0:00:34 > 0:00:38Welcome to Caernarfon in north-west Wales,
0:00:38 > 0:00:43probably best known as the setting for the investiture of the present Prince of Wales.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46It lies on the Menai Straits
0:00:46 > 0:00:50which separate Anglesey from the mainland.
0:00:50 > 0:00:56In 1969, 21-year-old Prince Charles stood within the walls of this magnificent and mediaeval castle,
0:00:56 > 0:01:01while television cameras sent pictures around the world.
0:01:01 > 0:01:04The ceremony dates back to the 13th century.
0:01:04 > 0:01:11Edward I's English armies had defeated what was to be the last Welsh Prince of Wales.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15From then on, the title was bestowed upon heirs to the English throne.
0:01:15 > 0:01:20Edward went on to build a whole series of castles
0:01:20 > 0:01:23to mark out the perimeter of his conquests.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27Caernarfon Castle houses the museum of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers.
0:01:27 > 0:01:33The Fusiliers have distinguished themselves in many crucial episodes in British history -
0:01:33 > 0:01:37the American War of Independence, the Napoleonic Wars,
0:01:37 > 0:01:42the Boer War and, of course, all the major conflicts of the 20th century.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47In the Great War, nearly 10,000 Fusiliers gave their lives.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52Among those who survived were Siegfried Sassoon and Robert Graves.
0:01:52 > 0:01:55It was Sassoon who penned these bitter lines -
0:01:55 > 0:02:01"You smug-faced crowds with kindling eye who cheer when soldier lads march by.
0:02:01 > 0:02:07"Sneak home and pray you'll never know the hell where youth and laughter go."
0:02:07 > 0:02:11Caernarfon, a small town with a long history,
0:02:11 > 0:02:15attracts half a million visitors every year,
0:02:15 > 0:02:22and today we welcome one and all to the Arfon Leisure Centre for this week's Antiques Roadshow.
0:02:22 > 0:02:28Well, my late husband and I used to go a lot to London, to go round the galleries and different shops
0:02:28 > 0:02:34that sold paintings and he saw this, and liked it and he knew the area,
0:02:34 > 0:02:38- so he bought it. - Because it's Caernarfonshire.- Yes.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42It's not far from where we live - Penygroes.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46- This is a drawing by Cornelius Varley.- Oh, yes?
0:02:46 > 0:02:53He first came to Wales in 1802, and then again in 1803, and this one's 1805.
0:02:53 > 0:02:58But recorded in a sketchbook, on his first trip to Wales,
0:02:58 > 0:03:04is a recipe for dealing with the bites from poisonous animals, a cure for St Vitus's Dance...
0:03:04 > 0:03:08Good heavens! It must have been wild Wales!
0:03:08 > 0:03:12This was wild Wales! Because of his interest in scientific instruments,
0:03:12 > 0:03:17he developed Cornelius Varley's patent graphic telescope.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22It wasn't used in this drawing, but sometimes on his large landscapes,
0:03:22 > 0:03:26he was able to take an image from miles away and bring it in closer,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29then take up the drawing afterwards.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33That's why you could see the scale of the rocks because of this cow.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37My husband - he wrote at the back of this painting that Varley did it,
0:03:37 > 0:03:42- but I've lost the backing of it... - He wouldn't be too pleased with you.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47- No, no, but I'll find it.- Now, what is a cow doing on a beach?
0:03:47 > 0:03:49Well, it was wild Wales, wasn't it?
0:03:49 > 0:03:54- There were farms all round there. - But the cow must have fallen down...
0:03:54 > 0:04:00- No, you could walk round the peninsula...- You know this?- I've been there with my late husband.
0:04:00 > 0:04:07- We went through a field there and, as I said, it's like this hidden cove. - I think it's a rock, not a cow.
0:04:07 > 0:04:13- That's what he said.- You'd like to have it as a cow?- Yes.- All right.
0:04:13 > 0:04:18- I believed my husband, you see. - Isn't that nice? Well, we'll beg to differ.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22- We won't quarrel about it.- No. - That's very kind of you.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25Well, a little bit more technical information -
0:04:25 > 0:04:32at the top is an inscription. I think he actually was sitting here drawing these particular rocks.
0:04:32 > 0:04:37This inscription here, in pen and ink, I believe he put on afterwards,
0:04:37 > 0:04:42- when he went through all his material later in life.- Ah, yes.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Now, to be honest, it's not particularly valuable.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50But I think he's a fascinating artist.
0:04:50 > 0:04:56- And very important because he was an artist who developed naturalistic landscape.- Yes, yes.
0:04:56 > 0:05:01- Probably no more than £1,000. - I thought that meself.- Oh, right(!)
0:05:01 > 0:05:08- Yes, well, I just... Because you're the expert.- Even though I don't know a cow or a rock?
0:05:11 > 0:05:16- I came across it in an antique shop in the north-west...- Yes.
0:05:16 > 0:05:21..and I just fancied it. I didn't realise how early it was.
0:05:21 > 0:05:27This is a particularly fine example of a lantern clock - an early one.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31- Was it in this condition when you got it?- Yes, it was.
0:05:31 > 0:05:38There are some holes deep within the clock, which suggests that it has been converted at a later date,
0:05:38 > 0:05:42The date of this clock could be 1630, maybe 1650,
0:05:42 > 0:05:46but it had a balance wheel on the top,
0:05:46 > 0:05:50converted at a later date to a pendulum control,
0:05:50 > 0:05:54- which now comes off the back here with a long pendulum.- Yes.
