Episode 3 Antiques Master

This is Antiques Master,

the contest to find Britain's top amateur antiques expert.

Tonight, the battle continues as the country's finest antiques enthusiasts

fight it out at the magnificent Towneley Hall in Burnley.

They face a series of tough challenges,

testing their skills at identifying, dating and valuing antiques.

Ultimately, only one will be crowned Antiques Master.

Hello and welcome to Antiques Master.

I am Sandi Toksvig and this is the search

for Britain's top amateur antiques enthusiast.

In tonight's heat, we have three more amateur antiques enthusiasts out to prove their worth

as they compete for the title of Antiques Master 2011.

And, as ever, putting them through their paces, we have our resident expert, Mr Eric Knowles.

Now let's meet tonight's contestants.

Agnes Grunwald-Spier from Sheffield, who adores the elegance of Derby porcelain.

The thing that I love about Derby porcelain is the quality of the work they produce.

Jim Bischoff from Swindon admires craftsmanship of distinctive snuffboxes.

I don't mind questions on any area of antiques because I have a love of all old objects.

And Charlotte Howard from Wiltshire loves the timeless beauty of antique jewellery.

I was hoping to come in and just enjoy myself

but now I have the red mist in front of my eyes and I'm a typical Leo and I really want to win.

But who will have what it takes to win a place in the semifinals

and move one step closer to becoming Antiques Master?

Their journey starts now.

Your first challenge is about your antiques specialisms.

We know each of you has a different antiques passion

and we're going to put that specialist knowledge to the test.

Now, we have scoured the country for five glorious examples for each of you, and what you need to do

is to study them and tell me the following - which is the oldest,

which is the most valuable and which one is the odd one out?

You get ten points for each antique that you correctly identify

and there's an extra ten points if you can tell me the price

of the most valuable piece within 15% of its auction estimate.

OK? So let's see who's got a real eye for detail.

Agnes is first up. Her specialism is the decorative porcelain of Derby

from 1750 to 1848.

And the odd one out is a Derby copy.

So is there something straightaway about Derby that springs out at you?

Well, I think Derby has the best shapes.

-OK.

-And wonderful painters. This, of course, isn't painted.

Sorry to be silly about it, but does it mean it's not finished or it was designed to be like this?

Well, it could mean that it's very early.

What got you interested in antiques, Agnes? What was the thing that kicked you off?

My mother was interested in antiques and she brought me up to appreciate pretty things.

That's got black spots on the bottom,

which implies that it was fired white

-and subsequently painted.

-Do you like it?

-It doesn't ring my bell.

What does ring your bell? What about this one, which is more ornate?

It's very busy, and also an absolute devil to dust.

Now that's got patch marks underneath.

-Which means what?

-That they used to put little lumps of clay underneath for it to stand in the kiln.

Next one?

This is a very popular Derby shape.

I think this is probably about 1800, 1820,

because it's got the red mark underneath.

-OK, so possibly not the oldest...

-No.

-..but could be the most valuable?

I'm not quite sure.

Right, well we're going to have to hurry you along. Let's come on to the last item.

Any ideas of age or value or...

Are they Derby? That would be the main question we want to know.

Well, I don't know.

What would you use them for? Are they just knick-knackery?

They might have been pot pourri, because they have got holes at the top.

I find pot pourri such a silly thing, don't you?

Yes, but I suppose in the 18th century,

-when life was slightly more pongy than it is now...

-Fair point.

-..it would have served a useful purpose.

-So we're going to look for the oldest.

Which one do you think shrieks "age"?

I think this one is the oldest.

It ought to be about 1755, something like that.

Which one do you think is the impostor?

The one that is not from Derby.

-I'm going to have to hurry you.

-I think it's between that one and those on the end.

-We want an odd one out.

-I'll go for this one.

-Any reason why you think that's the odd one out?

It's because of the black spots underneath.

I think it might have been painted by somebody else.

All right, and the most valuable?

