0:00:33 > 0:00:39Today, we're in North Devon, in the ancient market town of Barnstaple.
0:00:39 > 0:00:46Market towns had a habit of springing up around a river. Barnstaple's river is the Taw.
0:00:46 > 0:00:51It has been improved once or twice, but there's been a crossing here for the past 800 years.
0:00:51 > 0:00:57Barnstaple is the oldest borough in England, and in Saxon times was allowed to mint its own coins.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01If only old age brought everyone that privilege!
0:01:01 > 0:01:06By a useful quirk of geography, the town was a busy port as well.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10Ships sailed from here to help sort out the Spanish Armada,
0:01:10 > 0:01:15then trade with the Americas - wool and tobacco - made the town rich.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Some wealthy merchants turned to philanthropy
0:01:19 > 0:01:25and, as a testament to their generosity, there are three groups of 17th-century almshouses.
0:01:25 > 0:01:32And there's another kind of generosity on display in the Guildhall. This is the Benson bowl.
0:01:32 > 0:01:38It was donated in 1745 by Thomas Benson who was campaigning to become an MP.
0:01:38 > 0:01:44Now, young Thomas had the contract to transport convicts out of the country, presumably to the Colonies,
0:01:44 > 0:01:49but he only took them as far as Lundy, 12 miles off the Devon coast.
0:01:49 > 0:01:55He was prosecuted, but he claimed he'd only said he'd take them out of England, so he got away with it.
0:01:55 > 0:02:00The people of Barnstaple claimed that Mr Benson was from Bideford,
0:02:00 > 0:02:02but the silver stays in Barnstaple.
0:02:02 > 0:02:07Barnstaple has held on to unusual features like Butchers' Row -
0:02:07 > 0:02:14a parade of open-fronted shops still occupied by bakers, fishmongers and...butchers.
0:02:14 > 0:02:21This is the Pannier Market - so called because horses and donkeys used to bring in the goods.
0:02:21 > 0:02:27Today's the day for traditional produce, and many stallholders are themselves part of the tradition.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30- ..Hello.- Hello. - Did you make all this?
0:02:30 > 0:02:35- Yes. Me and my daughter make them. - Great. I must take a few scones.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Thank you very much.
0:02:37 > 0:02:44Today's Roadshow is in the same leisure centre that we visited 14 years ago, and that was a good day.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Our experts are ready to appraise the treasures in store this time.
0:02:48 > 0:02:53It certainly makes life easier when they write it all out on the back.
0:02:53 > 0:02:59My interest in enamel is in the way it's been made over the years,
0:02:59 > 0:03:04and I think it's interesting to look at the back of this.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06So you have a thin sheet of copper,
0:03:06 > 0:03:12enamelled on both sides so that it doesn't spring or bow,
0:03:12 > 0:03:14and when you turn it round...
0:03:14 > 0:03:21It's just wonderful, isn't it? When you think this has been into a fire, 10, 15, 20 times.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26- Yes.- To build up this extraordinary luminescence on the skin,
0:03:26 > 0:03:30it goes back into the fire, and if you get it wrong,
0:03:30 > 0:03:36- bang - start again, throw it away. - It's an incredible skill. - This is quite a big enamel.
0:03:36 > 0:03:41It's a big miniature for this particular artist.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45You can see small flaws in the surface. They're small dust marks -
0:03:45 > 0:03:49not on her face or body, but up here in the drapery,
0:03:49 > 0:03:53and they accepted that. You couldn't scrap it because of small flaws.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58But just getting on the large size to keep the really good quality.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01But all the details are on the back.
0:04:01 > 0:04:08"Lady Georgiana Charlotte Quin, third daughter of George John Earl Spencer KG."
0:04:08 > 0:04:11- Is that the famous Georgiana?- No.
0:04:11 > 0:04:18- It's not.- To the best of my knowledge, it's her sister and I'm pretty well certain it is.
0:04:18 > 0:04:25The other...Georgiana was married to the Duke of Devonshire.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28- This one married into the Quins. - Yes.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33Born 1794, died 1823, which is a tragedy, isn't it?
0:04:33 > 0:04:39- It's only 30 years.- Yes.- Of course, it is the family of Princess Diana as well.- Of course.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42"London, August 1833,"
0:04:42 > 0:04:48which means this is a portrait that was a memento mori - it was done 10 years after she died,
0:04:48 > 0:04:53- in memory.- Yes.- "Painted by Henry Pierce Bone, enamel painter
0:04:53 > 0:05:00"to Her Majesty and their Royal Highnesses the Duchess of Kent and the Princess Victoria,
0:05:00 > 0:05:02"from a miniature by George Hayter."
0:05:02 > 0:05:10Looking in the records, we see that a number of miniatures were done by Bone for the Spencer family.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12Wonderful.
0:05:12 > 0:05:17- It's made my day, because I'm fascinated by enamels.- Thank you.
0:05:17 > 0:05:23If it's insured for anything less than £10,000, then you should put it up, in my opinion.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Ah. Jolly good.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30That's very nice to hear because I paid eight for it.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33- I bought it 40 years ago.- Mm.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37And I was told...
0:05:37 > 0:05:45that it was made by the chaps in Shapland and Petter's as a wedding present for one of their colleagues.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49- Right, do you know when it was made?- I would say...
0:05:49 > 0:05:54it's between 70 and 80 years old.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57- Right, so 1920?- Yes, yes.
0:05:57 > 0:06:04- Well, let's look at this piece. It's typical of the Art Nouveau period, very plain, very restrained.- Yes.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06I really love the wood.
0:06:06 > 0:06:11- Yes.- When you think of these trees - grew for 100-200 years.
