0:00:34 > 0:00:37This week, the Antiques Roadshow is in Melksham
0:00:37 > 0:00:42in the wide valley of the Wiltshire Avon, to the west of the county.
0:00:42 > 0:00:49Melksham was a hamlet in a forest clearing, a favourite hunting ground of the Plantagenet kings.
0:00:49 > 0:00:53The forest dwindled, but the town grew into a business centre.
0:00:53 > 0:01:01The town's oldest industry was cloth weaving and the round houses used for drying the wool are still here.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05Melksham has been home to an impressive range of industries.
0:01:05 > 0:01:10For Charles Maggs, who came here in 1803, it was money for new rope.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14The business continued for six generations.
0:01:14 > 0:01:21As the attraction for steel cables diminished the demand for rope, they turned to coir fibre matting.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26People all over the world wipe their feet on Maggs's coconut mats.
0:01:26 > 0:01:32The same family were instrumental in creating the great Wiltshire dairy trade.
0:01:32 > 0:01:39They turned surplus milk into butter and cream for selling in London and other major towns.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42It was a bright idea which caught on,
0:01:42 > 0:01:47and led to United Dairies delivering the daily pinta to your door.
0:01:47 > 0:01:48# Ernie
0:01:48 > 0:01:52# And he drove the fastest milkcart in the west
0:01:52 > 0:01:59# You could hear the hoof beats pound As they raced across the ground... #
0:01:59 > 0:02:02There were noble failures too.
0:02:02 > 0:02:03These Regency houses
0:02:03 > 0:02:07are a reminder of Melksham's ambition to become a spa
0:02:07 > 0:02:10to rival Chippenham and Bath.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17Springs rich in iron and saline were discovered
0:02:17 > 0:02:23and the Melksham Spa Company was formed by local landowners.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27The water's healing properties were observed by their effect on cattle.
0:02:27 > 0:02:34As with most medicines, the theory was that the nastier the taste, the greater the benefit.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38But there was no shortage of testimonials.
0:02:38 > 0:02:44A Thomas Joseph Clark certified that after a mere 14 days of taking the Melksham spa waters,
0:02:44 > 0:02:49he was "nearly recovered from a bout of erysipelas and scrofula".
0:02:49 > 0:02:53In spite of this, Melksham's time as a fashionable spa was brief.
0:02:53 > 0:02:58It went into decline when going to the seaside became more popular.
0:02:58 > 0:03:03Our show today comes from the Christie Miller Sports Centre.
0:03:03 > 0:03:08I bought it for my husband as a birthday present.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12He does like boats but he's not over-enamoured with this one.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16I'm more into the sort of modern boats.
0:03:16 > 0:03:21- What, this is too fanciful, too decorative?- Probably, yes.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26The idea of the glass ship starts at the beginning of the 19th century.
0:03:26 > 0:03:32This is nice because you've got the sailors climbing the rigging.
0:03:32 > 0:03:36You've got the flowing pennants. You've got the sense of a ship.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40What date would you say that ship was, if it was a ship?
0:03:40 > 0:03:44- Armada days, I suppose. - No, it's much later.
0:03:44 > 0:03:51- Really?- I think they were looking at contemporary ships. OK, it could be a ship of the line of Nelson's time.
0:03:51 > 0:03:57It's more likely they were looking out of the window - if it was made at Bristol - out of the harbour.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02Coming in and out every day were sail trading vessels, before the age of steam.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05This is what they looked like.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10The other touch that tells us is the pilot boat.
0:04:10 > 0:04:16The pilot boat has sailed off to bring the boat into harbour, or to take it out.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19I have seen paddle steamers.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23So they were still being made into the age of steam.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27The classic is this rigged sailing ship coming into harbour.
0:04:27 > 0:04:33And reasonably accurate. They were made by people looking out of the window.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35- You can see...- Pieces of damage.
0:04:35 > 0:04:40There's damage there where the glue's been stuck on.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44But I think, apart from that, it's still in amazing condition.
0:04:44 > 0:04:51And this curious sort of stuff was often used for the sea, so that is correct.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55- So apart from the base, it's as it should be.- Right.
0:04:55 > 0:05:00Date, 1840 thereabouts, 1850, 1860, that sort of mid-Victorian period.
0:05:00 > 0:05:04- Now for an impertinent question. - How much?- Yes.
0:05:04 > 0:05:11It was actually £80, but I knew the dealer and he gave me 25% discount, so £60.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15It's a great example. I'll put a big increase on that.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20I think, bearing in mind the repair and the base, £600-£700.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26It came into the family via my great-grandfather.
0:05:26 > 0:05:32He owned a brewery in Trowbridge, and it's been handed down in the family.
0:05:32 > 0:05:39In recent years, it's been up in a bedroom storing papers, and that's as much as I know about it.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Storing papers is also fine -
0:05:42 > 0:05:47anything that needed to be kept under lock and key,
0:05:47 > 0:05:49because this beautiful box used
0:05:49 > 0:05:55to be used to carry a 17th-century lady's jewellery around with her.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59So it is a lovely little jewellery casket.
0:05:59 > 0:06:05Now if we look at the box itself, it has these lovely oyster-cut veneers on it.