-That one.

-The one at the end. Any reason why?

Well, just the ornateness of it.

OK, you come down this way and stand with me. Well done.

Well, we'll find out how well done from Mr Eric Knowles.

I have to say, Agnes, you chose a tricky factory,

but we have got an item on here which is older than any other,

and I have to say unfortunately it's not what we've got here.

I wanted it to go in front of this sauce boat.

Because the sauce boat dates to 1758.

You mentioned the black specks. I think sometimes there would be little bits of debris

flying around in the kiln.

If they got a speck on the outside,

they'd put a flower over it, because this was an expensive material.

We now have to look for the odd one out and, believe it or not, it was this.

Because it's a figure by a man called George Cocker,

and Cocker was actually a former modeller at Derby who went solo.

So, let's find out which of what is left is the most valuable.

Well, let me tell you that these frill vases are the most valuable.

Yes, well done.

OK, so we've got ten points.

Now, there's still a chance to get another ten points, Agnes.

All you have to do is to tell Eric what you think the price would be at auction estimate within 15%.

Well, it's a pure guess. Perhaps...

-9,000.

-£9,000, Mr Knowles.

We're a little bit on the heavy side there, Agnes.

This we know has a price tag of around £2,000.

Well done, Agnes, you go away with ten points. Thank you.

Agnes walks away with 10 out of a possible 40 points.

Will Jim spot the oldest, most valuable and the odd one out in his specialism, snuffboxes?

The odd one out in your case is it's the only continental piece.

I'm going to presume from that, Jim, that there's an awful lot of British snuffboxes, is that true?

There are a huge number of British ones, but continental ones are usually more ornate

and they usually use silver, gold, porcelain.

So where does the snuff go?

This one is an interesting little boat with a hinge.

The hinge had to be very carefully made.

If you had a different type of hinge to this, the snuff would get caught in it, so you couldn't use it.

The hinge only came around 1780, I believe.

-You are a geography teacher?

-That's correct.

-How does a geography teacher get interested in snuffboxes?

I wanted something to collect when I was young and snuffboxes were relatively cheap in those days.

-Do you actually use snuff?

-Never taken it.

-No, OK.

Let's go on to the next one.

This looks like brass, but it might be Pinchbeck.

-What is that?

-It's a tin and brass mixture.

-There's a rather interesting compartment in the lid.

-What's that for?

-Maybe when you are being very mean, you offered your...

-"Oh, I've hardly got any, look at that," yes.

And then a better friend and a very close friend, the largest compartment.

Another boat one.

This one is inlaid with ivory, chip-carved,

possibly the earliest Because of the method of decoration.

OK. Great, another one that looks brass to me.

Lovely, though I have no brass boxes of my own. I think that is absolutely beautiful. Engraved.

Engraved with the name of the owner or...?

-Most likely. That symbol there could make it masonic.

-Masonic?

The Masons loved their snuff.

Most probably a cobbler's box.

Name on the lid of the owner.

-Nicely, little hammered nails into the surface.

-Now, we have to make some decisions.

First of all, let us look for the one which we think is not British, the one that is continental.

Remind me of why you think it's continental.

-The wood. I think it's amboyna.

-What is that?

-It's a wood used by the French...

-Oh, right.

-..Quite a lot.

-So that's our odd one out. What about the oldest?

Going to have to hurry you a little bit.

Yes, OK. I'll go for this.

-This one is the oldest. What age do you think?

-1760.

And very quickly, the most valuable, please.

-That one.

-Because?

-Boat ones do fetch a premium.

-Happy with your choices? Well, we'll find out.

Jim, you come and stand with me and Eric will put you out of your misery.

I must admit, as a youth, I tried it but it burnt my nostrils so I gave that...

-Does it make you sneeze?

-It certainly does make you sneeze!

Anyway, the oldest item that we have in front of us actually dates, believe it or not, to 1815.

But it is not this, I'm afraid.