0:06:11 > 0:06:15- Spanish oak.- Spanish oak? - Spanish oak.- Why Spanish oak?
0:06:15 > 0:06:20- Because English oak is darker. - Dangerous ground there,
0:06:20 > 0:06:26but interesting. What is nice about it is the way it's been cut to show the medullary rays.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30When you get that, it means that it's somebody who is spending money.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34The idea of cutting the wood like that is to make it more decorative
0:06:34 > 0:06:38at a time when decoration is all important.
0:06:38 > 0:06:43This Art Nouveau decoration you can see on any cabinet for Liberty's.
0:06:43 > 0:06:48Liberty's of London. You've got a nicely made drawer, it's very solid,
0:06:48 > 0:06:53- no sparing the wood there.- Oh, no, there was no sparing the wood.
0:06:53 > 0:06:58Big dovetails, but still handmade. The planing would have been done by machine.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- Yes.- But what is nice...
0:07:01 > 0:07:07is that when you open it up, you can just see - I can only just make it out -
0:07:07 > 0:07:14- "S&P" - Shapland and Petter...- Yes. - "B" for Barnstaple.- Mm.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17- The local interest is fascinating. - Yes.
0:07:17 > 0:07:23I wonder how many people will look at the locks on their cabinets, after seeing this,
0:07:23 > 0:07:27because I bet they all thought it was a lockmaker's name.
0:07:27 > 0:07:33- Yes. I can remember when they were still making furniture. - When was that until, then?
0:07:33 > 0:07:37How far can we go back?!
0:07:37 > 0:07:41Until the war, when it became a shirt factory.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45- Right. Because I believe they were working from about 1890.- Oh, yes.
0:07:45 > 0:07:50- Up until just before the Second War, something like that.- Yes, yes.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55- I like the fact it hasn't moved far. It's got lots of quality features, expensively made.- Yes.
0:07:55 > 0:08:01Probably cost a few guineas when it was made, 10 guineas, let's say.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05- What did it cost you after the war? - It's written on the back.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08- £9-10s.- That's what it cost you?
0:08:08 > 0:08:13- That's all I paid for it! - Nine pounds, ten shillings. £9.50. - Yes.- Right.
0:08:13 > 0:08:18I think today we've got to put a figure of about £2,000 on it.
0:08:18 > 0:08:24- Not a bad investment for £9-10s! - It's a good investment, and local value, who knows?
0:08:24 > 0:08:26- Yes.- It's very interesting.
0:08:26 > 0:08:31Er, these pieces were all made by my family, my father's family.
0:08:31 > 0:08:37This pot was made by my great, great, great, great-grandfather, George Fishley.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39The great old George Fishley.
0:08:39 > 0:08:46He had such an influence on potters in later periods, because Bernard Leach and all the others,
0:08:46 > 0:08:49they greatly admired his work.
0:08:49 > 0:08:55It's so exciting, this piece. What is it? A posset pot or...?
0:08:55 > 0:08:57I think so, yes.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01So you take the lid off and you serve posset out of it
0:09:01 > 0:09:05and it's decorated in this wonderful coloured-in slip.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09So a pot like that is the beginning of the Craftsmen Potters movement
0:09:09 > 0:09:14- which is now so famous in this country.- Yes.- What a super piece.
0:09:14 > 0:09:20- What are we looking at? About 1800 in date?- Yes, yes, early 1800s.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23Good heavens. If it was mine I'd be cremated and put into it.
0:09:23 > 0:09:29- A good idea!- Absolutely wonderful. And this is a personal family thing as well.
0:09:29 > 0:09:35- Yes.- It's a copy of one of the great harvest pitchers, I suppose?- Yes.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39This one was made by Edwin Beer Fishley for his daughter's marriage.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43- The date of the marriage, is it? - Yes.- 1892.
0:09:43 > 0:09:50And this wonderful inscription - of course, they were geniuses at sgraffito work,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54carving into the slip to release the red clay underneath.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56These marvellous poems...
0:09:56 > 0:09:59It's great. "Success to the farmer,
0:09:59 > 0:10:05"the plough and the flail, may the landlord ever flourish and the tenant never fail."
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Oh, I think it's absolutely great!
0:10:08 > 0:10:12- A super pot...- A surprise for you.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15My heavens! Oh, this is wonderful!
0:10:15 > 0:10:17This is Lord Kitchener.
0:10:17 > 0:10:24The warships of England. "Ever watchful of the deep, guarding our England while we sleep."
0:10:24 > 0:10:30- And this was made in the First World War.- 1917. - Sir John Jellicoe, 1917.
0:10:30 > 0:10:35- Made in Braunton by William Fishley Holland.- Right.
0:10:35 > 0:10:41So here we come - virtually up to date from there, to this, with the sgraffito work.
0:10:41 > 0:10:46My golly. You're not probably worried about the values, are you?
0:10:46 > 0:10:52I'd just be curious to know. I mean, it will never be... It will always be with us in the family.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54These are such personal things,
0:10:54 > 0:10:57but eminently collectable now.
0:10:57 > 0:11:02This wonderful posset pot - I don't know what that would fetch -
0:11:02 > 0:11:05it must be a few thousand pounds.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07These are very desirable now.
0:11:09 > 0:11:16I was very close to the front of the stage and I just had this scrap of paper and decided to hand it in,
0:11:16 > 0:11:22- and managed to get the paper back again with the autographs. - And did you actually see them sign?
0:11:22 > 0:11:28- Or did an assistant take them away and get them signed? - No, I didn't see them sign it, no.
0:11:28 > 0:11:35Right. Well, we'd have to get an autograph specialist to verify that these ARE the signatures.