0:06:05 > 0:06:13They are slices of a tree that is cut in such a way as to reveal the graining of the wood,
0:06:13 > 0:06:16which it's done absolutely beautifully here.
0:06:16 > 0:06:21At the front, the veneers have been laid in the shape of a heart.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23You know, such a simple thing to do.
0:06:23 > 0:06:28A heart for a lady, so all the little signs are there.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32- Little touches are there.- You've got this lovely brass strap work.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36Very bold, very stylish.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Almost with a fleur-de-lys in the front - slightly continental.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44This dates around 1690. Show me how it opens up.
0:06:44 > 0:06:51- Pull this one down here slightly. - Yes.- Which releases that. - Pop the key in.
0:06:51 > 0:06:57- Turn to the... That way.- Yeah. - And then this one is a half turn.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59Marvellous, fantastic device.
0:06:59 > 0:07:05Now if we look in here, what's also nice is you've got this slot...
0:07:05 > 0:07:09- That's meant to be like that? - Yes, it was a secret compartment.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13- It would have had a little piece of wood over the top.- Right.
0:07:13 > 0:07:20She could have put in something that she didn't want anybody to know about, like a little love letter.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25In today's market, something like this is extremely popular.
0:07:25 > 0:07:30I think we should be thinking in terms of £3,000 for sale,
0:07:30 > 0:07:36and, therefore, for insurance you've got to double it up, £6,000.
0:07:36 > 0:07:41For a little box. Excellent. Very good indeed, thank you.
0:07:41 > 0:07:48What a wonderful deep-blue sky there is in this watercolour. It really is a sensational picture.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51Is it by William Turner of Oxford?
0:07:51 > 0:07:57- That's right. - William Turner of Oxford, not the great William Turner.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59- No, no, no.- Sometimes confused with.
0:07:59 > 0:08:05This is another William Turner who painted largely round Oxford, particularly in watercolour.
0:08:05 > 0:08:11- Yes.- Do you know where this is? - Osney Meadows.- Near Oxford. - It's all part of Oxford now.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15It's becoming part of Oxford, I'm sorry to say.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18It doesn't look like this now.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22- No.- But what I wanted to look more carefully at
0:08:22 > 0:08:25is this fantastic detail he manages,
0:08:25 > 0:08:32- the line of harvesting women along here.- Yeah. - It's so beautifully handled.
0:08:32 > 0:08:38- Yeah.- And the whole feeling of recession, through the different fields into the distance.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42The handling of the light is masterful.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45You've got lovely narrative details
0:08:45 > 0:08:48like this basket and the hoes.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53- You wonder what's happened to the people to whom these belonged.- Yes.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57Incredible that it is a watercolour,
0:08:57 > 0:09:03or rather a body colour, which is this thicker, more opaque watercolour,
0:09:03 > 0:09:10which gives these rather richer effects. Where has it been to retain its colour?
0:09:10 > 0:09:12It's been in my parents' house.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15But it didn't get any direct sun.
0:09:15 > 0:09:21That's an object lesson in how a watercolour can be preserved.
0:09:21 > 0:09:27- I mean, William Turner really was one of the great names of British watercolour painting.- Was he?
0:09:27 > 0:09:35And I think, you know, you really see him on his day here. It's a late work, but it's absolutely sublime.
0:09:35 > 0:09:40I love the details of the foliage here, this rather feathery touch.
0:09:40 > 0:09:48- I think it really is one of the most beautiful watercolours I've ever seen on the Roadshow.- Really?
0:09:48 > 0:09:50Strong language.
0:09:50 > 0:09:56- I'm grateful to you for bringing it and I hope it's insured.- No.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58We'd like to know how much for.
0:09:58 > 0:10:03Well, I think probably one would estimate it, if it came at auction,
0:10:03 > 0:10:11between £7,000 and £10,000, but it's so beautiful, it could make more. Perhaps insure it for £12,000.
0:10:11 > 0:10:18- It's a great English watercolour. Thanks for bringing it.- Thank you. Thank you for telling us about it.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22This is a very fine piece of Art Deco, very nice bracelet.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26Has it been in your family since the '20s or '30s?
0:10:26 > 0:10:30- No, I bought it at a boot sale. - A boot sale?- Yes, I did.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33How much was it?
0:10:33 > 0:10:38- It was for quite a lot of money, I thought.- And how much is a lot?
0:10:38 > 0:10:42- £10.- £10 - that's the absolute bargain of the century.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45It's German in manufacture.
0:10:45 > 0:10:51It's made in Pforzheim in Germany, which is a jewellery centre.
0:10:51 > 0:10:53The maker is Theodor Fahrner.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56And you will see on the back here...
0:10:59 > 0:11:07..there's the maker's mark. It says "Sterling, Germany," and it's got "T" and "F" for Theodor Fahrner.
0:11:07 > 0:11:12- Oh, yes.- It's a beautiful piece of work, lovely arrangement of colours.
0:11:12 > 0:11:18This would need to be checked out, but it's quite possibly onyx, but it could be glass.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21- Yes.- But this red colour is coral.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23These other elements are marcasite.
0:11:23 > 0:11:29Pieces like this are always popular at auction, and they don't come up so often.
