0:00:29 > 0:00:34This week, we're back at Renishaw Hall in Derbyshire, family home since the 17th century
0:00:34 > 0:00:40of the Sitwell family, currently represented by Sir Reresby and Lady Sitwell.
0:00:40 > 0:00:45The family name was made famous by Edith, Osbert and Sacheverell -
0:00:45 > 0:00:52the three literary prodigies born to Sir George and Lady Ida at the end of the 19th century.
0:00:52 > 0:00:58Theirs wasn't an ideal marriage. Sir George was eccentric and Ida was prone to sudden rages,
0:00:58 > 0:01:01which meant unhappy times for the children, especially for Edith.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05Her father never forgave her for being a girl, and in his eyes, an ugly one.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08Edith was quite cruelly treated.
0:01:08 > 0:01:14At night, she was forced to wear a facial brace in an attempt to straighten her beak-like nose.
0:01:17 > 0:01:22She took refuge in the company of the servants and in her own vivid imagination.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25All this was instrumental in forming the future writer.
0:01:25 > 0:01:31When Sir George commissioned John Singer Sargent to do a family portrait,
0:01:31 > 0:01:36he pointed out to the artist his daughter's lack of beauty.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41Sargent - a kindly man - responded by straightening Edith's nose and giving Sir George a beak instead.
0:01:41 > 0:01:46Their difficult childhood created a bond between Edith and her brothers
0:01:46 > 0:01:51and she encouraged Osbert and Sacheverell to pursue the artistic life as well.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Osbert's flair and style and his love of the visual arts
0:01:55 > 0:01:59are reflected here in his grotto-style bedroom.
0:01:59 > 0:02:05When she was 26 years old, Edith's first poem was published by the Daily Mirror.
0:02:05 > 0:02:11This gave her the courage to escape to the Bohemian circles of Bayswater.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15Edith's appearance was out of this world.
0:02:15 > 0:02:22With her extravagant headwear, flamboyant rings and her flowing robes, she looked almost medieval.
0:02:22 > 0:02:28"White Ivy, blythe Helen and the rest, to hear the stories of thy finished love..."
0:02:28 > 0:02:34The composer William Walton was one of the young talents inspired by the Sitwells.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38He'd met Osbert and Sacheverell at Oxford, and they took him under their wing.
0:02:38 > 0:02:43Walton collaborated with Edith on Facade - a poem set to music which
0:02:43 > 0:02:47she performed in her inimitable way.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50"See me dance the polka," said Mr Wag,
0:02:50 > 0:02:56"Like a bear with my top hat and whiskers that tra-trapped the fair."
0:02:56 > 0:03:03At Renishaw Hall, we have another Roadshow where we continue our search for true originals.
0:03:05 > 0:03:11I have a lovely husband who saw it in a shop, and he looked at it for about a year.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14He couldn't really afford it.
0:03:14 > 0:03:19So it sat in the shop window and he walked by it for a year and...?
0:03:19 > 0:03:24One day, he walked by and it had disappeared, and I think he had a little panic.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28So he went into the shop, but they'd taken it from display.
0:03:28 > 0:03:35I think he went once every month and put a little down payment on it.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38- So it was meant to be yours. - Absolutely.
0:03:38 > 0:03:45You know, the Victorians went in for butterflies, bees, dragonflies, flies, spiders,
0:03:45 > 0:03:51and they're called scatter bugs because they've got that feature, but they're so lifelike.
0:03:51 > 0:03:58In the middle, we've got a ruby that weighs about one-and-three-quarter carats.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02It's got a purplish-red colour.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06And then in the four various wings we've got smaller rubies
0:04:06 > 0:04:08and lovely diamonds.
0:04:08 > 0:04:13They're all set in Victorian silver.
0:04:13 > 0:04:19Typically, they would be mounted up in silver and then you turn it over and it should be in gold.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22Sure enough, the back, the facing here, is gold.