Believe it or not, this is the oldest. This actually dates to 1815.

We've now got to look for the odd one out.

-Absolutely right.

-Well done. Ten points.

French and a fruit wood. I'm not sure if it's amboyna, but we do know that it's a fruit wood.

-Which leaves me holding this - the most valuable.

-Down the far end.

Well, it's nice, but whenever I go to antique fairs, I'll guarantee I'll see half a dozen.

But I don't see many like this.

And this one is the most valuable.

You didn't guess which one was the most valuable,

but there is still potentially another five points for you

if you can tell us the auction estimate within 15%.

I'd think around £650.

I was looking for something in the region of £450.

-So I'm afraid it doesn't get you the five points.

-Thank you.

Jim is tied with Agnes on ten points.

Will Charlotte's knowledge of jewellery from the Regency period

through to Art Deco give her a clear lead?

In your case, the odd one out is a 20th-century reproduction.

-Right.

-Here is the thing, Charlotte. I feel as though I already know you.

-Hmmm, I wonder.

-You are not the only member of your family...

-No.

-..that wanted to be Antiques Master.

-No, my mother came second last year, so no pressure today!

-No, none at all! Judith.

-Judith.

-The wonderful Judith.

I'm a bit nervous, cos I think, if I don't do well,

-the locks will be changed when I get home.

-Well, let's start here.

-Even I know that this is a cameo. I don't think it's giving anything away.

-No prizes for guessing a cameo.

-No.

-Yes. So this is a shell cameo.

Straightaway you know more about it than I do. How can you tell?

It would have been carved in a shell as opposed to a semi-precious stone.

-OK.

-It's quite a sentimental scene.

It looks a bit like Romeo and Juliet, Victorian, 1850s, something like that.

-Could it be our 20th-century reproduction?

-Not sure.

I will reserve my judgment until I've seen them all.

Right, this is a ring.

-You're good. You're good.

-I know, there's no flies on me here!

A nice little diamond sparkler

set in yellow gold, which is quite interesting.

Classic, clean Art Deco, but it could be later. This could possibly be the 20th-century fake.

It's a 20th-century reproduction. I like the word "fake", by the way.

Yes, I suppose on a posh programme like this you should say the word "reproduction".

Speaking of posh, here's the thing I want to know,

is it true that you were an MC for boxing?

-I have, yes.

-I love this.

-The world's only female boxing MC. It was a strange period of my life.

-Everybody should have many strange periods in their life.

-Yes.

-Now, the earrings.

These are Victorian, well, late-Victorian-style coral earrings in the style of...

They would be 1870s. I've got a feeling this is the fake.

-It feels a bit sharp and tinny. I'm not sure.

-All right-y.

-Gosh.

-Oh, I don't even know what that is.

-This is what they call a negligee pendant...

-Oh!

-..To wear when you're wearing your negligee. No.

-Seriously?

No, not really.

This is Art Nouveau, set in gold in gold and diamonds.

-When you handle as many diamonds as I do, you can tell by the spangle.

-What a marvellous sentence that is.

-Could be the most valuable?

-Possibly.

-OK, we've got one more item.

-Oh, this is nice.

This is a grenadier, like a little bomb with a flame coming out of it,

so it might have been made for the wife of somebody who was in the Grenadier Guards.

-So a sweetheart, as you go off to war...

-Yes, that's quite pretty.

So you think that might be the oldest?

-Yes, put that down as the oldest.

-All right, my lovely, let's go for the odd one out.

-You had that down as a possibility.

-Yes. I think that one.

-That one's the odd one out?

-Odd one out.

-The most valuable - are we going for the diamonds?

-Or are we going for the ring, maybe?

-Urm...

-The negligee or the ring?

-I'll go for the negligee.

-We're going for the negligee. It all looks marvellous.

Stand here with me and we shall find out just how marvellous it is.

Right, the oldest item that we have in front,

well, a date was actually given of 1850,

but it is not this, I'm afraid.