0:05:54 > 0:06:02One nice thing about this is that the conversion work was done pretty early on in the life of the clock,
0:06:02 > 0:06:05so there's no point in going back now,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and putting a balance wheel back on.
0:06:07 > 0:06:12This is a very early conversion, possibly done in the 1670s,
0:06:12 > 0:06:18- roughly that sort of date, to turn it into a more accurate sort of clock.- Yes.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22Have you done any research on it yourself?
0:06:22 > 0:06:25- I went to the British Museum...- Yes.
0:06:25 > 0:06:30..and they had a William Bowyer clock of about 1620 there,
0:06:30 > 0:06:33and they let me handle it -
0:06:33 > 0:06:37and I drew the pattern of the holes
0:06:37 > 0:06:41in this top horizontal plate and these are exactly the same.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45- Right. So it could be by that maker.- Yes.
0:06:45 > 0:06:51It's possible that the alarm disc - now missing - had his name on it.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55There have been one or two other alterations.
0:06:55 > 0:07:00The finial at the top is a different colour to the rest of the brass,
0:07:00 > 0:07:06so that has been replaced. I think it's a really stunning piece and a very early lantern clock.
0:07:06 > 0:07:12- Can you tell me what you paid for it?- I paid £100.- £100?- Yes.- Um...
0:07:12 > 0:07:18if it was in its original condition, with the original balance wheel,
0:07:18 > 0:07:23I mean, you'd be talking of, what, £5,000 - £7,000?
0:07:23 > 0:07:27As it is, with the alterations that have taken place,
0:07:27 > 0:07:30certainly £4,000 for a clock like this.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33Thank you very much.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37People have commented that it might be a piano...
0:07:37 > 0:07:40but here we have, quite clearly, a desk.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44But this is nice to see on any piece of furniture "Brew and Claris",
0:07:44 > 0:07:49and, I think, it's 54 Finsbury Park.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53Well, I tried to look up on the internet about them,
0:07:53 > 0:07:57but I couldn't find anything that related to the manufacturers.
0:07:57 > 0:08:02It's extraordinary that there isn't much written about these people -
0:08:02 > 0:08:07there are few books published with their work.
0:08:07 > 0:08:12A typical Victorian writing desk. I love the way that all this works.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16- These original... What would you call that?- The leather, yes...
0:08:16 > 0:08:19Original leather writing surface,
0:08:19 > 0:08:25and the attention to detail in here with these chamfered panels is wonderful. It's really nicely made.
0:08:25 > 0:08:31Talk about a piano - I wasn't far off. Look, that's a piano hinge
0:08:31 > 0:08:37- for a piano flap.- Oh...- And they've actually cut it and altered these
0:08:37 > 0:08:41to be a lot more like a normal hinge on the top part.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43So a bit of piano influence.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47I like the general influence about this period.
0:08:47 > 0:08:52- You've found out nothing about the period and when it was made?- No.
0:08:52 > 0:08:59It's part of this quite difficult group of furniture - sort of Gothic Reform, Arts and Crafts
0:08:59 > 0:09:02and just before the Aesthetic Movement.
0:09:02 > 0:09:08So it would be around 1865-1870. Interestingly enough,
0:09:08 > 0:09:15in 1870, Brew and Claris made a lot of furniture for an exhibition at the South Kensington Museum,
0:09:15 > 0:09:21called the Colonial and India Exhibition. Is it an inherited piece?
0:09:21 > 0:09:27It's from my husband's auntie. It was in her husband's family before that.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32I like it very much. This sunflower you see repeated
0:09:32 > 0:09:37in the Arts and Crafts, Aesthetic Movement furniture - very typical.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41- You see it often painted on that black furniture.- Yes.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46That's a bit more mechanical, but look at the colour of it.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50- Do you know what wood it is? - We thought it might be walnut.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53- It looks like it, but it's oak.- Oak?
0:09:53 > 0:09:57It's been cut in a way to look like walnut,
0:09:57 > 0:10:02and the colour is like walnut, it's almost got a satinwood colour.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06It's a nice adaptation of this ordinary country English wood,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10and I think that's very nice. Difficult one to value -
0:10:10 > 0:10:15it's not everybody's taste, but it's such a well-made piece of furniture.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19- I think - insure it for £3,000. - Fine. That's nice.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23We were clearing out, about a year ago,
0:10:23 > 0:10:28the attic of my parents who had died and this is just one of the items
0:10:28 > 0:10:32that we found in the attic. We thought it was rather nice,
0:10:32 > 0:10:37- so we kept it.- Well, I'm pleased you didn't throw it away.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41Inside, we find a rather interesting perfume bottle.
0:10:41 > 0:10:47The box tells us that we're dealing with a perfume called Cigalia.
0:10:47 > 0:10:53Made for Roger et Gallet of Paris, but what makes it special
0:10:53 > 0:10:59are these four cicadas that are on each of the four corners,
0:10:59 > 0:11:02nicely moulded and nicely stained.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06The one name I think of is Rene Lalique,
0:11:06 > 0:11:10so a very pleasing symmetrical design.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14If I turn it upside down, that's the place I'd be looking for a mark,
0:11:14 > 0:11:18but they always have this flat, frosted base.
0:11:18 > 0:11:24You've got the original label on there. Lalique designed thousands of perfume bottles.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28- Really?- This one is for Roger et Gallet. He started with Coty,
0:11:28 > 0:11:31he went on to Worth, he did Molinard,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Houbigant, Lucien Lelong, you name it.
0:11:34 > 0:11:40Lalique was the man to design your bottles, because it worked for Coty, it's going to work for the others.