0:11:29 > 0:11:36So a piece like this I would expect now would have no trouble in making at least £600 to £800.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39So your £10 was a bargain, wasn't it?
0:11:39 > 0:11:46An earlier Roadshow paid tribute to Fox Talbot, the photographic pioneer who owned Lacock Abbey here.
0:11:46 > 0:11:51We have a little private memory of the man. What is this?
0:11:51 > 0:11:54This is from his camera.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56It was a plate.
0:11:56 > 0:12:01My husband's grandfather was head gardener.
0:12:01 > 0:12:07Each employee was given a plate and they had it made into individual mementoes.
0:12:07 > 0:12:15- So this lovely box once had been the plate at the back of Fox Talbot's camera?- That's right.
0:12:15 > 0:12:22- Here is a photograph in a magazine taken by the great man, and that is your husband's grandfather?- Yes.
0:12:22 > 0:12:29But then this photograph tells us - in the caption underneath - that the greenhouses are being rebuilt,
0:12:29 > 0:12:37- and that Talbot's photographs will be used to help rebuild them. So history goes round in circles.- Yes.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41- And there's your relation in the middle of it.- Yes.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44It was given to me by an aunt.
0:12:44 > 0:12:50Well, it's a very nice gift. It's an absolutely beautiful, jewel-like quality cup and saucer.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Royal Worcester mark on the bottom.
0:12:53 > 0:12:58The date code isn't very clear - it's either an "S" or an "N".
0:12:58 > 0:13:06It's about 1875, but what fantastic quality the jewelling, all the hand-work on here.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09It's a wonderful little object.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Do you know who the designer was?
0:13:12 > 0:13:16- No.- It was George Owen who worked at the Royal Worcester factory.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20He was so skilful at what they call reticulated ware.
0:13:20 > 0:13:26You cut the design out. You draw the design on the green clay before it's fired,
0:13:26 > 0:13:31and then you cut it out with a tiny little knife. It would take hours.
0:13:31 > 0:13:35They gave him his own room so he could sit quietly and work.
0:13:35 > 0:13:40And he had so many failures that it was uncommercial to produce.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44So he'd make something, then they'd find a collector to sell it to.
0:13:44 > 0:13:52So if you can imagine Owen working away, drawing this out, then cutting it with a knife.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55And if he broke one, it was thrown away.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58So these things are rare.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03The saucer has been broken in half, but the cup is perfect.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08Any collector of Royal Worcester would be desperate to have it.
0:14:08 > 0:14:13- So in spite of the damage, the value would be about £500.- Gosh!
0:14:18 > 0:14:23To my knowledge, it's been in the family since the 1920s.
0:14:23 > 0:14:30- And I believe it was owned by a further relative of my grandmother's in the late 1800s.- Yes.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34So it's been in the family for over a hundred years.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36We've got a London maker - Sibbald.
0:14:36 > 0:14:43- Not much known about him, and sort of 1817-1830, which fits absolutely perfectly with the design.- Right.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47It's a classic example of the Regency period.
0:14:47 > 0:14:51We're out of the George III and you've a combination of features.
0:14:51 > 0:14:57You've got the lancet shape of the door, which is Gothic Revival.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01You've got the half-turned triple columns here.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04Then you've got Egyptian Revival.
0:15:04 > 0:15:10Following the Napoleonic Wars and the Egyptian campaign, there was a lot of Egyptian works of art.
0:15:10 > 0:15:17And so you've got Egyptian heads, square tapered columns and these wonderful little bronze feet.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21- So that wasn't added later? - No, it's a strange combination.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25Bit of Gothic Revival and a touch of the Egyptian.
0:15:25 > 0:15:30You've even got a Greek key pattern which you can just see here.
0:15:32 > 0:15:37You've got a quality of wood and mahogany veneer which was dying out.
0:15:37 > 0:15:43You get those red, strong, mahogany woods for the Victorian age, but they're a different type.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46This is beautiful figured timber.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49The door's stunning and so unusual.
0:15:50 > 0:15:57It's not a clock for a clock collector. It's a clock for somebody who loves this period of design.
0:15:57 > 0:16:03So we can't compare the price with a standard long-case clock of the same period.
0:16:03 > 0:16:08I would think it would be a minimum of £5,000, perhaps.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12I'm pleased, but we like the clock, so we wouldn't get rid of it.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15- Much more important.- That's right.
0:16:15 > 0:16:21Both of these items came from my grandfather, who lived in Liverpool.
0:16:21 > 0:16:27And, obviously, down the family and finally ended up with myself.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31I know very little about them.
0:16:31 > 0:16:37- I thought I'd bring them in here. - Bring them in to...- Find out. - ..try to get enlightened.- Yes.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41Here we have a pin-fire revolver.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45It's Belgian and it's a six-shot.
0:16:45 > 0:16:51And looking at the calibre in the cylinder there, I would think it's about .32.
0:16:51 > 0:16:56Now the pin-fire system didn't last too long.
0:16:56 > 0:17:03One of the reasons for this is because what is happening in the computer world right now,
0:17:03 > 0:17:08was happening in the gun world a hundred-and-odd years ago.