0:11:35 > 0:11:42Because it's quite possible that the assistant didn't go to the Beatles at all, but scrawled them himself.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46But they look convincing to me. What do you think?
0:11:46 > 0:11:50Well, my son has Paul McCartney's signature on a photograph,
0:11:50 > 0:11:57and I have to say that it's very similar to this - whether it's Paul or the same friend doing it for him,
0:11:57 > 0:12:00- but that IS familiar. - And what's this here?
0:12:00 > 0:12:05Well, I was a bit naughty. As we were coming up the stairs,
0:12:05 > 0:12:12- I decided to pull one of the Beatle's hairs.- Did you, really?- I did. - What a terrible thing to admit.
0:12:12 > 0:12:19- Which Beatle?- I think it was John Lennon, actually.- Really?- Yes. - You were so in love with him
0:12:19 > 0:12:23- that you stuck the hair into your autograph album?- I did.- Brilliant.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Well, if these signatures are right,
0:12:25 > 0:12:31they're quite likely to be worth in the region of £1,000 to £1,500.
0:12:31 > 0:12:36Really? Would it be possible for Michael to sign the autograph book?
0:12:36 > 0:12:41- Well, it might draw down the value. Or you might like one of these?- Yes!
0:12:41 > 0:12:44- These are little signal cannons. - Yes.
0:12:44 > 0:12:50No doubt fired to ascertain the time of day, or duties, or whatever.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54Now, because these little fellows are on here,
0:12:54 > 0:12:57they are probably Chinese cannons.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01- Oh, really?- Yeah.- So what is the little fellow? Are they dolphins?
0:13:01 > 0:13:04- No, they're little dragons. - Little dragons.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08- Now, that is about the smallest howitzer I've ever seen.- Oh?
0:13:08 > 0:13:12- I mean, for the serious business that it has to do.- Yes.
0:13:12 > 0:13:19- It's made of bronze, so therefore, like these, they haven't deteriorated much in the water.- Yes.
0:13:19 > 0:13:26A collector for this type of small cannon barrel would pay something like £200 a barrel.
0:13:26 > 0:13:33- Really?- But the little howitzer - I can see that fitting into a nice cannon and arms collection,
0:13:33 > 0:13:41and I believe a collector would be prepared to pay something like £750 or even £1,000 for it.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45- Gosh, it's been sitting in the loft for years.- Really?- Yes.- Oh, well.
0:13:45 > 0:13:50- You bought it because you liked it? - Yes, because it's funny.- Yes, it is.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53- Where does that go?- It goes in here.
0:13:56 > 0:14:03- Right.- And then it stands...- It stands like so. When it's upright, it's two rats dragging a large bag.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08- What did it say in the catalogue description? - Oh, it said it was a comic piece,
0:14:08 > 0:14:13- a Japanese bronze. - And did they put a date on it?
0:14:13 > 0:14:20- Turn of the century. - Right. Can I ask how much you paid? - About £1,000.- About £1,000?
0:14:20 > 0:14:26- Just slightly over. - You like round numbers, do you? We'll talk about value in a minute.
0:14:26 > 0:14:31I'm looking for a mark... There's his flattened tail...
0:14:31 > 0:14:39Ah, there it is. That's the foundry mark and you'll be pleased to know I haven't the faintest who that is.
0:14:39 > 0:14:44- Many people in Japan around the turn of the century, produced this sort of thing.- Right.
0:14:44 > 0:14:51You've got two rats. Now, rats in the West are not particularly well-thought-of creatures.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56- You like rats?- Well, we like the whole thing.- You like the comedy?
0:14:56 > 0:14:58Yeah. The whole set-up.
0:14:58 > 0:15:03In Japan, the rat is actually a bringer of good luck, good fortune,
0:15:03 > 0:15:11- because rats denote plenty - there are lots of rats around after a good harvest.- Right.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15Well, the ideal colour for a bronze of this type would be darker,
0:15:15 > 0:15:20a sort of nutty brown colour, but it's not a complete write-off.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23I think that you could get...
0:15:23 > 0:15:29£1,500 for it, if you put it back into an auction.
0:15:29 > 0:15:35- Oh, really? - So your rats have brought you good luck after all.- Thank you.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39This is the most fantastic array of sticks. How many have you got?
0:15:39 > 0:15:43- Nearly 200.- Have you really? And it's a lovely cross-section you've got.
0:15:43 > 0:15:49I hardly know where to start really, but we'll look at the earliest one,
0:15:49 > 0:15:55which is probably about 1700 or 1720, something like that. Lovely malacca shaft
0:15:55 > 0:16:00and an ivory terminal with these wonderful bits of silver inlay.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02It's really super, isn't it?
0:16:02 > 0:16:08- It's a lovely stick, yes.- Very nice. I would have thought that's worth...
0:16:08 > 0:16:10£400 to £600.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13Did you buy these recently or...?
0:16:13 > 0:16:20- I started collecting them around five years ago and I think I bought that three years ago.- How much?
0:16:20 > 0:16:25- I think it was about £400. - So about that sort of price.- Yes.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29The sporting interest ones are great. If you're a horse-racing man,
0:16:29 > 0:16:33how nice to have a thorn shaft like this
0:16:33 > 0:16:38and a very, very beautifully carved and moulded horn mask
0:16:38 > 0:16:42with a silver racing bridle on it.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45How much did you pay for this one?
0:16:45 > 0:16:50- Um, that one, I think about £80. - £80 only?- Yes.- Really?
0:16:50 > 0:16:54I would have thought in a racing sale, a sort of themed sale,
0:16:54 > 0:16:59it might bring £400 to £600, so I think that's a very good buy.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02Novelties like this extraordinary fellow
0:17:02 > 0:17:07made up out of a backbone with a steel rod running down the middle,
0:17:07 > 0:17:11is just crazy, isn't it? Where did you get this one from?