0:11:40 > 0:11:45Um, now, I suppose it brings me to the question of, you know,
0:11:45 > 0:11:49what is an empty perfume bottle in a rather distressed box
0:11:49 > 0:11:56- going to be worth? You've had no thoughts on that? - I'd be wrong if I told you I hadn't.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00I thought it would be... It's a very nice thing
0:12:00 > 0:12:04- and I thought perhaps... - £30 or £40?
0:12:04 > 0:12:10- Something like that.- To somebody who liked collecting pretty...- Yes.
0:12:10 > 0:12:15Well, I'm here to tell it like it is and to tell you
0:12:15 > 0:12:20that this bottle, with its original box, in this condition...
0:12:20 > 0:12:24is worth about £1,500.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26Oh, lovely.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31"Made in England."
0:12:31 > 0:12:38Well, people didn't start writing "Made in England" on the bottom of things until around 1900.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42A schoolboy and a schoolgirl - he with his satchel and his black cape,
0:12:42 > 0:12:44and she with her slate.
0:12:44 > 0:12:49They are very late for Staffordshire figures, circa 1900 - 1910.
0:12:49 > 0:12:54They're very unusual. So I'm going to put a value somewhere between...
0:12:54 > 0:12:58- £300 and £500 on them.- Thank you. - Not bad, is it?- Yes. No.
0:12:58 > 0:13:04What I particularly like about it is the crude form of workmanship down here.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08Here you see this section comes down to here,
0:13:08 > 0:13:12there's a pin through the main piece of timber here,
0:13:12 > 0:13:16but it's simply held in by this very crude piece of wood,
0:13:16 > 0:13:20which is simply held together with one or two clout nails.
0:13:20 > 0:13:27It shouldn't have lasted 50 years in theory, let alone 300, but they seem to have done.
0:13:27 > 0:13:31Well, it's a very fine little gate-leg table,
0:13:31 > 0:13:35and if we just open the gate like so...
0:13:35 > 0:13:40- My main memory is from this angle. - You like it from that angle?
0:13:40 > 0:13:44- It's a very, complicated table. - Yeah.- Value-wise,
0:13:44 > 0:13:49- somewhere around about £2,000 - £2,500.- That's great.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53This is exciting because we have another reminder
0:13:53 > 0:13:57of the Great War poet Siegfried Sassoon. Tell us about it.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01Well, this is the Browning pistol that Sassoon purchased privately
0:14:01 > 0:14:06and he carried this with him throughout the First World War.
0:14:06 > 0:14:12- Why did he not have the standard big service revolver?- He did have one,
0:14:12 > 0:14:18but we know from his memoirs that although he wasn't afraid of being killed in action,
0:14:18 > 0:14:23he WAS afraid of a lingering death from a fatal wound,
0:14:23 > 0:14:30and he thought that a big service revolver would be too clumsy a weapon to end his life with,
0:14:30 > 0:14:37- so he bought this for that emergency. - He didn't use it for that purpose, but was it ever fired in anger?
0:14:37 > 0:14:40I don't think it was. In his diaries he refers to it,
0:14:40 > 0:14:43and when he was on patrol,
0:14:43 > 0:14:48he liked to clutch this Browning pistol to make him feel braver,
0:14:48 > 0:14:52but no, I don't think he ever fired this weapon.
0:14:52 > 0:14:58What about value? I mean, this is a museum piece, obviously, but are you aware of its worth?
0:14:58 > 0:15:04As a museum, we're not interested in the value of the weapon,
0:15:04 > 0:15:08but there's a lot of interest in Sassoon items.
0:15:08 > 0:15:12- I bought it because I liked it... - Well, you had a good eye.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15That was the only reason.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17It is a beautiful thing.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20It's painted in the best possible taste
0:15:20 > 0:15:26and it would appeal to people who collect serious Chinese 17th-century K'ang-Hsi blue and white.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30This is, as you may well know, a brush pot.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33What's so marvellous is the design.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Here you have a painting of a scholar with a boy attendant.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41The boy attendant is carrying his scrolls in a bag,
0:15:41 > 0:15:45and in front of the scholar here is a crane, which he's looking at.
0:15:45 > 0:15:50It's a beautiful thing and I think you should value that
0:15:50 > 0:15:54- at around £1,500 to £2,000. - Never!
0:15:56 > 0:16:01- Did these belong to the same person?- I think so - my grandfather.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04- And he was a sailor? - Yes. A master mariner.
0:16:04 > 0:16:09We know this is a marine barometer because just at the collar here
0:16:09 > 0:16:16is a gimbal mount, so that when it was on board ship, whatever the ship did, it would stay upright.
0:16:16 > 0:16:22Made by Gebbie and Co of Greenock - one of the great ports of Scotland,
0:16:22 > 0:16:26and you can just also see the level of the mercury up there.
0:16:26 > 0:16:33That would give some indication of the pressure, and therefore what the weather was likely to be.
0:16:33 > 0:16:38In the centre of the barometer, you have a mercury thermometer
0:16:38 > 0:16:44and something called an improved sympiesometer,
0:16:44 > 0:16:49which, instead of using mercury, used oil. There's oil in there.
0:16:49 > 0:16:53A wonderful instrument, lovely rosewood, in good working order.
0:16:53 > 0:16:58- What would you date it at? - Date probably around about 1870.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01Um, can I ask you to hold that one?
0:17:01 > 0:17:05So the other instrument that he had is this sextant -
0:17:05 > 0:17:09probably got a signature on it somewhere...
0:17:09 > 0:17:14- Ah, it says "Jones". It would be, in Wales!- I couldn't make it out.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18I think it says "Jones, London". I assume it's the same sort of date.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22But very nice that they've been kept together.
