How the two statuettes stack up

We've all seen actors hold up Oscars and Emmys in triumph, amazement and gratitude. Here's a little background on the statuettes themselves. Both are manufactured by R.S. Owens & Co. in Chicago.

OSCAR

First presented in 1929, the art deco statuette depicts a knight holding a crusader's sword, standing on a reel of film. It was designed by Cedric Gibbons, chief art director at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and sculpted by Los Angeles artist George Stanley.

Name: The Academy Award of Merit, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. One popular legend has it that when Academy librarian Margaret Herrick first saw the statuette, she remarked that it resembled her Uncle Oscar. The nickname became official in 1939.

Height: 13.5 inches.

Weight: 8.5 pounds.

Composition: Originally gold-plated solid bronze, Oscar is now britannium (a pewterlike alloy) plated in copper, nickel, silver and 24-karat gold.

Value: About $400.

EMMY

First presented in 1949 by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the statuette depicts a winged woman (representing the arts) holding an atom (representing the sciences). It was designed by television engineer Louis McManus, who used his wife, Dorothy, as a model.

Name: Originally called Immy, a term used for the early image orthicon camera, the name was modified to Emmy as more appropriate for a female symbol.

Height: 15.5 inches on a base with a diameter of 7.5 inches.

Weight: 6 pounds, 12.5 ounces.

Composition: High-grade pewter electroplated in copper, nickel, silver and finally 18-karat gold.

Value: About $400.

-- Michael Storey

Style on 08/19/2014

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