0:17:08 > 0:17:14- Yes.- So you suddenly got a pin-fire - the hammer was blunted,
0:17:14 > 0:17:19and the little copper pin drove into the side of the cartridge.
0:17:19 > 0:17:25- The next step was a rim-fire, where the hammer hit onto the edge of the cartridge.- I see.
0:17:25 > 0:17:33The final phase is centre-fire, where the cartridge is struck into the centre of the base.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35We have that today.
0:17:35 > 0:17:41This one would have been made around about 1875, even 1880.
0:17:41 > 0:17:46Well, the value would be something in excess of £100.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52Quite ornate, so it might even be £150.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55I doubt you'd get more than that.
0:17:55 > 0:18:01- I find this interesting. Do you know anything about it? - I know it's Russian.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04Right. This is called a kindjal.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07Russian, worn by the Cossacks.
0:18:07 > 0:18:14This particular one - all this niello silver, which is very much favoured by Russia,
0:18:14 > 0:18:20looks very pretty - the black against the silver. I'll pull it out.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26So there we are. It's got a fuller on each side.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30The fuller is this trough that goes down each side.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33And it's a very, very pretty thing.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37Now this, in a collector's market, is very desirable,
0:18:37 > 0:18:41because you have something here completely undamaged.
0:18:41 > 0:18:46All the black is there with the silver. It hasn't been taken off.
0:18:46 > 0:18:52- There's no wear and tear and so you're looking at £1,000.- I see.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56It might be a bit more, but it's certainly £1,000.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59- Thanks for bringing it in.- Thanks.
0:18:59 > 0:19:06They belonged to my father and I inherited them 25 years ago.
0:19:06 > 0:19:12And he had them 25 years prior to that. Where he got them from, I haven't a clue.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15Absolutely no idea?
0:19:15 > 0:19:18They are extraordinary chairs.
0:19:18 > 0:19:23This X-form chair goes right back to Roman times.
0:19:23 > 0:19:28And there are X-frame forms in the decorations at Pompeii.
0:19:28 > 0:19:34The rest suggests a highly developed interest in mannerism
0:19:34 > 0:19:38in the 16th century in the northern Renaissance.
0:19:38 > 0:19:44This dragon also reminds me of the kind of gargoyles which you get on Gothic cathedrals.
0:19:44 > 0:19:50So there's a mixture of "grotesque", meaning ugly and mis-shapen,
0:19:50 > 0:19:57and the "grotesque" that comes from the mannerist decoration of the 16th century.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02This design in the middle, taking the place of a splat,
0:20:02 > 0:20:06you find very much in the 16th century.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09But they're much thinner and more spindly.
0:20:09 > 0:20:14They've been exaggerated in the fineness of the shapes here.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17They're incredibly delicate.
0:20:17 > 0:20:23This impish sort of gargoyly caricature face, complete with wart...
0:20:24 > 0:20:31..reminds me much more of German carving of the 16th century,
0:20:31 > 0:20:37put together in a way that you would not have found in the 16th century.
0:20:37 > 0:20:43What I think we're probably looking at here is a 19th-century version
0:20:43 > 0:20:46of other styles being put together.
0:20:46 > 0:20:52I suspect that these may have been made on the Flemish-German border.
0:20:52 > 0:20:58They're made out of walnut and I think that they are extraordinary.
0:20:58 > 0:21:02They are bizarre, fascinating,
0:21:02 > 0:21:08extremely high-quality in the carving. Wherever you look there's something to explore.
0:21:08 > 0:21:13- How do you use them?- They were at either end of the dining table,
0:21:13 > 0:21:18- and they were the most uncomfortable meals we ever endured.- If you - ooh!
0:21:18 > 0:21:24- Yes, quite.- I've been sort of prodded by his chin.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28- You've had them in your family for quite some time.- 50 years.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32Have you ever thought about valuation?
0:21:32 > 0:21:38Only once, a long time ago, and they said about £800 for the pair.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41Someone will love these chairs.
0:21:41 > 0:21:46For one now, you could easily be looking at £1,000 to £1,500.
0:21:46 > 0:21:52So for the pair, you could be looking at £3,000 to £4,000.
0:21:52 > 0:21:57- But it could go much more than that because they're so unusual.- Yes.
0:21:59 > 0:22:04- And this is for the men, is it? - No, that's a female one.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08- Is it?- With the flange on the front. That's the men's bottle.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11- Right. - They come in different shapes.
0:22:11 > 0:22:17If you look on the bottom - in there, it's impressed and you get...
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- It says "medium". - You get small, medium and large.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24- Depending on the bottoms. - That one's a small.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27- And that's... - And that one's a large.
0:22:27 > 0:22:31That would suit me! Do you use them?
0:22:31 > 0:22:35- No.- But you still bring them home, do you?- Yes.
0:22:35 > 0:22:40- And what does your husband say about that?- He goes a bit potty about it.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43- Thanks for bringing them in. - That's OK.
0:22:43 > 0:22:50Now this could be some kind of weapon, or it could be something from an ancient hairdressers,
0:22:50 > 0:22:55- but obviously I'm guessing, so what is it?- It's actually an eel spear.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59- An eel spear? - Yes, for catching eels.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02And it's dated around 1800 to 1850.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05And how did you get this?