0:17:22 > 0:17:27- Yes.- But as far as values are concerned, the barometer is an important piece
0:17:27 > 0:17:31because marine barometers are much rarer,
0:17:31 > 0:17:35and I would expect it, at auction, to fetch
0:17:35 > 0:17:38between £2,000 and £3,000.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Right!
0:17:42 > 0:17:46- And the sextant - it is complete, it has its box...- Yes.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50..I would suggest maybe around about £600 to £700.
0:17:50 > 0:17:56- So very nice that you've got both of them.- Thank you very much. - And keep on enjoying them.
0:17:56 > 0:18:01- You know, your show's a very big programme in Canada.- Thank you!
0:18:01 > 0:18:07- You've brought these from Canada to show me?- Yes, and I'm glad it's you! - Oh, thank you!
0:18:07 > 0:18:11This is a charming little ring - it's a type that we've seen before,
0:18:11 > 0:18:16but I've seldom seen one in such pristine condition. It's as new.
0:18:16 > 0:18:21- Where did you find that?- It was a present from my husband.- Really?
0:18:21 > 0:18:23- Did he understand the message?- Yes.
0:18:23 > 0:18:30- The stones spell out the word "regard".- They do. And "regard" sounds cool in 20th-century terms.
0:18:30 > 0:18:36- Not from him, it doesn't! - Well, in the 18th or early 19th century, it was anything but cool,
0:18:36 > 0:18:40it meant love. The stones are laid out asymmetrically
0:18:40 > 0:18:44because they're in the form of a pansy flower,
0:18:44 > 0:18:49and so there's more to the message. It's regard, with a diamond forever,
0:18:49 > 0:18:56but also, the pansy flower, which in French is "pensee", which means "think of me", think of the giver.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00So what a fabulous gift. Were you surprised and thrilled?
0:19:00 > 0:19:02No, because I helped him pick it.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06Oh, I see, right! And where did you pick it?
0:19:06 > 0:19:11It was from an antique dealer friend, it was from her personal collection.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15- Marvellous. - It wasn't very expensive.- No?
0:19:15 > 0:19:21When we turn it over, we can see this little cup compartment for what we call a souvenir.
0:19:21 > 0:19:26It's a souvenir in that it has plaited hair in the back -
0:19:26 > 0:19:32the hair of the person that was much loved in the early 19th century, and so, absolutely beautiful,
0:19:32 > 0:19:37- perfect condition.- I love it. - And English - that's nice, too.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41This may or may not be English - it's quite tricky to tell
0:19:41 > 0:19:46- because this is a beautiful piece of Edwardian jewellery.- I love it.
0:19:46 > 0:19:54- Quite. What do you think this material is, in the middle? - I thought it might be machine work?
0:19:54 > 0:19:56It is. It's guioche enamel,
0:19:56 > 0:20:02which means that the enamelled ground has been turned against an engine turning device
0:20:02 > 0:20:06to give an engraving pattern that simulates silk,
0:20:06 > 0:20:10and we can see that the settings are very fine millegrain settings
0:20:10 > 0:20:15containing diamonds in the form of shamrock leaves, for luck.
0:20:15 > 0:20:17- Have you thought about that?- No.
0:20:17 > 0:20:24- The whole point about jewellery - I've been accused of banging on about it...- That's why I like it.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26- You do?- Yes!- Well, go tell them.
0:20:26 > 0:20:34So if it's diamonds set in clover leaves or shamrocks - it's forever luck...
0:20:34 > 0:20:41- Oh!- ..and forever good fortune, so this also has a message. - I never realised that.
0:20:41 > 0:20:46- How much was this ring? - That was 100 Canadian dollars,
0:20:46 > 0:20:51- so about £50.- I find that absolutely incredible, to be perfectly honest.
0:20:51 > 0:20:57If you wanted to buy that today, in any antique shop in London, they'd ask you over £1,000 for it.
0:20:57 > 0:21:03- Oh, my!- Very widely collected, very, very appealing in every possible sense of the word,
0:21:03 > 0:21:07in pristine condition, rings are rarely found like that.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10And this one here - tell me about that.
0:21:10 > 0:21:15I paid 12 dollars and 50 cents, so that would be probably £5.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19Well, from £5 to...£1,200.
0:21:19 > 0:21:24- Wow! Oh, that's lovely! - But you earned it, you did it.
0:21:24 > 0:21:29It's not to do with value, it's taste and keeping your eyes open.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31- Thank you.- Oh, thank you, sir.
0:21:31 > 0:21:36I wish I had a top hat. It's a terrifying looking instrument,
0:21:36 > 0:21:41but you can imagine someone in early Victorian times taking his hat off,
0:21:41 > 0:21:46- and just putting it over there. I understand all this came together, right?- Yes.
0:21:46 > 0:21:52It was purchased when the Caernarfon Harbour Trust went to their new harbour office in 1840-1841,
0:21:52 > 0:21:57and the trustees decided that they needed an armchair for the chairman
0:21:57 > 0:22:01- and 24 chairs for the trustees. - What a set!
0:22:01 > 0:22:05- Yes.- And so you know the precise date?- Yes. 1841.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09- Do you have the bill or anything like that?- No,
0:22:09 > 0:22:16but the decision of the trust was that there was a budget of no more than one guinea for each chair.
0:22:16 > 0:22:22- One guinea for each chair? That's almost inconceivable today. - It's totally inconceivable today!
0:22:22 > 0:22:28So on the first Tuesday of every month, when we meet as trustees, we all sit in these chairs...