I wanted it to go in front of this, because the setting sort of tells you it's about 1850, doesn't it?

And consequently, it is the oldest.

Now, odd one out.

And in this business, as any collector, dealer will tell you,

-first instincts are worth listening to and you were quite right to go with your first instinct.

-Oh.

They are coral and they are gold, so they're not outright fakes,

-they are a reproduction.

-Right.

Which leaves us with the most valuable.

Well, the very wonderful belle epoque,

it's got movement to it,

-tells me it is the most valuable.

-So another ten points.

-Marvellous.

-And you could gain a further ten points if you can tell us the correct price, auction estimate...

-Right.

..within 15%.

Erm...

-1,200.

-I was hoping you were going to go

nearer the 2,000 mark, so I'm afraid not.

You did very well, you got 20 points.

Well done. Thank you so much.

At the end of that frankly rather tricky first challenge, I can tell you the scores are,

Charlotte is in the lead with 20 points

and Agnes and Jim had ten points.

One of you, sadly, will be leaving the contest at the end of the next challenge

but, frankly, it is still anyone's game. So let's go through to the green room for A Place In Time.

In the second challenge, we've selected five antiques all from different periods.

First is a decorative box.

Next, an elegant porcelain bowl.

The third item is a stylish coffeepot,

followed by a teddy bear,

and a pilgrim's flask completes the line-up.

The antiques have been placed in random order.

Each contestant will have five minutes to assess and position them

from earliest to latest on the Antiques Master timeline.

Ten points will be awarded for each one they get right.

The first item they must assess is the pilgrim's flask.

You look as though you have no idea what it might be.

It's obviously a decanter and they've been really unhelpful, there's no name at the bottom.

-Be good if they'd just put the date there.

-That's right, the date.

I'm not a great expert on glass. Nice folded rim on that. Very nice carving.

It's a shame it's not full.

What did you think it would have been full of?

I would hope wine.

-Why would you say wine?

-There are grapevine leaves on the top.

The silver gives me an idea that it's probably third quarter of the 19th century.

-Why?

-It's quite naturalistic, I think is probably the best way of describing it.

-The period I would have thought would have been late Victorian.

-OK.

I don't think it's Victorian. I don't think it's particularly Arts and Crafts.

I don't think it's Art Nouveau. I don't think it's Art Deco.

-Right. We're running out.

-So I don't know. I'm not sure about that.

OK, we'll leave that one to one side. And come on to Mr Bear.

The next antique to evaluate is the teddy bear.

No squeaker in there, I don't think.

The nose is...

-might be a bit of a gift and the arms are quite long which is...

-Which means what?

Earlier style of bear.

If he's a Steiff bear, he should have a nice little label in his ear.

-And does he?

-No.

But obviously everyone goes straight for the old button in the ear

to see if it's a Steiff but I don't think this one is a Steiff.

You can tell the date of a bear by how big the hump is, and also, if you can stand him on all fours,

the longer his top arm is, generally the older he is.

-So what kind of age?

-I would say he's '20s or '30s, something like that.

I'm just trying to remember whether the early Steiff bears didn't have the label.

-If they didn't, what kind of time would we be talking about?

-I think 1890s.

So the 1890s, roughly.

-Yes.

-So I'd put this about 1920s to 1930s.

The third artefact to be dated is the coffeepot.

-It's a lovely Arts and Crafts.

-But what gives the Arts and Crafts bit of it away?

The design on it. There is a mark on the bottom.

It doesn't say Liberty's. It doesn't say Tudric. It doesn't say Christopher Dresser.

So we don't know who the designer might be.

I assume it's Liberty & Co, is it? English pewter, sort of Archibald Knox's style.

It would be about 1915.

Well, it's the sort of late 19th century, 1870, 1880 onwards.

I'd put this in 1880 to...

Or later than that, 1890s.

The porcelain bowl now needs a place on the timeline.