0:23:05 > 0:23:09I was given it from my partner for a birthday present.
0:23:09 > 0:23:17- Was it something you'd always wanted?- It was something I had seen but not in such good condition.
0:23:17 > 0:23:23- So he bought it for me as a surprise. - And it just took your fancy? - Yes, it's very unusual.
0:23:23 > 0:23:29But an eel is a very elusive thing. Do you just stab down on it with these five prongs?
0:23:29 > 0:23:33Yes. The eel would be swimming along,
0:23:33 > 0:23:41and you just go down with the spear and the little barbs on the edges stop the eel from passing through.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45- Devilish idea, isn't it? - Slightly barbaric.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49- And works, presumably.- Mm. - Let's go find an eel.
0:23:50 > 0:23:56My mother passed it on to me and it was passed on to her when she was a teenager.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58That's all I know.
0:23:58 > 0:24:03It's a dog collar, as I'm sure you're aware, and a small dog too.
0:24:03 > 0:24:09It's got a catch here and you clasp it round the neck.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13So once it was on, it would stay there for some time.
0:24:13 > 0:24:22It's got a charming inscription on it - "I am my master's dog, JD, pray tell me, sir, whose dog you be?"
0:24:22 > 0:24:25We know it's local because it says "Upton Lovel".
0:24:25 > 0:24:30Upton Lovell is a village about 15 miles from Melksham.
0:24:30 > 0:24:35- Yes.- And then it says "Wiltshire" and "1784".
0:24:35 > 0:24:40So it's a fantastic example of a late-18th-century dog collar.
0:24:40 > 0:24:45- Have you any idea of its value? - I haven't, no, not a clue.
0:24:45 > 0:24:50- You can buy a dog collar for a couple of pounds now.- Yes.
0:24:50 > 0:24:56- The saddest thing about it is the fact that it has a split.- Yes.
0:24:56 > 0:25:03- And that certainly devalues it. But it's still worth in the region of £150.- Oh, right.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06Wasn't expecting that.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09This is an absolute joy.
0:25:09 > 0:25:15It's a most wonderful etui. The decoration here is fantastic.
0:25:15 > 0:25:21I'm assuming this is tortoiseshell and this is multicoloured gold inlay.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25And it's absolutely fascinating how this was done.
0:25:25 > 0:25:33They did not carve out the surface and then make the little wires and put them in.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36What they did was heat up the wires,
0:25:36 > 0:25:42lay them on the surface, and then being hot, it melted the tortoiseshell and they sank in.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46I wondered how they did it.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50It also means they're terribly difficult to restore.
0:25:50 > 0:25:55But this one with these flowers, it is so super.
0:25:55 > 0:26:00There's the odd tiny bit missing, but really that's next to nothing.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04But what is so amazing is also what is inside.
0:26:04 > 0:26:10A number of times you find one of these and there's one piece missing.
0:26:10 > 0:26:12And that makes such a difference.
0:26:12 > 0:26:19But there... I mean, that's a joy, that little gold spoon.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21That's so much fun.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27No marks on it, and I wouldn't expect a mark on it.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33All the sort of things you need for travel, so a knife...
0:26:33 > 0:26:36and that wonderful gold inlay.
0:26:36 > 0:26:43And the pistol handle which is so typical of the mid-18th century, are known as a "Dutch slipper blade",
0:26:43 > 0:26:47where it just curves there.
0:26:49 > 0:26:55Then scissors which - flick this - made of polished steel, of course.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58And the gold sections.
0:26:59 > 0:27:05They will cut just about anything. Wonderful 18th-century steel.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08This is a lovely one.
0:27:08 > 0:27:14Little bodkin, so you could use that for threading - a little hole there.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17Put the ribbon through it.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19Then what have we got here?
0:27:19 > 0:27:22There are tweezers at that end...
0:27:22 > 0:27:27I don't know what that little hook bit is at the end there.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30It obviously has a function,
0:27:30 > 0:27:35but I have to say I don't know what you would use that end for.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39- Oh, and that's fun, a toothpick. - Oh, right.
0:27:39 > 0:27:46Delightful idea of picking your teeth with that, and again those are all gold inlay,
0:27:46 > 0:27:50gold mounts, gold mounts.
0:27:50 > 0:27:56I have to say also that I have never seen this particular design.
0:27:56 > 0:28:03And it's so rarely that you find one with the entire contents.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05So, value - it's a tricky one.
0:28:05 > 0:28:13Any collector of etuis is going to be very excited about that and want to have it in their collection.
0:28:13 > 0:28:18I would suggest an auction estimate
0:28:18 > 0:28:21of £2,000 to £3,000.
0:28:21 > 0:28:27And I would certainly be insuring for at least £5,000.
0:28:27 > 0:28:35- Oh.- It is such a joy. I am so thrilled to have seen this. Thank you for bringing it in.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40- I know they're maiolica and old.- Yes.
0:28:40 > 0:28:45I know how I inherited them and where they came from.
