RUSSIA IN VICKSBURG VIA THE POSTAL SERVICE

Without examining its contents, I bought an old stamp album at a local auction a couple of weeks ago. I wouldn't have normally bought such, but the price was so low ($5) that I couldn't resist. The US stamps were the best of the lot, but there were many stamps from other countries as well. I was most intrigued by the hammer and sickle images on the Russian stamps. These date back to just after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Though they're not valuable, they are a reminder of the country's turbulent past.

DUG VINTAGE DOLL PARTS

Along with the bottles and miscellaneous other diggin's that come from old dumps and privies, one will find parts of early toys, like this assortment of ceramic and bisque doll arms, legs, eyeballs, etc. 

Many have numbers that identify the manufacturer and the country of origin. They're not worth much, but they are interesting. 

MORE TREASURE FROM VICKSBURG: A PLEYEL UPRIGHT PIANO

This ca 1860 Pleyel piano, one of the very first uprights, came to us from an old family here in Vicksburg. It's in only fair condition; a restoration would yield a magnificent antique fit for the finest antebellum home. According to Wikipedia,

"Pleyel pioneered the player piano with the Pleyela line of pianos. These were often very small pianos of a very unusual design.

"Pleyel was the first to introduce the upright piano to France^{[citation needed]}, adapting the best features of pianos built in Britain. They introduced these pianos by 1815. Their pianos were such a success that in 1834 the company boasted 250 employees and an annual production of 1000 pianos."