0:04:22 > 0:04:29- So it's gold and silver set. Date about 1885-1890.- Yes.
0:04:29 > 0:04:36You could remove the original fitting and wear it by screwing in this cone
0:04:36 > 0:04:43and sticking it at the back of your bun. I notice that the cone fitting has got a coiled spring.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46- That means it moves when you wear it.- Oh.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50- And sure enough, look at that. - Oh.- Look.- My, yes.
0:04:50 > 0:04:56It scintillates when you wear it and that just increases the sense of Victorian naturalism.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59And it's the moving creature.
0:04:59 > 0:05:04It's a wonderful insect and if I was offering it in an auction,
0:05:04 > 0:05:09I'd expect it to make something in the region of £3,000.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13Of course, insurance,
0:05:13 > 0:05:17we've got to think of a higher sum of money for it, as a retail price.
0:05:17 > 0:05:24- I'm looking at what I call an act of vandalism and I want to know who is responsible for it.- Me.
0:05:24 > 0:05:29And how long did it take you to strip the original finish off?
0:05:29 > 0:05:32About six months.
0:05:32 > 0:05:34Six months of hard graft.
0:05:34 > 0:05:40And I knew when I was doing it who was going to tell me I should not be doing it.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42But I did it anyway.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46Do you like it like this? Well, you're married to him...
0:05:46 > 0:05:53I prefer it like this because we're going to use it as an ornament. Now, the other one is different.
0:05:53 > 0:06:00So we've got one of each. It came from an uncle, and he's been round the world twice.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05- As a surveyor?- Yes, and he's still with oil refineries.
0:06:05 > 0:06:10It's by a good maker - Cooke, Troughton and Simms.
0:06:10 > 0:06:16Troughton and Simms were working as scientific instrument makers in the 19th century, up until about 1915
0:06:16 > 0:06:24when it became Cooke, Troughton and Simms. This, in its original condition,
0:06:24 > 0:06:27to me, is much nicer.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30By the same maker again.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34And this is how this one looked originally?
0:06:34 > 0:06:42No, this was black. The paint was chipped off. I don't think this was used because it was an early model.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46I wouldn't be surprised to see these in an antique shop,
0:06:46 > 0:06:50priced perhaps £200-£300 a piece.
0:06:50 > 0:06:55- Oh, as much as that?- Yeah, so maybe your hard work wasn't wasted.
0:06:55 > 0:07:02- I'm sure a shiny one will appeal to a lot of people out there.- A lot more people than you, Hilary!
0:07:02 > 0:07:04- That's the one for me. - We're purists, aren't we?
0:07:04 > 0:07:08- Yes, I am. - Thank you for bringing it in.
0:07:08 > 0:07:15What's marvellous about this table, apart from the superb quality of the burr walnut, the construction,
0:07:15 > 0:07:22is that on almost every single part you have this great Gillow stamp, which is very clear,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26all the way into the solid mahogany frame,
0:07:26 > 0:07:31both around the underside of the frieze and on the base as well.
0:07:31 > 0:07:37Now, they were a fantastically important firm of cabinet makers, established in the 18th century,
0:07:37 > 0:07:40who worked right through the 19th century.
0:07:40 > 0:07:47And they reached the height of their commercial success during the Regency period and into the 1820s.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50This is a sublime example of their work. It's fantastic.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53I'd been left it by my late mother
0:07:53 > 0:07:58and she purchased it by auction
0:07:58 > 0:08:01from Barlborough Hall sale in 1938.
0:08:01 > 0:08:08We are given to understand that there were only two that were made.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12The best thing of all about the table is this fantastic top.
0:08:12 > 0:08:17There couldn't be a better example of specimen marbles if you were to try. Are you a chess player?
0:08:17 > 0:08:20- Not at the moment. - Not at the moment.
0:08:20 > 0:08:26You've got really incredibly rare marbles laid onto a black, marble ground.