0:22:28 > 0:22:32It's nice when we can tie up a date like 1840-41 with what we feel,
0:22:32 > 0:22:38because I think any expert would say, yes, those are typical early Victorian chairs of circa 1840.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41And we've got the proof of the date.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43You've got this late Grecian style -
0:22:43 > 0:22:49- it's known as a Klismos chair.- Why? - It's from an ancient Greek design,
0:22:49 > 0:22:52this comfortable C-shape back,
0:22:52 > 0:22:56the stuffed seat and these legs, they're a bit heavy, those legs...
0:22:56 > 0:23:01I wonder if they're all numbered the same. Are there any numbers on?
0:23:01 > 0:23:06- They're not numbered 1 to 24, there are two sets - 1 to 12.- Ah, right.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09- So that's 12, I presume? - Yes, yes...
0:23:09 > 0:23:16- So two sets of 12.- Yes. - That's interesting because if they had a fixed budget,
0:23:16 > 0:23:22- it suggests that they hadn't been ordered, made specially.- Well...
0:23:22 > 0:23:28- Somebody's gone into a shop or a warehouse and bought two identical sets of 12.- Possibly.
0:23:28 > 0:23:34- If somebody made a set of 24, they'd be numbered 1 to 24. - Yes.- Interesting.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38Well, we've got a hat stand which today would retail for £4,500.
0:23:38 > 0:23:43- Gosh!- Something like that.
0:23:43 > 0:23:49- And a set of 25 chairs - you've got to insure them for £1,000 each. - Right.
0:23:49 > 0:23:54- So we're talking about nearly £30,000.- Well, that's very nice.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Thank you very much.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02It's very unusual to find a watch of this age in such mint condition.
0:24:02 > 0:24:09It's hardly ever been used by the look of it. Very pretty watch, very beautiful, white dial - uncracked.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13Turn it over and look on the inside, it's signed by a man called Merrier.
0:24:13 > 0:24:15It's written in French
0:24:15 > 0:24:21that he was watchmaker to "Her Britannic Majesty", but that was said by a lot of watchmakers.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25- The movement, too, is in lovely condition.- Yes.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29But what really makes this watch is the...
0:24:29 > 0:24:32on the back... the really lovely enamel,
0:24:32 > 0:24:37a masterpiece of Swiss enamel makers. It's dated around the 1860s.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40- Yes.- But it's more than just enamel -
0:24:40 > 0:24:46the scene is obviously of a lake, some houses, some mountains in the background, typical Swiss scene.
0:24:46 > 0:24:51But very cleverly, what the Swiss have done, is "engine turn" -
0:24:51 > 0:24:56that is, create a wavy pattern in the gold, underneath the enamel,
0:24:56 > 0:25:01which just in one corner, roughly where the tree is there,
0:25:01 > 0:25:07shines through and looks like the sun rays behind the mountain, as the sun sets.
0:25:07 > 0:25:13- You actually need a magnifying glass to look at that. Have you noticed it before?- No, it sits in the safe.
0:25:13 > 0:25:19- Well, that's a great shame. So you never wear it?- No. How could you wear it? On a chain?- Yes.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22But then you might knock it against something.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26That's why it's pristine. It's never been worn.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31It's a shame it's kept in a safe, but I understand. Its value is...
0:25:31 > 0:25:34- around about £1,200.- Oh.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36Is it in the original frame? Or...?
0:25:36 > 0:25:43- It's the Boots frame, it's got a Boots label on the back...- Yes. - ..as so many pictures have,
0:25:43 > 0:25:49so possibly not. I think it could have been reframed. What can you tell me about the picture?
0:25:49 > 0:25:56It belonged to some friends of my parents, and I used to go to their house and look at this picture
0:25:56 > 0:25:59- and say, "Oh, I do like that picture."- Yes.
0:25:59 > 0:26:04And then when one of the ladies died, some of the effects were sold off
0:26:04 > 0:26:08- and I paid her £50 for it. - You gave her £50?
0:26:08 > 0:26:15- I gave her £50 for it.- Well, you made a good investment there. Do you know anything about EH Rigg?
0:26:15 > 0:26:17No, nothing.
0:26:17 > 0:26:23Well, he's a Yorkshireman, Ernest Higgins Rigg - his full name.
0:26:23 > 0:26:29He belonged to this group of artists called "The Staithes Group",
0:26:29 > 0:26:34so called because they painted in Staithes, on the Yorkshire coast,
0:26:34 > 0:26:36just north of Whitby.
0:26:36 > 0:26:41And in the 19th century, it was a great artists' colony in the summer,
0:26:41 > 0:26:47rather like the Newlyn School in Cornwall. A lesser Newlyn School. Being late 19th-century artists,
0:26:47 > 0:26:53they painted in a rather Impressionistic style,
0:26:53 > 0:26:58kind of flickering sunlight and flickering brush strokes, you know,
0:26:58 > 0:27:05and they also painted sort of country life and fisher folk - the normal life of people
0:27:05 > 0:27:10- around the village of Staithes. - Yes.- In other words, they tried to paint honestly,
0:27:10 > 0:27:13what they saw around them.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16So I would say now that this picture
0:27:16 > 0:27:21- would make £2,000 to £3,000 in an auction.- Good heavens!
0:27:21 > 0:27:26- And I would suggest insuring it for £4,000.- Oh, goodness!
0:27:28 > 0:27:33It was left to me by a second cousin, and he got it from his mother,
0:27:33 > 0:27:42who was left it by my great-grandmother, and she in turn received it from her great-aunt.
0:27:42 > 0:27:48- So it's very well provenanced.- Yes. - This is an absolutely exquisite and very grand rosewood tea caddy.
