If you’ve been around antiques for a while you may know the name Kovel. Ralph and Terry Kovel were known as “the duke and duchess of the antique world” for years. As partners in marriage as well as business, they wrote a total of 97 books and guides to antiques, starting in 1953. Ralph passed away in 2008, at 98. Terry is still passing on her knowledge to antique lovers.
Before we had the internet, Google, or AI to help us search for information, we had books and libraries. In the United States, many of those books were either written by Ralph and Terry or inspired by their knowledge.
Antique collecting was not their only passion. Ralph was a salesman, entrepreneur and inventor. Terry was a teacher, as well as writer and appraiser. Their love for collecting antiques and desire to spread knowledge lead them to finding ways to educate others.
The two met on a blind double date, each was paired up with the “other one.” Ralph was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, his family first moved to Kentucky, then on to Cleveland, Ohio where he graduated high school and went on to college at Ohio State University. From there, he eventually joined the Coast Guard during World War II. In 1950, Terry and Ralph were married. Terry was born and raised in Cleveland and attended Wellesley College. She became a teacher.
Meanwhile, Ralph was making a name for himself in the import-export business. He wasn’t happy doing so much travel, so he began a business as a food broker. This allowed him to spend more time home rather than traveling. He became a representative to the grocery and food service industry, selling Sweet and Low to Stouffers frozen foods and fresh potatoes to McDonalds. He eventually became an executive with Sara Lee Corp.
Being the entrepreneur that he was, Ralph started a new company in 1970, U.S. Brands Inc., a fulfillment and logistical services company. He was a senior vice president with Sara Lee, as well as president of U.S. Brands and owner and president of Lucayan Aquaculture, a Bahamas based shrimp farm, and owner of R&R Roosters, a restaurant in Cleveland, Ohio. All this in addition to creating the first widely recognized antiques identification and price guide. Needless to say, he must have been a very busy man. In the midst of all this, they had two children, Lee and Kim.
That first book, published in 1953, Dictionary of Marks: Pottery and Porcelain was a hit. The attention led to a column in the Cleveland Press the same year. The column, Kovels: Antiques and Collecting, was syndicated by 1955 and has been in publication ever since. The column was the longest running syndicated column still written by an original author. Meanwhile that first book was renamed Dictionary of Marks: Pottery and Porcelain 1650-1850, and joined by a sister publication Dictionary of Marks: Pottery and Porcelain 1850 to the Present. The original book is still in publication.
The couple continued to collaborate on books on all types of antiques, including silver, furniture, advertising labels, depression glass and more, building a multi-million dollar business over five decades. In the early 1970s, they began a newsletter. The newsletter is still in production as part of their website. They also began appearing on TV. They had several shows over the years, and were frequently guests on both talk shows and antiques-related shows.
The couple also spoke at colleges, auctions, museums, historical societies and more over the years. The website was launched in 1998, and contains loads of information from pricing, to identification, calendars, Q & A, and news. All of this can be accessed via a subscription, but much of the information is free to access as well.
The Kovel’s massive collection of books totaling 15,000, all catalogued and stored in their Shaker Heights, Ohio home, has now been donated to the Cleveland Museum of Art. The business, which has 15 employees, was sold to Active Interest Media, the owners of Antiques Trader, in 2023. Even though they no longer own the business, Terry and her daughter Kim continue to write their syndicated antiques newspaper column and are active consultants to the new owners.
With all the shopping, cataloging, researching, pricing, writing and questions answered over the years. Terry said they have only sold one item, an antique secretary desk. She said it wasn’t even a good one. But Ralph sold it to a business associate who really wanted it. She said he regretted selling it every day.
The Kovels unknowingly started a revolution. When they began purchasing antiques at house sales in the early 1950s, no one was buying or selling antiques as a business, and anything that was collected was normally passed down within the family, not purchased. Terry recalled that anyone who wasn’t very poor at the time would never be caught shopping at house sales. It was looked down on at the time. But she and her husband appreciated the beautiful pottery and porcelain they were finding, and expanded their collections over time. Without the Kovels, the industry of buying, identifying, and selling antiques may not exist. We truly have Terry and Ralph Kovel to thank for all they did.
A link to the Kovels website is here.
A link to Ralph Kovel’s Sept 6, 2008, New York Times obituary is here.
Terry Kovel remains the grande dame of antiques, from Kovels Antique Trader, April 27, 2021
Q&A with Terry Kovel from Arts and Antiques Weekly, Jan 2, 2018
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