0:08:26 > 0:08:32You've got exotic antique marbles like porphyry, bianco e nero.
0:08:32 > 0:08:38You've got Spanish brocatelle, verdi antiquo, and you've even got malachite.
0:08:38 > 0:08:46Malachite is interesting from a dating point of view as one can pin things down much more closely,
0:08:46 > 0:08:51because it didn't appear in Italian specimen marble table tops
0:08:51 > 0:08:53until the very early 19th century,
0:08:53 > 0:08:57but was much more around the 1820s, 1830s.
0:08:57 > 0:09:02Almost certainly commissioned and bought on the Grand Tour in Italy.
0:09:02 > 0:09:08- Brought back to England and Mr Gillow provided the base.- I see.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Well, a table of this calibre does not appear on the market often.
0:09:12 > 0:09:18And having a base that is by one of the greatest cabinet makers of the period,
0:09:18 > 0:09:25- I should think at auction this sort of table would fetch between £30,000 and £40,000.- Thank you.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32Here is a striking portrait of a bushman playing on the goura.
0:09:32 > 0:09:38He looks more as though he's actually picking his nose and picking his ears.
0:09:38 > 0:09:44But we have the music transcribed for us, in common time and 3/4 time.
0:09:44 > 0:09:51It's the famous frontispiece to Travels In The Interior Of Southern Africa by William Burchell.
0:09:51 > 0:09:58He was out in South Africa for four years, from about 1809 to about 1813, something like that,
0:09:58 > 0:10:05and then came back and produced one of the most sublime colour-plate books on South Africa.
0:10:05 > 0:10:11He did all these drawings himself, and this panorama of Cape Town -
0:10:11 > 0:10:14a view of Cape Town, Table Bay.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18And here he is in the middle of the picture.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21In time-honoured way, he's put himself in.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24That's him doing the drawing there.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28They are absolutely beautiful. And these are all aquatints.
0:10:28 > 0:10:34Here we have another. "Caravan Wagons Assembled At Lack River".
0:10:34 > 0:10:42They were still pioneering and still moving from South Africa, the Boers, into the interior.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44Where did you get it from?
0:10:44 > 0:10:50It was given to me by an old family friend who used to come into the shop which my parents owned.
0:10:50 > 0:10:54And he often used to tell me stories.
0:10:54 > 0:11:00And we had an exhibition at school and he offered to bring books.
0:11:00 > 0:11:05And these were two of the books which he gave me to take into school,
0:11:05 > 0:11:08and after the exhibition, he gave me these books.
0:11:08 > 0:11:13In the text they have these wonderful vignettes of tribesmen.
0:11:13 > 0:11:17These woodcut illustrations are done by Burchell himself.
0:11:17 > 0:11:24- Oh, right.- These bindings are not in terribly good condition. The leather has actually dried out.
0:11:24 > 0:11:31But the bindings aren't original anyway, they're not the 1820s bindings that you would expect.
0:11:31 > 0:11:37Had they been complete, I would have valued the set at £3,000.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40But a value now, I think probably
0:11:40 > 0:11:46- £2,000 instead. Does that surprise you?- Oh, absolutely amazing.
0:11:46 > 0:11:52- So where did you get this from? - Well, it's been handed down for generations, I think.
0:11:52 > 0:12:00The farthest I can go back remembering, it was on my grandma's dresser.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05It's probably much older than that. It was made in Stourbridge in about 1880.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09And it is what's called a concentric millefiori weight -
0:12:09 > 0:12:14because it has these lovely central rings.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18- And very nice if you look in there, isn't it?- Yes.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22It's small and then it gets quite big on the outside.
0:12:22 > 0:12:28- It's in very nice condition. So often they get chipped.- I kept it in the cabinet.- That's well done.
0:12:28 > 0:12:34- And I would think that might be worth almost £500.- Oh, thank you!
0:12:34 > 0:12:40- Sir Reresby, this is claimed to be an original bow of Robin Hood. How did you get it?- My uncle bought it.
