55

My First Screw

(submitted by Albert Beliard)

I never expected to become involved in the

hobby of collecting corkscrews, but I was one

day hit by that invisible collecting

“

bug

”

when

I was actually attending an antique gun show

in Orlando, Florida about five years ago.

As I was walking around the gun show

admiring Imperial German collectible pistols, I

happened to pass by a dealer

‟

s table which

displayed Third Reich items, and to my

unexpected surprise, I saw a spectacular

corkscrew which caught my attention from out

of the blue. I admired its combination of

features which were irresistible, and I humbly

asked to handle it. It had an ivory boar tusk

with a detailed sterling silver figure depicting a

hunting dog carrying a partridge in its mouth

and, moreover, those stunning ruby eyes

placed a spell on me which I shall never forget!

I asked about its provenance and I was told

that it was obtained from the hunting lodge of

Luftwaffe Field Marshall Hermann Goring

after the end of the war. I nearly fainted when I

was told the asking price of about $4,000, but

its exceptional beauty and its unavoidable spell

started my addiction for vintage boar tusk corkscrews. Unfortunately, I couldn

‟

t

afford the Goring corkscrew at the time, but it definitely made an impact on me,

and my

“

hunt

”

for ivory boar tusks

corkscrews was on its way.

I have found a few nice ones for my

small collection, and I especially love

those which are fancy or carved.

While I am still young to this area of

collecting, I always admire my few

corkscrews while sipping a good

glass of German wine.

I would like to thank Don Bull who

was able to find some images of this