0:27:48 > 0:27:54You're immediately struck by the quality, the interior fittings...
0:27:54 > 0:27:59Now I would have thought this caddy dated from around about 1820,
0:27:59 > 0:28:06certainly by the decoration and the brass inlay - that's the sort of date it appears to have on it.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08The bowl is missing here -
0:28:08 > 0:28:11this bowl is often called a sugar bowl.
0:28:11 > 0:28:17It would have been a cut-glass bowl, but it was actually a mixing bowl for tea,
0:28:17 > 0:28:21but I don't think it detracts enormously from it.
0:28:21 > 0:28:27I feel that this might make £700 to £1,000 at auction.
0:28:27 > 0:28:32- And I would jolly well hope so, because it really is a lovely thing. - Right, thanks.
0:28:32 > 0:28:39- Could this could be re-done?- Yes. There are several doll hospitals in the country. If you look on the net
0:28:39 > 0:28:45under "dolls' hospital", you'll come up with various names and addresses.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49And it would look so much nicer put back together,
0:28:49 > 0:28:52rather than all these grisly bits and pieces.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55I know nothing about it, so I brought it to you.
0:28:55 > 0:29:02There are a couple of things about it which give me a clue as to where it might have been made,
0:29:02 > 0:29:07particularly the armorials in the centre, which are original,
0:29:07 > 0:29:12not of British style or origin, they are Continental.
0:29:12 > 0:29:17And we can see there a variety of marks on the back.
0:29:17 > 0:29:23- The first two are the town mark for Utrecht, so it was actually made in Holland.- Oh.
0:29:23 > 0:29:30The other nice thing about it is that this mark here is the date letter for 1738,
0:29:30 > 0:29:35so you've actually got a lovely early piece of Dutch silver.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37- You are joking?- I am not.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41Dutch silver is very, very sought-after,
0:29:41 > 0:29:46but has anybody ever given you an indication of what it's worth?
0:29:46 > 0:29:52- No, it's not been regarded as an item that's even... - So you've not had it insured?
0:29:52 > 0:29:54No, no, no, no, no!
0:29:54 > 0:29:58Well, we've established that it's Dutch, 1738.
0:29:58 > 0:30:04- Wouldn't know anything about it. - You should have it insured for about £3,500 to £4,000.
0:30:05 > 0:30:10I'm sorry, I have to laugh at that. £3,000 to £4,000?
0:30:10 > 0:30:13- £3,500 to £4,000.- £3,500 to £4,000.
0:30:13 > 0:30:15Right, thank you very much.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18- 1911?- Yes.
0:30:18 > 0:30:21And how did you get it?
0:30:21 > 0:30:26Well, the boss asked me to clear some warehouse and I came across these on the top shelf.
0:30:26 > 0:30:30He told me to throw them away, so I says, "I'll have them".
0:30:30 > 0:30:35That's how I got them, like, and I've had them about 20 years now.
0:30:36 > 0:30:41- Well, it's in wonderful condition, isn't it?- It's not bad, is it?
0:30:41 > 0:30:44"Long Live the Prince of Wales."
0:30:44 > 0:30:48'I'd love to know where you got it from.'
0:30:48 > 0:30:53At an auction. It was in a box with other items.
0:30:53 > 0:30:57And what did you think when you saw this?
0:30:57 > 0:31:01- We've seen pictures of something similar in an antique book...- Right.
0:31:01 > 0:31:05They started out in Staffordshire in the 18th century,
0:31:05 > 0:31:10and they're usually in salt-glazed stoneware,
0:31:10 > 0:31:12and what it is - it's bear baiting.
0:31:12 > 0:31:17The dog was set on the bear and it was a form of entertainment -
0:31:17 > 0:31:22not what we would describe as very appealing entertainment -
0:31:22 > 0:31:27Here, the bear's got his own back, he's grasped the dog and he's going to kill it.
0:31:27 > 0:31:32One like this would date to the beginning of the 19th century.
0:31:33 > 0:31:36- But...- It's a copy.- It's a copy.
0:31:36 > 0:31:40- I'm afraid you've guessed. - I thought it was.
0:31:40 > 0:31:45- These are coming out from Taiwan, believe it or not.- Ah.
0:31:45 > 0:31:47They're made in Taiwan.
0:31:47 > 0:31:52They are in antique shops and antiques fairs and antiques auctions
0:31:52 > 0:31:59in the country in large numbers and... I don't know how much you paid for it?
0:31:59 > 0:32:02- Well, about £20. - Well, that is insane -
0:32:02 > 0:32:06nobody in England can make something for that amount of money -
0:32:06 > 0:32:12that would cost a Staffordshire potter £200, £300, £400 to make,
0:32:12 > 0:32:18yet you can get it from Taiwan, buy a whole box full of stuff including this for 20 quid.
0:32:18 > 0:32:23Weird, isn't it? I think it's a very good 20 quid's worth.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27It's a decorative object, but it is a warning -
0:32:27 > 0:32:34- people do need to look out for these because they're coming over in vast numbers.- I thought it would be.
0:32:34 > 0:32:41When I saw you walking past earlier with this box, I nearly snatched it out of your hand.
0:32:41 > 0:32:43These boxes promise great things.
0:32:43 > 0:32:47Very chic. Calf. Absolutely bang on. Wow, marvellous!
0:32:47 > 0:32:49Fabulous jade bead necklace,
0:32:49 > 0:32:55heightened with diamond work here. Have you worn this?
0:32:55 > 0:32:58- Only once.- What occasion was that?
0:32:58 > 0:33:00It was a special dinner.
0:33:00 > 0:33:03- An anniversary? - Yes, something like that.- Lovely.