0:12:40 > 0:12:45He remembered seeing the bow hanging in Barlborough Hall.
0:12:45 > 0:12:50He was intrigued to see it and 50 years later, it came up for sale.
0:12:50 > 0:12:56The house was being broken up and this bow was sold.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59The bow was bought by the principal of a local technical college,
0:12:59 > 0:13:02and he put it up for sale in the late '40s, early '50s,
0:13:02 > 0:13:05and my uncle attended the auction.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08It was knocked down to him for the princely sum of £29.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12But what makes you think it is the genuine article?
0:13:12 > 0:13:16Because of this document which goes with it.
0:13:16 > 0:13:22It was given to a Mr Bartlett, whose relation of the family lived at Barlborough Hall,
0:13:22 > 0:13:28by the owners of Kirklees Priory in Yorkshire, which was a convent.
0:13:28 > 0:13:34And legend has it that Robin Hood fled to Kirklees to his distant cousin, who was Lady Abbess,
0:13:34 > 0:13:37for medication.
0:13:37 > 0:13:43But she was a very naughty lady. She had a lover called Sir Roger of Doncaster, or "Red Roger".
0:13:43 > 0:13:48And they conspired to murder poor Robin - I don't know why.
0:13:48 > 0:13:54And so a hole was cut in the "bottom of ye porringer", so he bled to death.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57- A sad end. How far could he fire an arrow?- I don't know.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00But he's supposed to have said,
0:14:00 > 0:14:06"Where my arrow lands, that's where I would like to buried be."
0:14:06 > 0:14:11Well, nobody in the prime of life, let alone dying from being bled to death,
0:14:11 > 0:14:14could fly an arrow 650 yards.
0:14:14 > 0:14:20It was left to me by an uncle who was supposedly an antique collector,
0:14:20 > 0:14:26but it was one of a number of plates that he had arranged around the top of his main room.
0:14:26 > 0:14:30And I was told to pick one as a bequeath.
0:14:30 > 0:14:38I picked that one. I liked the pattern on it. I'd love to know where it's from.
0:14:38 > 0:14:45The reverse of this plate is the same as every Chinese export plate you see of this date.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48First of all, the base is not actually a foot rim.
0:14:48 > 0:14:54It's just simply gouged out of the middle. It's reset here.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59The exposed part of the unglazed foot is oxidised, a yellowish colour,
0:14:59 > 0:15:04which is typical of Far Eastern material. It doesn't happen in European material.
0:15:04 > 0:15:10- Is that where it was in the kiln? - When the kiln is opened, it oxidises.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14- I'm pleased it's Chinese.- Why? - I looked through some books and thought it was Dutch.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19That tells us when it was made as Europe was actually gripped by
0:15:19 > 0:15:22Chinese material and copied it.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25This is the real thing.
0:15:25 > 0:15:31This is obviously mid-18th century, it's got the design, you've got the rocks here,
0:15:31 > 0:15:33symbolic of age.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Bamboo is symbolic of steadfastness in friendship.
0:15:37 > 0:15:42The two birds suggest marriage. All these are symbolic.
0:15:42 > 0:15:49Wouldn't have meant that to Europeans. But the combination here is mid-18th-century Chinese.
0:15:49 > 0:15:56And what interests me about this, it's a fairly general type, but you see the colours that they used,
0:15:56 > 0:16:02not just the under-glazed blue, but the red on the bird and the gold gilding,
0:16:02 > 0:16:05it's unusual for it to survive. It usually gets rubbed away.
0:16:05 > 0:16:11- It's very ephemeral material. This one is worth about £200.- Excellent.
0:16:11 > 0:16:15- So it's a nice example. - That's excellent.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20I bought them approximately 20 years ago.
0:16:20 > 0:16:24And I just liked the depth of the pictures themselves.
0:16:24 > 0:16:29You stand back and look at them and they're just lovely.