0:17:11 > 0:17:17Um, I think I bought that at a fair. Is it shark or ray, the vertebrae?
0:17:17 > 0:17:24I think it might be ray, actually. Difficult to identify, and made probably around 1880 to 1900.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29- It's a nice thing, though, isn't it? - Yes.- And very, very unusual.
0:17:29 > 0:17:37These fellows...that have a multitude of uses are amusing.
0:17:37 > 0:17:41That's in beech, with a simulated bit of veining on it,
0:17:41 > 0:17:45and the cover - which I might just give you -
0:17:45 > 0:17:48encloses a reservoir for ink,
0:17:48 > 0:17:54which is sensible when one ties it up with the middle section, which has a pencil in it.
0:17:54 > 0:17:59Do you want to hold that one? And then, lo and behold,
0:17:59 > 0:18:02underneath is the pen itself,
0:18:02 > 0:18:07dip it in the ink pot and have your alfresco writing session,
0:18:07 > 0:18:10which is very strange, really,
0:18:10 > 0:18:13but good fun. How much was this one?
0:18:13 > 0:18:16Oh, only about £30 or £40, I think.
0:18:16 > 0:18:22Really? Well, I think you bought terribly well with regard to these sticks.
0:18:22 > 0:18:27If you took the sort of auction value for a novelty stick like this,
0:18:27 > 0:18:29I would have thought around £200,
0:18:29 > 0:18:35so, you know, you really haven't... you haven't overpaid at all.
0:18:35 > 0:18:39And, I wonder, do I possibly recognise this one from anywhere?
0:18:39 > 0:18:44Yes, that belonged to the Duke of Windsor.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47- How much did that cost you?- £1,700.
0:18:47 > 0:18:51£1,700. Well, there we are, a handsome fellow.
0:18:51 > 0:18:54- Is that the most expensive?- Yes.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57Oh, it is, yeah. 200 sticks...
0:18:57 > 0:19:03I should think an average value of maybe £300 to £400 across the whole collection -
0:19:03 > 0:19:07- £60,000 to £80,000.- Very nice!
0:19:07 > 0:19:10- Thank you for bringing them in. - Thank you.
0:19:10 > 0:19:15- Well, I assume this is family? - Yes, my mother.- Your mother.
0:19:15 > 0:19:20Stanley Cursiter is a special painter from a special country.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24Scotland is a special country for art.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27It has its own roots
0:19:27 > 0:19:32and a painting like this comes out of those roots.
0:19:32 > 0:19:38The 18th-century Scottish portrait painters like Raeburn were magnificent. In the 20th century,
0:19:38 > 0:19:44we see artists like Stanley Cursiter painting portraits, going back to those 18th-century roots,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48really USING his paint and his paintbrush,
0:19:48 > 0:19:52really moulding the figure as though he sculpted them.
0:19:52 > 0:19:57But this is not any portrait, this is your family, which is wonderful.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01- He's our cousin.- So, did you know him? Stanley Cursiter?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04Yes, I met him when I was young.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07I think that was a wedding present,
0:20:07 > 0:20:12she got it when she got married, he gave her it when she got married.
0:20:12 > 0:20:17- And where does this hang in your house?- It's mine. I gave it to my daughter.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21- Where did it hang in your house? - It hung in the hall.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24- Do you like it?- Oh, yes.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27I'd love to know more about him.
0:20:27 > 0:20:33Well, he became a very important artist, because in 1948, after World War II,
0:20:33 > 0:20:37- he was appointed the Queen's Limner for Scotland.- Right.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41- Limner being painter.- To paint her, or to paint pictures for her?
0:20:41 > 0:20:44- Well, as a Scottish painter. - As a title for him.- Yes.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48And I think what makes the difference is,
0:20:48 > 0:20:55the Scots are a nation who love art, have a wonderful history of art
0:20:55 > 0:20:58and love their own.
0:20:58 > 0:21:04And so when I think commercially, I can think of several collectors who would love this picture.
0:21:04 > 0:21:09- Not having it.- Not having it, quite right, keep it in the family.
0:21:09 > 0:21:14So I think I would be inclined to put around...
0:21:14 > 0:21:20- £8,000 to £12,000 on it. - Goodness me!
0:21:20 > 0:21:23Better get it insured.
0:21:23 > 0:21:28We've been told it's either Flemish or it's German.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- A nice mixture to investigate. - Told by different people.
0:21:31 > 0:21:38Let me investigate. Well, the first thing I want to say is the way it's made - a box on a stand.
0:21:38 > 0:21:45- This doesn't go with the box, does it?- No, you're right. They weren't made on stands like this.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50It probably would have stood on a table. Now, can I open it, or...?
0:21:50 > 0:21:54There we go... That's it... Whoops. Right.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56Oh, wonderful, look at that!
0:21:56 > 0:21:59- My parents never knew it opened.- Oh?
0:21:59 > 0:22:03- My husband discovered that it opened. - So it's a family piece?
0:22:03 > 0:22:05Yes. These don't open.
0:22:05 > 0:22:10- Right.- And we wondered why.- Well, let's have a go... Oh, wonderful.
0:22:10 > 0:22:15- Isn't that pretty?- Yes.- So what was discovered in here when you...?
0:22:15 > 0:22:20- Absolutely nothing, unfortunately. - No gold coins or...?- Nothing at all.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24It's a very pretty top and that is fairly plain, pedestrian carpentry.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29- Right.- But let's close this, so it doesn't fall on me or anything.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32They said it came from Ulm.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36Absolutely right. It's not Dutch or Flemish. It is German.