It's a bowl in the shape of a shell, decorated with shells.

So for what? Sweets or for?

-Sweet meats.

-Does it say the maker or any marks or...

No, there's nothing helpful at all.

Absolutely no mark on it at all.

I have no idea where it was made.

Oh, it's got a mark on it and I've no idea.

-It's like a little arrow with a circle. It's English.

-Old?

-Early 19th century, I would say.

Quite early, I think.

Right, when you say "quite early", what...?

1820s.

I think it's quite early.

Second half of the 18th century.

The last antique to have its age assessed is the ornate box.

How's your wooden boxes?

-A nice chest.

-You're too kind.

It's a little bit cracked here. It's a problem with central heating.

You get a lot of this with wooden boxes.

Well, this is a lovely, lovely box with inlaid brass.

-Possibly a jewellery box.

-Right.

-Or for hankies or...

-Hankies!

I love the idea of having a box just for hankies.

I think this is in the style of Boulle, the French designer who did inlaid furniture.

-And when did he do this?

-The 17th century onto the 18th century.

This, I would say, is 1850s.

It's decision time.

They have just one minute to place the antiques in chronological order.

So let's start. Make some moves.

Charlotte swaps the first two items

so the bowl becomes the earliest antique and the box second-earliest.

I think this could definitely go here.

Jim places his two earliest items in the same positions as Charlotte.

I could be wrong. This could be earlier than that.

Agnes disagrees and keeps the box in the earliest position

and the bowl as second-earliest.

-I will leave that there.

-Leave that there. Right.

Charlotte is confident the pilgrim's flask belongs in the middle of the timeline and once again, Jim agrees.

I'm not sure about this one at all.

Agnes is perplexed by the pilgrim's flask, but she also eventually places it in the middle.

-What are you thinking?

-It's more Victorian.

But I could be completely wrong.

Everyone agrees the coffeepot is the second-latest item.

-I think I'll put the Arts and Crafts...

-Here?

-There.

And that the bear should be positioned as the youngest.

-There.

-With time running out, are the contestants happy with their decisions?

-Happy?

-Yes.

-Happy?

-I'm happy with that, yes.

I'll swap them over.

Agnes makes one final switch.

And so the bowl is your earliest?

-Yes.

-Which now means her timeline matches Charlotte's and Jim's.

Time's up. The contestants are in total agreement about the timeline of the antiques, but are they right?

I think so.

We're looking initially for the oldest.

I'm not convinced that this should be here. So I'm going to move that.

I'm going to move it so. And I'm going to place that so,

because you all enjoyed seeing that,

because this is a piece of Bow Porcelain, so it dates to 1750.

It's the most valuable item, because this is worth £2,000.

And it's worth ten points to each of you, because all three of you got that right.

So as we move through time...

we're going here. Charlotte, you said "fold-over foot",

which is very much a Georgian feature.

That gives strength to the rim. But the date we have on this is 1813.

And nobody should feel bad about it, because absolutely no-one got it correct.

Right, OK. I'm going here.

I'm going with the box.

You mentioned Boulle, Agnes.

And quite right, because Jean and Andre Boulle

were working in France about 1830.

Again, a very tricky one for everybody, because one of you put that in the correct place.

So we've got two items here vying for being the youngest.

Let me just move this little fellow there, because what we've got here

is a classic piece of Liberty pewter.

It may not be marked Liberty, but it was made for Liberty.

The designer - Charlotte, you mentioned - Archibald Knox.

So we know this has to be after 1902. But the bear -

he's got long arms, he's got a slight hump there.

The consensus on this bear is that he's dating from 1920.

So the bear is staying put.

What an extraordinary round because, in fact, all three of you made precisely the same decisions.

So you all three got 30 points and it does the following to the scores.

Charlotte, you had 20 to begin with,

so you now have 50, you are in the lead.

You will definitely be going through to the next round.

Agnes and Jim, you started with 10, you add 30, you each have 40.