0:16:29 > 0:16:34Yes, and that's what's interesting about 19th-century pictures,
0:16:34 > 0:16:41because there were a huge amount of artists painting wonderful pictures, great quality,
0:16:41 > 0:16:48- but they're not known. These are both by an artist called Hermann Kern.- I didn't know that.
0:16:48 > 0:16:53He's a very minor artist, but he appears on the market occasionally,
0:16:53 > 0:17:00and he specialises in old men, drinking and eating and having a good time, really.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03That's probably why I like them!
0:17:03 > 0:17:05He's Hungarian, Hermann Kern,
0:17:05 > 0:17:10and he exhibited quite a lot in Vienna and in Munich,
0:17:10 > 0:17:12and I think these are probably
0:17:12 > 0:17:18- painted in the 1880s when he was exhibiting mainly in Vienna.- Yes.
0:17:18 > 0:17:24But just look at the quality. It's so superb on them, and he hasn't skimped.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29He's painted every little detail, and look at the canary.
0:17:29 > 0:17:33He's tried to feed it some carrot or turnip or something.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35And smoking it out at the same time!
0:17:35 > 0:17:41The first time I ever saw them, standing and seeing them there,
0:17:41 > 0:17:46you don't see too much, and when you step back there's so much in there.
0:17:46 > 0:17:53I think this is the reason that I bought them because I hadn't a clue who they were painted by.
0:17:53 > 0:17:58- I just liked them very much.- That's the best reason to buy anything.
0:17:58 > 0:18:05A lot of people ask what to buy for investment. Buy what you like. I'm thrilled that you did.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09This one's a lot better than this one, but I think they should be
0:18:09 > 0:18:13insured, the pair, for £7,000.
0:18:13 > 0:18:14Really?
0:18:15 > 0:18:21I'm very pleased to see a range of British studio pottery of the latter part of the 20th century.
0:18:21 > 0:18:29The emphasis, to me, is on Bernard Leach and the tradition he established in St Ives in the '20s.
0:18:29 > 0:18:34The stuff that was produced from the 1950s is often much more interesting, much more inventive.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36- I don't know if you agree.- I do.
0:18:36 > 0:18:42This was the time when my husband was making most of his pots
0:18:42 > 0:18:47- and that's why he was influenced by the people who were working at that time.- Where did he start?
0:18:47 > 0:18:55He's a history teacher. At the start of his career, he couldn't get work and started going to night schools.
0:18:55 > 0:19:00He went to Dora Billington's in London and got very interested.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04We've got here work by him - the pieces nearer you.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08And we've got pieces by Hans Coper and Lucie Rie.
0:19:08 > 0:19:14They were the great driving partnership that brought about this great change. They're Europeans.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17They came to Britain after WWII.
0:19:17 > 0:19:23They established a new look which was much more to do with a European tradition of studio ceramics.
0:19:23 > 0:19:27It also related ceramics more closely to sculpture.
0:19:27 > 0:19:32You've got interesting forms, like that, which is a very 1950s form.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34You can place it in that period.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38And yet it's much more sculptural. It's a domestic piece.
0:19:38 > 0:19:43And yet it's saying something completely different, which was a real revolution.
0:19:43 > 0:19:50We've got a couple of pieces, that and those cups and saucers, which are both Rie and Coper.
0:19:50 > 0:19:56So we've got here a mark - we've got the HC and the LR monograms.
0:19:56 > 0:20:02- So these were bought directly from them?- From them.- In the 1950s? - In the late 1950s.
0:20:02 > 0:20:08They did it in the morning, and in the afternoon, they did their individual pieces.
0:20:08 > 0:20:13This is a typical example of the individual work. It's Hans Coper.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17A wonderful balance of the glaze effect top and bottom.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21- It is a piece of sculpture.- Yes. - Yet it's a vase.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25But it goes beyond that. So I find those very exciting.