0:22:36 > 0:22:42Ulm is exactly where this type of miniature marquetry comes from.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44Let's have a look.
0:22:44 > 0:22:49- This pine is typical of that part of Europe.- Quite flimsy, though.
0:22:49 > 0:22:53- Very flimsy, but beautifully made. - Yes.
0:22:53 > 0:22:59This is all handmade here. Tiny little dovetails, but the joy of this
0:22:59 > 0:23:01is this inlay here.
0:23:01 > 0:23:06Endless little bits of wood stained and coloured and engraved
0:23:06 > 0:23:14to give this wonderful sort of Nonsuch Palace - the Henry VIII palace - that sort of feeling,
0:23:14 > 0:23:19- of a town landscape.- Should we have this repaired?- Let's have a look.
0:23:19 > 0:23:25- The thickness of the marquetry again suggests an early date.- Yes.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29Um, should you have it repaired? Yes, because it's so beautiful.
0:23:29 > 0:23:34The main problem is to get the colour right afterwards.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39- Have you any idea what date it is? - No, no idea.- Well, it's very old.
0:23:39 > 0:23:44- Is it?- Yes. I would say about 1550-1580.- Really?
0:23:44 > 0:23:50So German, but put in your mind Henry VIII - the German equivalent at the same time.
0:23:50 > 0:23:57- It was in my grandmother's house... - Right, and you don't know where she got it from or anything?- No.
0:23:57 > 0:24:03- No, we don't know.- So just come down through the family and probably will go on through the family?- Yes.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08For that reason alone, it's worth having it restored. Valuation...
0:24:08 > 0:24:14insurance... Often these things lag behind because you tend not to update the insurance.
0:24:14 > 0:24:20- Last time we had it insured, it was £4,000.- I would certainly double that.- Double it.
0:24:20 > 0:24:25- Right.- Certainly £8,000, and there may be somebody in Germany thinking,
0:24:25 > 0:24:29"That's not expensive," so £8,000 to £10,000.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36- This is extremely convincing. - She's all right.
0:24:36 > 0:24:42- Except her harp is badly strung. - Sorry about that.- But it can't have been done in stages.
0:24:42 > 0:24:49- Either it's a fake or it's real. - Or it could be one that's then been improved at a later date.
0:24:49 > 0:24:55- Oh... Yes.- A lot of the modern ones are, quite frankly, resin plastic,
0:24:55 > 0:24:58- but very well made.- Yes.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02- This existing in 1913 has to be... - Pre-dates all that.- Yes.
0:25:02 > 0:25:06- So it has to be promising in terms of authenticity.- Yeah.
0:25:06 > 0:25:13Usually made around the beginning of the century, this silver made in Birmingham in 1911.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16This seems to be the standard set -
0:25:16 > 0:25:22six buttons, a pair of little buttons and a belt buckle, very, very attractive.
0:25:22 > 0:25:28And enamelled - it's engine-turned underneath the enamelling.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32The enamelling's translucent, so this patterning comes through
0:25:32 > 0:25:35in a very, very attractive manner.
0:25:35 > 0:25:41- It's quite unusual to find a set all together.- I wouldn't say they've been out of the case.
0:25:41 > 0:25:47- They're so decorative, I wonder whether anyone actually wore them. - I wouldn't have thought so.
0:25:47 > 0:25:53- Do you remember how much you paid for these?- I expect about £30.- Yes.
0:25:53 > 0:25:59- Well, today I think you'd have to spend probably about £300.- £300?!
0:25:59 > 0:26:01- For a set like that.- Yes.
0:26:01 > 0:26:08I've been showing this to a number of my colleagues, because with scrimshaw - carved teeth -
0:26:08 > 0:26:11is that, for every real one you see,
0:26:11 > 0:26:15you'll see a hundred or more which are fakes or later copies,
0:26:15 > 0:26:21and we needed to establish whether this was a really good one, or a really good copy.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25Now, if it is real, it is a fantastic one.
0:26:25 > 0:26:32The carving is good, it is absolutely immaculate, and so naturally one is suspicious.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35You think it's either too good to be true,
0:26:35 > 0:26:41or something has happened later. Some of the plain ones are recarved at a later date
0:26:41 > 0:26:47to make them more interesting once they become collectable. A wonderful family piece.
0:26:47 > 0:26:51The best we've seen for a long time that is apparently real.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54Well, how about £3,000?
0:26:55 > 0:26:59- Good gracious!- Or possibly £5,000?
0:26:59 > 0:27:04That's incredible! I can't believe it.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09- So there we are, a wonderful piece of scrimshaw.- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:27:09 > 0:27:16Very stylish object. The whole design is done by transfer printing, a mass-production technique.
0:27:16 > 0:27:21But the gilding is done by hand, so there's an element of skill in the painting.
0:27:21 > 0:27:27- Would there have been a ceramic spoon in here?- There would.
0:27:27 > 0:27:34And ceramic ladles are incredibly fragile objects, get broken very quickly, it's the first thing to go.
0:27:34 > 0:27:39But yes, you do get ceramic ladles. I'm not surprised not to see it.
0:27:39 > 0:27:43You could buy something like this in a market for...
0:27:43 > 0:27:48- somewhere in the region of £40, or so.- I see, right.
0:27:50 > 0:27:56- What you've got here is a pilot's watch.- Pilot's?- A pilot's watch.
0:27:56 > 0:28:01It's somewhat large for everyday wear and they were worn outside,
0:28:01 > 0:28:08- probably on a big leather or fleece flying jacket.- Yes.- You wore them with a long strap on the outside,
0:28:08 > 0:28:12- so you could read it when you were in the cockpit.- Yes.- And the date...