0:33:03 > 0:33:07- And was it your mother's? - It was my mother's.
0:33:07 > 0:33:13- I think it's been in the family about 45-50 years.- That's about right.
0:33:13 > 0:33:18Well, it's a most interesting piece of jewellery, sort of back to front,
0:33:18 > 0:33:25because the jade is predominant, but it's the diamond mounts that are of particular interest to me
0:33:25 > 0:33:29because it makes this a Western jewel. It looks positively Chinese.
0:33:29 > 0:33:34That's what I was going to ask you. The jade - would that be from China?
0:33:34 > 0:33:39Yes. It's carved in the front with a little bird and prunus flowers.
0:33:39 > 0:33:45I don't think the carving's what's important, but a strong oriental accent has been struck here.
0:33:45 > 0:33:51- Yes.- This is an absolutely European jewel in the Chinese taste -
0:33:51 > 0:33:55jade beads punctuated with real pearls.
0:33:55 > 0:33:59And the maker is rather an exciting and relevant one...
0:33:59 > 0:34:02When we open the lid of the box,
0:34:02 > 0:34:07it says, "Lacloche Freres" and then, "Rue de la Paix, Paris".
0:34:07 > 0:34:13Lacloche is a firm that no longer exists, but when it did, it was one of towering reputation.
0:34:13 > 0:34:17It was a close second to Cartier and De Boucheron,
0:34:17 > 0:34:20and the very best jewellery buyers went there.
0:34:20 > 0:34:26So a jeweller of reputation, making something in the Chinese taste.
0:34:26 > 0:34:33And there is a Chinese influence on it which is desperately important and instantly recognisable.
0:34:33 > 0:34:38It's the sort of jewellery that people want because it is valuable,
0:34:38 > 0:34:43but it's not conspicuously valuable, and so they can wear it
0:34:43 > 0:34:47with a sort of modesty and quietness which people want,
0:34:47 > 0:34:53- but it actually is an enormously valuable necklace.- Ah. What were you saying about the diamond clasps?
0:34:53 > 0:34:58They're set with baguette diamonds, which are rectangular cut diamonds,
0:34:58 > 0:35:01perfectly in tune with the jade.
0:35:01 > 0:35:04It's in the oriental taste.
0:35:04 > 0:35:08I love the way the pendant hangs within the other one.
0:35:08 > 0:35:13I think most designers would put the pendant down here and make it banal,
0:35:13 > 0:35:19so this is another way in which we recognise that this is a masterpiece of Art Deco jewellery.
0:35:19 > 0:35:24I think it's absolutely wonderful, with its original box.
0:35:24 > 0:35:30I think you've got to ring up the insurance company and tell them something close to £10,000.
0:35:30 > 0:35:35- What?!- Yes. - Good heavens! I can't believe that!
0:35:35 > 0:35:38- I can.- Well...!
0:35:38 > 0:35:44Oh, heavens, I had no idea! I mean, I thought it was beautiful, but I'd no idea.
0:35:44 > 0:35:49- That's what you came to us for. That's why it's exciting.- Thank you.
0:35:49 > 0:35:55They consider racing today as a dangerous sport, but nothing to what it was in its early history.
0:35:55 > 0:35:58You can see in these watercolours
0:35:58 > 0:36:03that the river here and the brick wall there are formidable obstacles.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06Now, they're drawn by Henry Alken,
0:36:06 > 0:36:13who is one of the best-loved and liked, and also most well-known 19th-century sporting artists,
0:36:13 > 0:36:16very prolific in his paintings and drawings,
0:36:16 > 0:36:20and also his work was particularly popular
0:36:20 > 0:36:26because so much of his work was engraved. He had sons and relations who also painted,
0:36:26 > 0:36:29but Henry Alken was the best of all.
0:36:29 > 0:36:33Now, if we look at the top of these two drawings
0:36:33 > 0:36:37and compare the three horses and the figures.
0:36:37 > 0:36:41I particularly like this chap in the front here -
0:36:41 > 0:36:46the beautifully modelled waistcoat and the careful drawing of a horse,
0:36:46 > 0:36:51and then this figure - beautifully balanced, and then the horizon -
0:36:51 > 0:36:53delicately drawn, beautiful washes.
0:36:53 > 0:36:59There's a lot of interest in the picture. Why do you like them?
0:36:59 > 0:37:05I don't know... The horses seem just like horses ought to be, you know,
0:37:05 > 0:37:10I'm not an expert on horses, but they seem to be drawn perfectly.
0:37:10 > 0:37:18Yes, and I think it's interesting to note that Alken has actually given expressions to the jockeys,
0:37:18 > 0:37:23and this chap seems to be aware that there's some great danger here,
0:37:23 > 0:37:25and he seems to be pulling up.
0:37:25 > 0:37:29What IS consistent is the fear of the horses.
0:37:29 > 0:37:34This one is looking at the water and thinking, "My goodness!"
0:37:34 > 0:37:38This one's looking ahead, hoping he will get across - not looking down.
0:37:38 > 0:37:44Look at the consternation and kind of pure fear of what is ahead.
0:37:44 > 0:37:48And talking about the detail in the background,
0:37:48 > 0:37:55have you noticed just how well drawn these figures are here, and also the landscape?
0:37:55 > 0:38:01- Yes, I have, in fact, some time back. Can't see so well now...- Yes, yes.
0:38:01 > 0:38:07Steeplechasing - the early history - it was literally a race between various steeples,
0:38:07 > 0:38:12and in the bottom drawing you can see just one here.
0:38:12 > 0:38:18And people are collecting to see the contestants ride over quite some distance between various churches.
