothing besides sugar and delusion.
 
We start with the way Halloween was when I was growing up as a boy in Illinois, 60 years ago and more. In my role as a cultural historian, writer of many articles and books about human behavior and its various manifestations, I felt it my bounden duty to publish this story and show you what Halloween was like in bygone America.
 
The next tale deals with Ichabod Crane, a famous American character from Washington Irving and the Hudson Valley School of Literature. It makes Halloween come alive, although most of it is actually dead.
 
The next article deals with the quintessential Halloween fruit (yes, fruit), pumpkins. This tale takes you deep into the whys and wherefores of pumpkins, which come into this world with a clear objective: to frighten us to death when they are turned by deft carving into jack-o-lanterns, the fruit of our bizarre imaginations, and the pumpkins' ability to portray them. Kicking a pumpkin to death is technically akin to "Get thee behind me, Satan". Thus, those vandals who disrupt our coy holiday motifs may actually be doing God's work. It's a thought.
 
We carry on into the matter of witches. The Bible is very clear on the matter of witches and all types of sorcery:
 
“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord.” (Deuteronomy 18:9-12)
 
One aspect of Halloween which we wish not to consider is the matter of witches and their related colleagues in the black arts. We do not wish to believe what our ancestors so fervently believed... that witches are certainly here, that they communicate with the Devil, and are the handmaidens of his dark hours and purposes.
 
Finally, we end on a lighter note. It was not my intention to include this article, but Kris McNamara, my helper, said "Of course you must address the issue of candy. What do you think Halloween means to most people in the neighborhood and the nation. It means your God-given right to stuff yourself."
 
Think for a moment, of who benefits from the candy avalanche in your neighborhood. Dentists cheer. Candy companies hold riotous parties on Halloween night, when profits zoom. People making flimsy costumes that mock evil, and make it seem it is a matter of children, when in fact it is a life or death matter for everyone.
 
So candy sweetens the brimstone, and perfumes the fire of flesh. Oh yes, I forgot to tell you... the Devil owns 100% of the stock in every chocolate and candy company around the world. He sells the costumes. He even charters the dentists, whose enamels are so easily chipped by the excessive intake of fructose.
 
So who is the Number One beneficiary of All Hallows' Eve? Prince Lucifer. Remember, Lucifer was God's right hand man before he was banished from Heaven, and he left with every skill he ever had, including making sure that no one is really frightened by his works, when in point of fact, they should be on their knees begging for mercy.
 
You see, Lucifer is a clever public relations executive. He wants maximum dollars for minimum work... a true entrepreneur. If he came out and ordered his gruesome minions to frighten the entire population, he would not be able to maintain his comfortable, lucrative occupation.
 
Who sweetens the candy? Lucifer. Who designs the fetching wrappers, which catch your eye? Lucifer. Who puts the children on the streets to collar as much deleterious sweetness as quickly as possible? Lucifer, of course. So now today, I tell you this: this is Lucifer's day, and whatever you do, look carefully at every label. His expansive inventiveness will be apparent in everything pertaining to this long-standing tradition called All Hallows' Eve, Halloween.
 
And when the crevice in the Earth, which opened to release the ghouls, begins to close on rusty hinges, you may be sure that all the loot that Satan has cleverly amassed in such a short time is on its way to its final destination... the bottomless coffers of Prince Lucifer.
 
“Our God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come" (from the hymn “Our God, Our Help in Ages Past " by Isaac Watts. 1719).
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsHIwXTjAOU
 
This version is performed by Westminster Abbey.

Get your copy of "Tales of All Hallows' Eve, Halloween"
by Dr. Jeffrey Lant at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYVI08C

Today's auction at Sotheby's in London of European ceramics, silver, and objects of vertu showed me, as usual, front and center. As I sat by the telephone waiting for my auction representative at Sotheby's to call, I considered what traits you must necessarily possess to build a valuable collection and asset.
 