0:28:12 > 0:28:16There's the marks of Omega, the maker,
0:28:16 > 0:28:20- the numbers, but there's also the import hallmarks...- Yes.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23- ..and the letter R, which is 1912. - Yes.- So, basically,
0:28:23 > 0:28:26- it's a World War I pilot's watch. - Yes.
0:28:26 > 0:28:31Hence the very clear white dial. Have you had this valued?
0:28:31 > 0:28:37- Um...- Well, tell me where you got it. - I bought it off a chap that was dealing in bric-a-brac
0:28:37 > 0:28:43in Newport market in South Wales some 20 years ago, 22 years ago,
0:28:43 > 0:28:49and there was trouble with the watch, so he said, "If you let me have it back, I know a man that will fix it."
0:28:49 > 0:28:56- What did you pay him?- £70 or £80, and I gave him another tenner to get it fixed, which was a lot of money.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59- That's a lot of money 20 years ago. - Yes.
0:28:59 > 0:29:05Well, as a watch, it's probably worth, in fact...
0:29:05 > 0:29:10- more like a couple of thousand, or so.- Yes.
0:29:10 > 0:29:15- But this is a repair bill.- Yeah. - 1933.- Yeah.
0:29:15 > 0:29:22- Made out to a TE Shaw of Clouds Hill, Moreton in Dorset. - Yeah.- Do you know who he is?
0:29:22 > 0:29:24No, I haven't got a clue.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27- Lawrence of Arabia.- Good God!
0:29:27 > 0:29:32- If I'm correct...- Yeah. - After the First World War...
0:29:32 > 0:29:38- Yeah.- ..he was a somewhat complex character and rejoined, I think...
0:29:38 > 0:29:42- Didn't he rejoin the RAF under the name of Shaw?- Yes.
0:29:42 > 0:29:48- And I think he was killed on his motorcycle when dressed in RAF kit.- Good God!
0:29:48 > 0:29:53To be honest, I always thought he was a character of fiction.
0:29:53 > 0:29:58Well, it's the TE Lawrence of the film, and who wrote the book.
0:29:58 > 0:30:02Yeah, I remember seeing the film years ago, but...
0:30:02 > 0:30:08- And my recollection is he lived at Clouds Hill.- Yes... Good God.
0:30:08 > 0:30:15And it's his watch, probably returned to him, having been cleaned, under his adopted name.
0:30:15 > 0:30:23- Good God.- So...- Yeah.- A couple of grand, couple and a half grand - just as a watch...- Yes.
0:30:23 > 0:30:30- How much you could add for the Lawrence connection, I don't know. A very fascinating character.- Yes.
0:30:30 > 0:30:35I would - it's a guess - I'd double that, maybe £5,000 maybe £10,000.
0:30:35 > 0:30:39- Good God! I'd better get it insured, then.- Yes.
0:30:39 > 0:30:45"The Regal, Barnstaple, souvenir programme..." of the opening of it.
0:30:45 > 0:30:50- Yes, 1937.- It seems to have these most wonderful flames on the top.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54- Does it still have them?- I don't know, but the building's still there.
0:30:54 > 0:31:02Well, I can't imagine that this grand opening ceremony would be worth much money outside Barnstaple.
0:31:02 > 0:31:09- What did you pay for it? - I paid £15, but I was very happy to do so.- I think so.
0:31:09 > 0:31:13- Because it was the cinema I went to as a kid.- I think that's reasonable.
0:31:13 > 0:31:18Well, going on from films, we go to this, which I think is interesting.
0:31:18 > 0:31:25The magazine is Night And Day, which was a short-lived magazine, and the film critic was Graham Greene.
0:31:25 > 0:31:33Now, for a Graham Greene collector, any of these magazines with his film criticisms would be very desirable.
0:31:33 > 0:31:40"The owners of a child star are like leaseholders - their property diminishes in value every year.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44"What is Jackie Coogan now, but a matrimonial squabble?
0:31:44 > 0:31:48"With Shirley Temple, infancy is a disguise,
0:31:48 > 0:31:55"her appeal is more secret and more adult." I mean, that is extremely provocative,
0:31:55 > 0:31:59and this is 1937. And I believe that this was the article
0:31:59 > 0:32:05- that actually caused the magazine to close.- Yes.- Because the film company actually sued the magazine.
0:32:05 > 0:32:13I think a single copy of this would be worth somewhere in the region of £150 to £200.
0:32:13 > 0:32:16- Really?- Without a shadow of doubt.
0:32:16 > 0:32:20Let's move on to this very beautiful lady here.
0:32:20 > 0:32:25Diana Manners, who later became Diana Cooper,
0:32:25 > 0:32:27dressed for The Miracle -
0:32:27 > 0:32:31where she played the Madonna as a statue.
0:32:31 > 0:32:36A very nice signed photograph. It's not worth an awful lot of money.
0:32:36 > 0:32:43She was a great beauty in her time, and I would say that's probably worth no more than about £25, £30.
0:32:43 > 0:32:47However, you've also brought in these. Not teatime viewing,
0:32:47 > 0:32:53but I think that they're extremely beautiful. Diana Manners again.
0:32:53 > 0:32:59- These are original photographs and I've never seen them before. - That was taken by her brother.
0:32:59 > 0:33:04That's on the back there, I see - "Taken by her brother." Who knows?
0:33:04 > 0:33:09But they're beautiful photographs, more desirable than this one here.
0:33:09 > 0:33:13These I would value, somewhere in the region of...
0:33:13 > 0:33:21- £250, £300. What did you pay for them? - I paid £40 for the whole bundle.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23Well, you did extremely well.