0:28:45 > 0:28:51- So if they're made of maiolica, where did they come from?- Italy. - Yes. Now, the problem is,
0:28:51 > 0:28:57any pottery covered in a tin glaze made in Italy is called maiolica.
0:28:57 > 0:29:04So you've got maiolica made from the 13th century to the 20th century and where do these come in?
0:29:04 > 0:29:07- That's the next question.- Yeah.
0:29:07 > 0:29:09And they were made in about 1740
0:29:09 > 0:29:15in a place called Castelli near Bruzi, Castelli da Bruzo,
0:29:15 > 0:29:20by a family called Grue who specialised in making these plaques.
0:29:20 > 0:29:28I think these plaques were painted by Aurelia Grue, who was particularly good at these animals.
0:29:28 > 0:29:35- What about the holes?- That's where the glaze has retracted. That's not a defect. That's in the manufacture.
0:29:35 > 0:29:42- No-one fired pellets at them and made little holes.- That's in the manufacture?- It's not a problem.
0:29:42 > 0:29:48- They're lovely agrestic subjects. I love this chap and his flute.- Yes.
0:29:48 > 0:29:55The other guy leaning on the barrel and the dogs and animals are always very good in this man's painting.
0:29:56 > 0:30:02If you have them hanging on the wall, just check the wires are in good nick.
0:30:02 > 0:30:09because I wouldn't like one of them to fall off and you to lose...
0:30:09 > 0:30:12I should think half of £8,000 - say £4,000.
0:30:12 > 0:30:19I think the two of them together are worth probably to the order of £8,000.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21Really?
0:30:21 > 0:30:28My father loved antique sales and I happened to be with him when he bought this one at Chippenham,
0:30:28 > 0:30:32at Lady Mary Coventry's, about 50 years ago or so.
0:30:32 > 0:30:37- And it was catalogued as a water clock?- Yes.- Dated 1672?- Yes.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40Well, that's what it appears to be.
0:30:40 > 0:30:48In fact, it's signed, "A Walters fecit Salisbury anno domini 1672. I am thy guide."
0:30:48 > 0:30:52And what we have is an oak plank, some carving,
0:30:52 > 0:30:57basically the dial, which is fairly straightforward with a single hand,
0:30:57 > 0:31:01the water container in which the float runs up and down.
0:31:01 > 0:31:09And the theory is, the water drips out through this tap on the side into the reservoir at the bottom.
0:31:09 > 0:31:14There's even a version of the Royal coat of arms on the bottom.
0:31:14 > 0:31:19In fact, it's actually made about 1900-1920.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22- That doesn't come to you as much of a surprise?- No.
0:31:22 > 0:31:29They were made by a company in Birmingham called Pearson Page and they didn't just make water clocks.
0:31:29 > 0:31:35Half of the coal buckets and fire irons that we think of as Georgian, are brilliant copies by that firm,
0:31:35 > 0:31:41just to sell commercially. They were not made as any sort of forgeries.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43This is a model I've never seen.
0:31:43 > 0:31:49Oh, right, yes. We have had it going with the water dripping out.
0:31:49 > 0:31:53- And did you get any accuracy? - Not really.- No.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56The pressure of the water... But they're great fun.
0:31:56 > 0:32:03- Yes.- You mustn't polish it so much. It looks wonderful but all it really needs is a rub with a cloth,
0:32:03 > 0:32:07- because eventually it will start to polish off the engraving.- Oh.
0:32:07 > 0:32:13So despite the fact that it's not a genuine water clock of this period,
0:32:13 > 0:32:16and I don't think they ever existed,
0:32:16 > 0:32:20it's still worth something like £500 or £800.
0:32:20 > 0:32:24Very interesting. Thank you very much.
0:32:24 > 0:32:28- Have these plates been in your family long?- About four generations.
0:32:28 > 0:32:34Four generations - that takes us back 120 years. Do you have them on display?
0:32:34 > 0:32:40Yes, but on a stand because I've got a little mark on that, this one here.
0:32:40 > 0:32:46And I think it was caused by perhaps some wire earlier on.
0:32:46 > 0:32:53- When you had it on plate hangers? - Yes, I'm afraid so.- Well, I can tell you that it's not damaged at all.
0:32:53 > 0:32:57- This was done during manufacture. - Oh.
0:32:57 > 0:33:02In the kiln, this plate would have sat underneath with a piece of ceramic stilt.
0:33:02 > 0:33:07This one would have been stacked on top so when they pulled them off...
0:33:07 > 0:33:15They pulled it off the glaze and it left a mark. Not damaged at all. Made about 1750 - 250 years ago.
0:33:15 > 0:33:20They are sometimes called Whieldon ware but that's not the right term.
0:33:20 > 0:33:24They imitated tortoiseshell. They're made of a creamware body.
0:33:24 > 0:33:32And they introduced plaster of Paris moulds for the first time, so you could get a good moulded pattern.
0:33:32 > 0:33:39So they're ancient plates, 1750, and they look as though they could have come out of the kiln yesterday.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43- Yes.- They're so glowing and bright. Look at the brightness!
0:33:43 > 0:33:46- They are nice.- They're wonderful. - Yes, yes.
0:33:46 > 0:33:53If you saw these in a smart shop in London, they'd be valued at about £2,500 the pair.
