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Q While cleaning out our attic, I came across this cute iron dog. Value?

— Evelyn, East Moline, Ill.

Q My cast-iron dog statue is two pieces put together. An auction house was interested in it years ago, but I kept it because they were so interested. Dog has a horseshoe mark on the bottom of one foot.

— Marla, Hampton, Va.

A Time was, a well-dressed interior wasn't "done" until there was a brightly painted doorstop at the base of doors. In the United States, doorstops reached a height of popularity in the 1920s and '30s.

Relatively inexpensive, iron doorstops were a way of bringing art into the house for little money. Most commonly flat-backed, they also came as three-dimensional and two-sided flat casting. They were hand-painted, so each old original doorstop is individual and unique. That's why today's collectors admire them as folk art.

Stops were a major product for foundries and appeared in amazing variety and size. Floral baskets, dogs, houses, nautical scenes, Colonial ladies, fruit — there was something for every taste. Major makers were Bradley and Hubbard, Hubley, National Foundry and Albany. Smaller foundries made doorstops as well.

A photo sent with the first query shows a cast-iron three-dimensional Scottie with red collar. Scotch terriers were hugely popular in the 1930s, so the time frame fits. Value is enhanced if it has the mark of a major foundry. Somewhere, that dog probably has a mark.

An invaluable source for doorstop fans, "The Doorstop Book" by John C. and Nancy M. Smith (Schiffer, $49.95), has photos of marks.

Top dollar goes to rare examples in super original condition, and they are usually found at auction. See FYI below.

Collectors buy for subject or theme, rarity and condition. The No. 1 determinant of value is condition. Rust or repainting is a definite minus. Good design matters — it must be a pleasing example.

Caveat: Repros abound. Beware of grainy or pebbly casting and machine-ground mold marks.

The second letter concerns a two-piece stop in the form of a boxer. Note that when the auction house was "interested," she "kept it because they were so interested."

The pullback reaction shows up in a number of e-mails and letters we receive. Caution is one thing, but skittish doesn't accomplish anything. Smart collectors know that once the decision to sell is made, their job is to zero in on the most advantageous way to do so. When interest is expressed, get tough. Ask: "What is the current market for this item? How many have you sold, and what were the results? How will you promote and market my doorstop?" And, "Why should I consign to you?" If the answers satisfy, go for it. If not, move on.

The "horseshoe" mark puzzles, but might be the U in Hubley.

FYI: Bertoia Auctions, www.bertoiaauctions.com, specializes in cast-iron toys and doorstops. Michael Bertoia said that price range for Scotties (they came in many varieties) is $150 to $350. Last year, Bertoia sold a full-figure Hubley boxer doorstop in near-mint condition for $650.