0:33:23 > 0:33:29Finally, we come up with this, which I find intriguing. Now, this is to - Mabel Normand,
0:33:29 > 0:33:33Mabel Normand the silent film star.
0:33:33 > 0:33:39- Yes, co-star with Charlie Chaplin. - Yes.- And Mack Sennett. The musical Mack And Mabel is based on her story.
0:33:39 > 0:33:42Oh, right, I didn't know that.
0:33:42 > 0:33:46And this is the card for the "Solemn Requiem Mass
0:33:46 > 0:33:53"which will be celebrated at the Church of the Good Shepherd for the repose of Rudolph Valentino."
0:33:53 > 0:33:59And I notice that you brought this as well. I can hardly believe that this could be a...handkerchief
0:33:59 > 0:34:06- because one blow and that would be blown to smithereens.- I think it's to dab the tears away at the Mass.
0:34:06 > 0:34:11- Yes.- It's not been laundered since then.- So it's still full of tears.
0:34:11 > 0:34:19Well, I think any Rudolph Valentino collector would be very keen on this. That has to be worth...
0:34:19 > 0:34:25in the region of £400 to £500. What are you going to do with this wonderful collection?
0:34:25 > 0:34:30- They'll go to a museum in Exeter - the Bill Douglas Centre.- Good idea.
0:34:31 > 0:34:35- When we say "sampler", we think of one of these.- Yes.
0:34:35 > 0:34:39Alphabets, numbers and all that. Now, what does the word really mean?
0:34:39 > 0:34:43Let's forget that... and look at this.
0:34:43 > 0:34:49Now, I've never seen such a thing as this. I think it's the most fabulous, wonderful thing
0:34:49 > 0:34:55because it really is a sampler. It is a sample of every type of stitch, pattern.
0:34:55 > 0:34:59Somebody learning to sew had to do all those things. Where is it from?
0:34:59 > 0:35:03Well, it belonged to my great-aunt. She lived with us when I was a girl,
0:35:03 > 0:35:10and it hung on the wall at home. From her it passed to my parents and after my parents died, to me.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13- A clear family descent?- Yes.
0:35:13 > 0:35:19- Who was JA? - I don't know. I can't find anybody with a surname A in the family.
0:35:19 > 0:35:22- I've researched.- Families change.
0:35:22 > 0:35:25There's no doubt about the date - 1858. Do you sew?
0:35:25 > 0:35:28I do, but I couldn't do all that.
0:35:28 > 0:35:33This is chenille work - a definite type of embossed decoration.
0:35:33 > 0:35:35Going up, we have Berlin wool work,
0:35:35 > 0:35:39with wonderful beadwork incorporated in it.
0:35:39 > 0:35:43Here we have again, metallic beads, sewn onto silk.
0:35:43 > 0:35:49Here is traditional Victorian beadwork of the kind one sees on cushions.
0:35:49 > 0:35:56And then up to here - I think this is the best bit - you've got all these patterns.
0:35:56 > 0:36:01If I were a proper sewing person, I could name all these patterns.
0:36:01 > 0:36:05This is Florentine, for example. That's the only one I know.
0:36:05 > 0:36:10- I love the dog.- It's my favourite bit.- As a child, or always?- Yes.
0:36:10 > 0:36:17That's done by pushing forward wool work, padding from underneath and shaving the wool back to get this.
0:36:17 > 0:36:24- I think it's just a staggering vision of the skills of the Victorian seamstress.- Yes.
0:36:24 > 0:36:27Never before have I seen a genuine sampler.
0:36:27 > 0:36:31- Look, at this, this wonderful bird...- Yes.
0:36:31 > 0:36:34Fabulous raised silk work.
0:36:34 > 0:36:40- Gosh, what would one pay for something like that?- I don't know, because it's just been there.
0:36:40 > 0:36:44- You don't think of it in money terms?- No.- How about...
0:36:44 > 0:36:48- £1,000 - £1,500?- Gosh!
0:36:50 > 0:36:52This might surprise you.
0:36:52 > 0:36:54Oh, dear, yes!
0:36:54 > 0:36:57- "From Michael to Michael." Are you Michael?- Yes.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01- And that's me! When was this?- 1959.
0:37:01 > 0:37:03'59. That's before I went blonde.
0:37:05 > 0:37:08My uncle brought it back from Japan.
0:37:08 > 0:37:12He was in the army and it was the time of the Second World War.
0:37:12 > 0:37:18Well, when you look at this, this marvellous gilding here,
0:37:18 > 0:37:20you ought to like this.
0:37:20 > 0:37:26This is really a very, very good Satsuma vase, from Japan.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28Wonderful rich enamel, rich gilding,
0:37:28 > 0:37:31got a beautiful mark - see this...
0:37:31 > 0:37:36- Lovely, and then that's the Satsuma mark there.- Oh, right, right.
0:37:36 > 0:37:43Then you've got this lovely little chap on the top who is in very good condition -
0:37:43 > 0:37:45so often they get damaged.
0:37:45 > 0:37:50We think that you should probably insure it for £6,000.
0:37:53 > 0:38:00- How did it end up in Barnstaple? - I have no idea. I found it in my mother's things.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04- And so there's no family history? - Not that we know of, no.
0:38:04 > 0:38:09- Well, it's in wonderful condition. Have you any idea how old it is?- No.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12- Or where it's come from? - I don't know.
0:38:12 > 0:38:17Well, it's what would now be called Native American, or Canadian.
0:38:17 > 0:38:22It would have been in about 1860, probably around the Great Lakes,
0:38:22 > 0:38:25or heading west.