This brings us to a tie-break situation.

So Eric is going to show you one of the items and we want you

to guess the value based on an auction estimate.

Whoever is closest to the value will be going through

to the final challenge. So, Eric, which piece are we going to be looking at?

I'm going to look at this piece, designed by Archibald Knox.

Knox grew up on the Isle of Man, so he was greatly influenced by Celtic design.

Please, would you write down your estimate?

Right, let's have look. Jim, please.

£1,250.

£1,250. And Agnes?

£850.

Who is closest?

At £800, it's Agnes.

Congratulations. At the end of that challenge, I can reveal

that Charlotte and Agnes are going to be going through.

Jim, it was a wonderful performance, but I'm afraid your Antiques Master journey ends here.

-Have you had a good time?

-Lovely, thank you. I've learnt a lot.

Charlotte and Agnes, you will be going through. At the end of the next challenge,

one of you will have a place in the semifinals. Let's go through to the red room.

Now, Charlotte and Agnes, there is just one guaranteed place in the semifinals.

It is time for your final challenge.

I'll start with an open question. Buzz if you think you know the answer.

Five points if you get it right, but there are five points taken off for every wrong answer.

If you do answer correctly, then you'll be able to choose

one of the five antique categories

for a further question worth ten points.

But get that answer wrong and the question will be passed

to the other contestant who could steal five points from you.

And the round will end after two minutes or when all five antiques are out of play.

Charlotte, you are currently on 50 points, but it's pretty close because, Agnes, you're on 40,

so there is everything to play for.

Time starts now with an open question.

In which Southwest city did English hard-paste porcelain production

begin in 1768? Charlotte?

-Bristol?

-No, the answer is Plymouth.

A pounce box is a cylinder with a sprinkler for a powder

that was used for what purpose?

Yes, Agnes?

-For a wig.

-No, for blotting or drying ink.

Founded in 1860, which Birmingham-based company

famous for their teddy bears were appointed Royal Warrant holders in 1938?

-Yes, Charlotte?

-Merrythought.

-Chad Valley.

What basic shape is the British-registered design mark first issued by the Patent Office in 1842?

-Agnes?

-A diamond.

A diamond. Correct. Agnes, could you pick a category, please?

I'll try Whitefriars.

Whitefriars. In 1923, the Whitefriars factory

was moved to which district now in the London Borough of Harrow?

-I can't remember.

-Charlotte?

Absolutely no idea.

Wealdstone. Open question, either one of you can buzz in.

What name is given to a clasp with a set of short chains attached to a woman's belt

and used for carrying household items such as keys and scissors. Charlotte?

-Chatelaine.

-Chatelaine is correct.

-Please pick a category.

-Jumeau.

Jumeau. What is the French name for the child dolls introduced by Jumeau

in the late-19th century?

Poupeau?

No, that's not correct. Agnes?

-Poupee?

-No, the answer is Bebe.

Open question. What word, meaning "to gape",

is used for a slant made on the edge of a mirror or piece of glass

for decoration or to protect against chipping?

-Charlotte.

-Bevel.

-Correct.

-Correct. Please choose a category.

-Rennie Mackintosh.

What is the name for this type of chair design by Rennie Mackintosh?

-Ladder-back?

-Not correct. Agnes?

-I don't know.

-It's called a Hillhouse chair.

END-OF-ROUND JINGLE

Well, that was an impressive display and I can reveal that the scores are...

Agnes, you have stayed on 40,

but Charlotte, you still have 50

and therefore you are taking the place in the semis,

and Agnes, my commiserations to you. How are you feeling, Charlotte?

Stunned.

Stunned. Well, let's see what Eric's verdict is.

It was a very close competition, but congratulations, Charlotte, well done all through.

And do join us next week, when three more determined amateur antiques enthusiasts

will be competing for the title of Antiques Master.

My mother was in it last year and came second,

so I hope to go one better and restore honour to the family.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail: [email protected]