0:33:53 > 0:33:57- £2,500.- Oh, my goodness!
0:34:00 > 0:34:05- Can I ask you how you came by this? - I've had it 35, nearly 40 years.
0:34:05 > 0:34:10And it was given to me by a boyfriend of the time.
0:34:10 > 0:34:14And he was in the Army. He'd gone home to Wales on leave.
0:34:14 > 0:34:20And while there, he went for a walk. He kicked a clump of earth
0:34:20 > 0:34:28- and just caught a glint of something and cleaned it off, took it home and gave it to me.- And that's it.
0:34:28 > 0:34:33- So that was a long time ago. - Right, that is quite amazing.
0:34:33 > 0:34:38- Do you know anything about the box itself?- I think it's French.
0:34:38 > 0:34:43- Yes.- And the reason I thought that was because I went to Versailles.
0:34:43 > 0:34:48In the gilding in Versailles, there was the same design as on the box.
0:34:48 > 0:34:54- Now the box - I've just had a chance to look at the marks there - is Paris.- Oh.
0:34:54 > 0:35:00- It's 1765.- Right.- You've got green gold, red gold, white gold.- Right.
0:35:00 > 0:35:06- All inlaid on there.- So all the different colours are gold?- Yes.
0:35:06 > 0:35:14Very high carat of gold. That's white gold, green gold, red gold and yellow gold in the background.
0:35:14 > 0:35:20- So, have you ever thought about value?- Not really, no.
0:35:20 > 0:35:26I would say in a sale you'd have to be thinking at least £3,000.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29Ooh! Oh.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31£3,000?
0:35:31 > 0:35:34£3,000 and it could go more.
0:35:34 > 0:35:38- Really?- Really. - Do you still see that boyfriend?
0:35:38 > 0:35:40No!
0:35:42 > 0:35:49Mrs Bruce was very famous and well known in the country in the 1920s and early 1930s
0:35:49 > 0:35:52- as a lady racing driver...- Yes.
0:35:52 > 0:35:56..motor racing and aviatrix.
0:35:56 > 0:36:03- This tray was given to her by Bentley Motors after she did a 24-hour journey.- That's quite an achievement.
0:36:03 > 0:36:10- It's staggering. - She must have been driving at 110, 120 most of the time, in a Bentley.
0:36:10 > 0:36:16- Yes, in a Bentley.- Do we have any pictures of this?- We do. Here is a picture of the Bentley.
0:36:16 > 0:36:21That is the is the actual Bentley which went on to win Le Mans rally.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24- So it's the winning car?- It is.
0:36:24 > 0:36:30She described her 24-hour run as "running the engine in" for Bentley, for the Bentley Boys who...
0:36:30 > 0:36:36- Who then...- ..carried out the race. - So it was a brand-new car then?- Yes.
0:36:36 > 0:36:41Was that the third year in succession that Bentley had won?
0:36:41 > 0:36:45- Yes, it was.- But then that was the end of the Bentley story?
0:36:45 > 0:36:49- Yes.- So there she is. What else have we got?
0:36:49 > 0:36:53- Oh, look, what's that? - That's it being refuelled.
0:36:53 > 0:36:58- God, look how crude and primitive it is.- Yes.- God, he's even smoking!
0:36:58 > 0:37:02He's smoking with the fuel being poured in. A short life expectancy!
0:37:02 > 0:37:09- What a primitive life it was, and yet that was the car she was driving at over 100mph.- Yes.
0:37:09 > 0:37:16- What's the telegram?- They are congratulatory telegrams on the journey. This one is from Bentley.
0:37:16 > 0:37:22- "Heartiest congratulations on most wonderful show." This is after the 24-hours?- Yes.
0:37:22 > 0:37:27- That's from one of the great Bentley drivers.- What are you to do with her?
0:37:27 > 0:37:34My interest in her was triggered off when I bought her house in Bradford-on-Avon.
0:37:34 > 0:37:39- Did you get things from...? - There were things I found in the roof space,
0:37:39 > 0:37:42tucked in a painted-up cupboard.
0:37:42 > 0:37:47I began asking about her, and very few people know anything about her.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51I knew her name, but nothing about her life.
0:37:51 > 0:37:58I delved deeper into it and started collecting this memorabilia on her and learning about her other feats.
0:37:58 > 0:38:02- Where did you get it? - From auction sales, publicity.
0:38:02 > 0:38:07People have offered me things they've had in their own attics or cellars.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12- What is your aim?- It is to bring her back to public attention.
0:38:12 > 0:38:18- Bring her back to life.- Great, great sportswoman, great person in her day.
0:38:18 > 0:38:22It's a shame that she seems to have been forgotten.
0:38:22 > 0:38:25- Particularly as a lady driver.- Yes.
0:38:25 > 0:38:31- Would it be fair to say it's an obsession?- Sometimes, yes, I admit.- She's taken over your life?
0:38:31 > 0:38:36- Almost - don't tell my wife. - So you live with two women?- Almost.
0:38:36 > 0:38:43- She didn't have a compass in her car.- No. After her various driving feats she got bored with driving.
0:38:43 > 0:38:48She was walking down Regent Street and saw a plane for sale in a department store...