0:38:25 > 0:38:30My feeling is that it's probably from a tribe called the Cree,
0:38:30 > 0:38:34but it could equally be a group called the Metis -
0:38:34 > 0:38:41they were the product of intermarrying between the trappers and the Cree Indians,
0:38:41 > 0:38:45so they created a new group of people called the Metis.
0:38:45 > 0:38:50- Yes.- And they did this sort of work, it's skin.- Yes. What...?
0:38:50 > 0:38:55- Is it chamois leather?- Sort of. I think it's probably caribou or something.
0:38:55 > 0:39:02These are fine silks, embroidered so fine that their eyesight must have been impaired. Wonderful.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05These beads are nice, too.
0:39:05 > 0:39:11They're called "rose over white", there's a white core to the bead.
0:39:11 > 0:39:15- Oh.- So the white inside the red glass gives it a brighter colour, you see?
0:39:15 > 0:39:18These are known as "octopus bags".
0:39:18 > 0:39:21If we turn it over...
0:39:21 > 0:39:25- we've got a different version of plants on the other side.- Yes.
0:39:25 > 0:39:32These would probably be taken from wild flowers growing in the plains during the spring.
0:39:32 > 0:39:36It's difficult to say which tribe made these
0:39:36 > 0:39:43because there was so much cross-fertilisation of ideas amongst different Native American groups,
0:39:43 > 0:39:48- but my feeling is that it's probably Metis.- How did they hold it?
0:39:48 > 0:39:52- Tassels. I think this has been on to hang it up.- Yes.
0:39:52 > 0:39:56- Do you display it at all? - We put it beside the fireplace,
0:39:56 > 0:40:02- hang it on the wall.- With a nail? - No, we hang it on a wire coat hanger tucked inside.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06- Well, it is in marvellous condition. - Should we have it by the fireplace?
0:40:06 > 0:40:12Probably not, because dry heat could dry the stitches out and everything else.
0:40:12 > 0:40:20- Yes.- So I think if you could find some way of framing it...- Yes. - A double framing, if possible.- Mm.
0:40:20 > 0:40:24Because its value I would put at about £3,000, £4,000.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28- Oh, don't be silly! Really? - It's extremely sought after
0:40:28 > 0:40:34- and if I could take it home, I would.- You're not going to! - Thank you.- Thank you.
0:40:34 > 0:40:40The most famous school of painters in the West Country was the Newlyn School,
0:40:40 > 0:40:44founded in the 1880s and '90s by Stanhope Forbes.
0:40:44 > 0:40:51- And one of them was this artist, Harold Harvey.- Yes.- He, like most of the Newlyn painters,
0:40:51 > 0:40:55concentrated on scenes of fishing life.
0:40:55 > 0:40:59- This picture is signed down here, we can see, "Harold Harvey".- Yes.
0:40:59 > 0:41:05But also it's nicely inscribed on the frame for us there and telling us the title.
0:41:05 > 0:41:10- Yes, it is.- So, obviously, they're there out fishing for whiting.
0:41:10 > 0:41:18- So, what can you tell us about how you came by it?- It was purchased by my grandfather in the twenties.
0:41:18 > 0:41:24- Yes.- And I remember it hanging in my grandparents' house,
0:41:24 > 0:41:28in their dining room, when I was a little child.
0:41:28 > 0:41:33And I had a particular liking for it. It's a very calm, peaceful picture.
0:41:33 > 0:41:38- It's an early picture by Harold Harvey.- Yes. - I'd say this was about 1900.
0:41:38 > 0:41:42He later went on and changed his style,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45but this is a typical Newlyn painting,
0:41:45 > 0:41:49both in its subject and in its rather grey tonality...
0:41:49 > 0:41:54- Yes.- ..And this very thick, flowing sort of brush strokes.- Uh-huh.
0:41:54 > 0:42:00He trained in France, like most of them did. So in a way, they came back to England,
0:42:00 > 0:42:03these painters, settled in Cornwall,
0:42:03 > 0:42:07and painted it as if it was Normandy or Brittany. It could be France.
0:42:07 > 0:42:15- I love the old man here.- Yes, he's lovely, isn't he?- The bearded fellow, is very, very nicely depicted.- Yes.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19I also like this standing figure of the boy - his splendid profile
0:42:19 > 0:42:23- and cap at a jaunty angle. - He's very keen, isn't he?
0:42:23 > 0:42:30- I like that. I think it's an extremely nice picture. It's in the the original frame.- Original, yes.
0:42:30 > 0:42:35- That's never been...- I don't think anything's ever been done to it.
0:42:35 > 0:42:40- Well, there is a keen interest in Newlyn pictures today.- Yes.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44They're much collected and I would say that now,
0:42:44 > 0:42:47if this was to go in a sale,
0:42:47 > 0:42:53- you'd certainly get £20,000 for it. - Really?- You'd probably get £20,000 to £30,000.
0:42:53 > 0:42:59- Maybe you might get a little more. - Thank you. Lovely to hear about it.
0:42:59 > 0:43:03Well, what a day. We've enjoyed the cream of North Devon hospitality,
0:43:03 > 0:43:07and it's 6pm - the hall still has plenty of people in it,
0:43:07 > 0:43:14including, I have to say, an old army pal I last met in 1952, and he seems to be in good condition.
0:43:14 > 0:43:20We've seen some excellent things here today - local pottery, that Newlyn School painting,
0:43:20 > 0:43:26and the wristwatch of TE Lawrence - my boyhood hero - Lawrence of Arabia.
0:43:26 > 0:43:31To the people of Barnstaple, thank you. And until next week, goodbye.
0:43:47 > 0:43:51Subtitles by Gillian Frazer BBC Scotland 2000
0:43:51 > 0:43:54E-mail us at subtitling@bbc.co.uk