First, you must be constant in your task. Whether you like it or not, you cannot let an auction go by, for that may be the very auction in which the best deal of your life could appear. It happens all the time, especially to those who are assiduous, like I am.
 
Second, you must always be in pain. Ardent collectors know exactly what I mean. To build a valuable collection means extending yourself and popping up in the red at regular intervals. In other words, no pain no gain.
 
Third, you must be regular in your auction view, general research, and overall education in your field. You cannot say you're a collector if the last thing you purchased was five years ago in a flea market.
 
Fourth, you must want to astonish the rubes. One of the main reasons for collecting is to awe people who do not have your taste, sophistication, talent for skullduggery, and strategy. They need to see what you have done, and you need to be magnanimous in showing your brilliant work, after all, you have been assiduous, efficient, and determined, and your friends and neighbors should be given the opportunity to say so.
 
Now, having said all this, I welcome a new object in my family... this 17th Century silver dish. Now think for a second at how much water has gone under the bridge since 1659, when Johann Hofner of Nuremberg fashioned this bold and in-your-face composition.
 
For one thing, this period of European history found every King and Elector in constant war and thus in unending financial distress. What do you do when you need to pay the restive troops before they sack your palace? Why of course, melt every silver object you can see, and melt them quickly, since the money is overdue.
 
The melting of 17th Century European silver was erratic but thorough. Very few pieces of worth got through this periodic culling of valuable silver and gold objects. What you're looking at in this plate is one very lucky example of something that survived.
 
Now the last thing I need at this precise moment in my life is another valuable thing. In the next few weeks, nearly 50 lots of astonishing European artifacts of all kinds are arriving from London, just in time for Christmas. If I were a lazy man, a slothful man, a man inclined to self-satisfaction, or any other derelict collector, I would say "Ho ho ho" and declare that enough is enough, at least for now.
 
However, I am of the obsessive genre who goes just a little further, whether money is readily available or not, and whether I "feel" like going through the aggravation (for there is always aggravation in acquisition).
 
To achieve the best, to achieve the impossible dream, one must push one's self, like it or not. And that is why I was sitting at my end of the telephone line to London just a few hours ago, in the dark, in the cold, for Londinium is 5 hours earlier than Cambridge, and this was a morning auction (from my standpoint).
 
But it was all worth it. And so, a piece of rare 17th Century silver, dazzling, blinding, brilliant workmanship, finds a good home and a respite for its own constant travels, for you may be sure this stunning object has been atraveling throughout its long, lucky life. It has, for now, arrived at a comfortable locale, and that is enough for today.
 
A German parcel-gilt embossed silver dish, Johann Hofner, Nuremberg, 1659-60; the undulating border chased with flowerheads around a further central example between leaf scrolls, underside later engraved L.J.K.; 17.5cm, 6 3/4 in diameter; 115gr, 3oz 14dwt.

There are now three volumes of "Treasures from The Lant Collection". Dr. Jeffrey Lant, Founder 
Find them plus other books by Dr. Lant at: http://www.amazon.com/author/jeffreylant/

 
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About the author
 
Now 70, a bonafide septuagenarian, Harvard educated Dr. Lant looks upon his much favored life with happiness and joyful acclimation. Author of nearly 60 books and well over 1,000 articles, this is a man who knows how to tell a story and tell it well. To see his complete oeuvre, go to www.drjeffreylant.com.

In the 1950's, if you were lucky enough to live in Chicagoland as I was, you would inevitably encounter the Wanzer milk television commercial starring Carmelita Pope, "Wanzer on milk is like sterling on silver." And no doubt it is.
But I went for the cream, not the milk, on this trip to New York, and walked away with seven pieces of highly desirable antique silver. What's more, each piece was acquired at below the low estimate. Each and every one, that is to say all four were as reasonably priced as one could wish, always allowing for the fact that one had to pay something.
My Sotheby's representative was astonished that all four of my acquisitions came in at below the low estimate. "How did you do that?", she asked. No cat could have purred a better response.
Thus, this report from the silver lining is a testament to my modus operandi: how to acquire more for less.
First of all, this desirable outcome can only be the result of prolonged study and application. In short, you have to know what you're talking about. And it has taken me any number of years, plus any number of silver catalogs, from all the major auction houses across the world, to feel reasonably confident that I cannot be completely humbugged, and that, from time to time, I may be fortunate enough to outsmart the experts... which happened with these four pieces.
So, let us review my bounty.