0:38:48 > 0:38:53- Department stores sold aeroplanes? - Exactly. The wings folded up.
0:38:53 > 0:38:59She bought it without knowing how to fly, had 8 hours of lessons and decided to set off round the world.
0:38:59 > 0:39:03- Just like that?- Yes.- After 8 hours? - Yes.
0:39:03 > 0:39:10- And she lived to tell the tale?- She did crash the aeroplane three times, but it was repaired each time.
0:39:10 > 0:39:16And she lived out on a good dinner-party story for the rest of her life?
0:39:16 > 0:39:20- She went on lecture tours after that.- And what happened to her?
0:39:20 > 0:39:24After that, she retired to Bradford-on-Avon.
0:39:24 > 0:39:28Though she had a career running an airline company during the '30s.
0:39:28 > 0:39:33- What, her own airline? - It was a company called Air Dispatch.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36She employed the first air stewardess.
0:39:36 > 0:39:42- Yes, because Imperial Airways had stewards very firmly. - Yes, but this was her airline.
0:39:42 > 0:39:50- So she was a great fighter for female emancipation?- And she pioneered air-to-air refuelling.
0:39:50 > 0:39:58She had the record for staying in the air for the longest period of time, 55 hours round the Isle of Wight.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01Astonishing. And what are all these?
0:40:01 > 0:40:07- This is a collection of flying goggles. These are her goggles. - You know these are hers?
0:40:07 > 0:40:13- Yes, because I bought them with the compass.- So she flew in her aeroplane with these goggles and this compass?
0:40:13 > 0:40:19- As I say, it's a slight obsession. I understand why you do it. Is there more material to get?- I'm sure.
0:40:19 > 0:40:25- Will you write a book?- There's a lady in America writing a book. She's a better author than I am.
0:40:25 > 0:40:31- But you have the great collection. You are the Mrs Bruce expert. - I like to think so.
0:40:31 > 0:40:36She deserves you. She deserves wonderful attention.
0:40:36 > 0:40:43- May you find many more things. I think we should end with a wonderful picture of her.- Lovely.
0:40:43 > 0:40:50What a wonderful lady! Great, and it brings together that period of excitement, challenge, elegance.
0:40:50 > 0:40:54- Wonderful, lovely. - Thank you very much.- Pleasure.
0:40:54 > 0:41:02- My father, when he died, we found it in his stuff.- So it's a memento. Do you remember it as a child?
0:41:02 > 0:41:05- Never saw it before.- Never saw it?
0:41:05 > 0:41:12Wonderful to see such a beautiful drawing by one of the great illustrators of the 19th century,
0:41:12 > 0:41:19Edmund Dulac. And he and Arthur Rackham are without doubt the finest illustrators on the market,
0:41:19 > 0:41:21at that time.
0:41:21 > 0:41:27What I love about this picture is it seems to encompass to me all the eccentricities of Dulac.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30Do you know anything about Dulac?
0:41:30 > 0:41:37- I had a book. I just read that he was an illustrator - that's all I know.- That's all, right.
0:41:37 > 0:41:43Well, he was born, as his name suggests, in Toulouse in France.
0:41:43 > 0:41:47He came to England I think in about 1906 to London,
0:41:47 > 0:41:51and actually became a nationalised citizen in 1912.
0:41:51 > 0:41:56He made his fame and fortune from book illustrations.
0:41:56 > 0:42:03He illustrated some of the most famous children's books at the time, such as Treasure Island in 1927,
0:42:03 > 0:42:07Arabian Nights in 1907, Sinbad The Sailor,
0:42:07 > 0:42:12most of Hans Anderson's fairy tales, those sort of books.
0:42:12 > 0:42:16He is a cultish figure, very eccentric.
0:42:16 > 0:42:21What I like about him is he seems to bring in taste from the Far East.
0:42:21 > 0:42:28We have Middle Eastern taste, we have Art Nouveau, we have almost the detail of Pre-Raphaelitism.
0:42:28 > 0:42:32We have a melting pot of taste and trends here.
0:42:32 > 0:42:40And this wonderful watercolour, you can see how it's been highlighted with silver and gold here as well.
0:42:40 > 0:42:45And look at those slippers - probably quite difficult to wear.
0:42:45 > 0:42:52It says, "To Mr Clarkson, souvenir of the Italian Ball 1920." So is this Mr Clarkson?
0:42:52 > 0:42:56There lies a bit of a mystery, doesn't it?
0:42:56 > 0:42:59- Have you ever had it valued?- No.
0:42:59 > 0:43:03Well, Dulac is extremely sought after.
0:43:03 > 0:43:10I suppose his most valuable things would be illustrations of well-known fairy tales.
0:43:10 > 0:43:14Something like this should be insured for about £10,000.
0:43:18 > 0:43:23Thank you to the people of Melksham for joining us at the Roadshow.
0:43:23 > 0:43:29We've been engulfed by treasures from exquisite watercolours to sturdy bed pans.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32Items to please the eye and soothe the weary soul.
0:43:32 > 0:43:37So until next week, from Melksham, goodbye.
0:44:03 > 0:44:06Subtitles by BBC