0:38:18 > 0:38:23I suppose now we come on to the question of their value.
0:38:23 > 0:38:28- Have you had these two drawings a long time?- Er, some years now...
0:38:28 > 0:38:32- About eight - ten years.- About ten years.- About ten?- Roughly.
0:38:32 > 0:38:37Well, value-wise, I would have thought they're worth
0:38:37 > 0:38:42£2,000 each, so probably £4,000 to £5,000 for the pair.
0:38:42 > 0:38:44Thank you.
0:38:44 > 0:38:50- I bought it in a junk stall... about two years ago.- Right.
0:38:50 > 0:38:51Why?
0:38:51 > 0:38:56I was just fascinated by the fact that it had one little handle,
0:38:56 > 0:39:00and I thought I'd try and find out more about it.
0:39:00 > 0:39:06I thought it was a rather fancy soap dish, really, and just wondered why it only had one handle.
0:39:06 > 0:39:12- Are you a soap-dish collector?- No, it's just that I fancied it and...
0:39:12 > 0:39:15- Did it cost you a lot of money? - 25p.- 25p.
0:39:15 > 0:39:19Have you done any research on it since then?
0:39:19 > 0:39:26Um, I've looked in various books and had great difficulty in finding anything that was at all like it,
0:39:26 > 0:39:31but, um...I believe it might be a bleeding bowl.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35Right. Well, let's just have a look at the material.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39We've got an earthenware bowl, and we can see the colour of it there.
0:39:39 > 0:39:43The earthenware is this dull, sandy colour,
0:39:43 > 0:39:47and to make it sparkling white, you cover it in a tin glaze,
0:39:47 > 0:39:50so this is tin-glazed earthenware.
0:39:50 > 0:39:56Once that white surface is on, you can use cobalt blue to paint on it,
0:39:56 > 0:39:59just as you would do on porcelain,
0:39:59 > 0:40:03but there is this skin of tin-glazed earthenware.
0:40:03 > 0:40:08It's an ancient technique. It comes from the Middle East to Africa,
0:40:08 > 0:40:12to Spain and Italy, where it's called maiolica,
0:40:12 > 0:40:16to Northern Europe where it's called faience,
0:40:16 > 0:40:24it's called Delftware when it gets to Holland - Delft is where a lot of the tin-glazed earthenware was made.
0:40:24 > 0:40:30Then a whole group of Dutch potters come to England in the 17th century and the tradition starts here,
0:40:30 > 0:40:36so, confusingly, we call tin-glazed earthenware from England - and this is English - Delftware.
0:40:36 > 0:40:38That's what it is.
0:40:40 > 0:40:42You're right, it's not a soap dish.
0:40:42 > 0:40:47And this one handle, with its hole in,
0:40:47 > 0:40:52is quite possibly a point, not only where you would hold it,
0:40:52 > 0:40:58- but also where you would hang it up on the wall.- Oh.- Now, date...
0:40:58 > 0:41:00Any idea of date?
0:41:00 > 0:41:03I think it's old.
0:41:03 > 0:41:07It IS old. This is 18th century.
0:41:08 > 0:41:13It's a bleeding bowl, and it comes into the English repertoire in Delftware
0:41:13 > 0:41:18some time towards the end of the 17th century, and this piece -
0:41:18 > 0:41:23which I'll date on the basis of the decoration - is more 18th century.
0:41:23 > 0:41:30Blood-letting was done to patients when you thought you could ease their rheum or choleric or whatever.
0:41:30 > 0:41:35You thought there was something wrong with their blood, so you lanced a vein
0:41:35 > 0:41:39and you put the bleeding bowl on it like this.
0:41:39 > 0:41:43You probably wouldn't do it in your own home, you'd go to the barber's.
0:41:43 > 0:41:47The barber would shave you and bleed you,
0:41:47 > 0:41:54so the barber's pole - with that red and white stripe - represents the bandage and blood of his profession.
0:41:54 > 0:42:00- I see.- This is a bleeding bowl such as he might have used. You paid, what, 15p?
0:42:00 > 0:42:06- 25.- 25p. Well, it WAS chipped after all, so that was quite nice.
0:42:06 > 0:42:13Well, she gave me a rather pitying look, I thought, that I needed to buy something that was chipped.
0:42:13 > 0:42:20- She gave YOU a pitying look?- Yes. - The tables are going to be turned. Do you know what it's worth?- No.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23Well, do you think it's more or...?
0:42:23 > 0:42:28Well, I know my husband tells me, "Don't buy any more rubbish."
0:42:28 > 0:42:32Well, don't listen to your husband at all - you've done very well.
0:42:32 > 0:42:37This is probably worth somewhere in the region of £5,000 to £6,000.
0:42:37 > 0:42:39No!
0:42:41 > 0:42:43Really?!
0:42:44 > 0:42:47I'll just move it to one side.
0:42:48 > 0:42:51I can't believe that!
0:42:53 > 0:42:57You did very well. ..Are you all right?
0:42:57 > 0:43:02- I didn't want to shock you. - Are you sure?- I am, yes.
0:43:03 > 0:43:06I'll go and get you a cup of tea.
0:43:09 > 0:43:13Well, our visit to North Wales has been a great pleasure,
0:43:13 > 0:43:17and we've seen again that things can be beautiful as well as practical.
0:43:17 > 0:43:23So to the people of Caernarfon - diolch yn fawr - which I'm assured means "thank you very much".
0:43:23 > 0:43:25Until next week, goodbye.
0:43:44 > 0:43:48Subtitles by Gillian Frazer BBC Scotland 2001