Lot 715
First, four silver salad bowls by William Fountain (1819), fluted, the centers engraved with arms, marked on sides below rim. 67 oz 15 dwt; 2108.6 g; diameter 10 1/4 in; 26 cm.
This period of English silver is called Regency, after the Prince Regent, later George IV. Every element of the fine arts is stylish and in your face during the Regency. It is almost impossible to buy a bad artifact from the Regency, though many have tried (quite successfully too). And for those of you who have your lunch salad out of a styrofoam container, eat your heart out.
I shall be feeding milord and his lady with subdued, unmistakable splendor. By the way, the arms you see on these bowls are those of Neville impaling Cornwallis. You will remember Lord Cornwallis, who surrendered to the Americans at Yorktown, thereby ending the revolution. I hope his salad bowls cheered him up.

Lot 762
My second acquisition is a George II Silver Salver, Edward Feline, London, 1734; circular with lobed border, engraved with strapwork border and arms in a baroque cartouche; marked on base; 16 oz 10 dwt; 516 g; diameter 9 3/4 in; 24.8 cm; the arms are those of probably Aiton quartering Campbell, impaling Bottell, Fraxine or Ponsonby.
This dish is part of a set, dating from 1734, about the time English silver begins to be the envy of the world. Lovely, isn't it? When you pop by, I shall be sure to show it to you.

Lot 771
My third acquisition is a Queen Anne silver salver on foot, Jacob Margas, London, 1706; plain circular on trumpet foot, engraved with contemporary arms in baroque cartouche; marked on surface and foot; 15 oz 10 dwt; 485 g; diameter 9 3/4 in; 24.8 cm.
The thing you must keep in mind about silver from the reign of Queen Anne (1665-1714), is that it is valuable simplicity. At the Court of Queen Anne, people tried to impress each other (as they always do at a royal court), but it was impressing each other with how little decoration they could get away with, not how much.
Anne herself was a plain spoken woman, burdened by too much weight and the death of every child she ever conceived (13). But she knew who she was, and what people say is that the silver from her time is real, actual, not overwhelming, but always valuable.

Lot 779
My fourth acquisition is my only one from this auction from the Victorian age. It is a stunning inkwell, so emblematic of the age in which it was produced. It is heavy, impressive, in your face, bombastic... a thing to be reckoned with, used by the paterfamilias, whose desk in the library it would have graced, saying the the world, "Here's a good English gentlemen, a man of money, reputation, and stern consideration." Here is a description:
A Victorian silver large inkstand, Benjamin Preston, London, 1832; on four scrolled shell feet and with bold rococo borders; the central seal box supported by two fully-modeled eagles and topped by a taperstick, fitted with two silver-mounted cut-glass jars; marked throughout; 74 oz weighable; 2301.4 g; length 15 in; 38.1 cm.
I shall enjoy placing this stunning object, for it deserves our full attention. It will join what some are now calling the largest collection of inkwells in the world, and perhaps it is... after all, I know a good thing when I see it, and have snapped up any number of inkwells, a suitable emblem for writers, don't you think?
All three volumes of Treasures From The Lant collection can be found on Dr. Lant's author page at: http://www.amazon.com/author/jeffreylant/
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About the author
Now 70, a bonafide septuagenarian, Harvard educated Dr. Lant looks upon his much favored life with happiness and joyful acclimation. Author of nearly 60 books and well over 1,000 articles, this is a man who knows how to tell a story and tell it well. To see his complete oeuvre, go to www.drjeffreylant.com.
There, you will also find details on our Guaranteed Future Millionaire Club. You'll certainly want to join us.