0:20:25 > 0:20:31- But they were for use and you used them in the house, I imagine. - Absolutely.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35- Does that explain this damage?- Yes! - And why not?
0:20:35 > 0:20:38These are honest pieces for that purpose.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42Now, your husband's work. I find those two very exciting.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46I like very much the sort of incised patterning
0:20:46 > 0:20:51- that one gets on that, which again is of a similar date, or is it later?- That would be early '60s.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Early '60s.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58- And this is a very sort of after-Lucie-Rie-type piece.- Yes.
0:20:58 > 0:21:03A Rie shape and this very carefully controlled glaze. This isn't an accident.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06- No.- This is something he wanted to happen. Was he pleased with that?
0:21:06 > 0:21:10- Delighted. - It's a very exciting piece.
0:21:10 > 0:21:15- Is this a fraction, or have you got tons more? - A lot more of his own work, yes.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18- But not the real... - Not the real thing, no.
0:21:18 > 0:21:25- Was that hair crack always there? - No.- Oh. I wondered if it was a second. No. It's a great pity.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30But it does mar that. Without that crack, we're looking at £3,000 to £5,000.
0:21:30 > 0:21:34- Yes.- For a piece like that.- Yes.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37It's still a nice piece of Coper, but the cups and saucers are perfect.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41- You're looking at at least £500 or £600 each.- Yes.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44So they're very desirable pieces.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50I looked after an old lady and she died in 1984,
0:21:50 > 0:21:54and her daughter-in-law said I could
0:21:54 > 0:21:57take anything that I wanted.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59So I asked her if I could have the clock, so she said yes.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03Signed Leroy and Company, Palais Royal, Paris.
0:22:03 > 0:22:11And it's signed on the back - a full signature on that back door amongst rather nice engraving.
0:22:11 > 0:22:18And look at that, on that little lever escapement movement, it's fully signed and numbered there.
0:22:18 > 0:22:24I like that very much. These little feet, aren't they sweet?
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Little claw feet. Got these little ribbons up here,
0:22:28 > 0:22:35and these beautiful little oval vignettes of flowers and leaves. It's top French quality.
0:22:35 > 0:22:41This firm of Leroy have been going for 300 years, you know.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43That family was clockmaker to the king
0:22:43 > 0:22:46before France became a republic.
0:22:46 > 0:22:52And they really just turned out the loveliest things, the finest quality.
0:22:52 > 0:22:58You've got a little numbered key. That number corresponds with the number on the bottom of the case.
0:22:58 > 0:23:06It would have had a nice, fitted travelling case. The two doors would have opened.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09- Oh, right.- Today, even without its travelling case,
0:23:09 > 0:23:13that at auction would be fetching about £1,500.
0:23:17 > 0:23:24I love Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts furniture, and I've only got these two pieces.
0:23:24 > 0:23:31I've never been able to afford it, so I started by buying Art Nouveau tiles, because I loved the shape.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34- Floral decoration. - The curves and everything.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39We saw this at an antique fair. When I saw it, I couldn't believe it.
0:23:39 > 0:23:47I stood like this and I just couldn't speak. And I just had to touch it.
0:23:47 > 0:23:53But I couldn't afford it, but I went to another antique fair and it was there.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57We saw it at Sheffield and so I thought this was meant to be.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01So you managed to buy it. How long ago was that?
0:24:01 > 0:24:03- Three years.- Right.
0:24:03 > 0:24:10And the man we bought it from said he'd got it from Glasgow and it had been in an old lady's house.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14The influence is Glasgow School and the whole Art Nouveau from Glasgow.
0:24:14 > 0:24:20In the three years you've had it, have you managed to work out what it says here?
0:24:20 > 0:24:24I think it means "the written word remains".
0:24:24 > 0:24:27Yes. And, of course, this is a writing bureau.
0:24:27 > 0:24:32Let's have a look - very simple inside as you'd expect.
0:24:32 > 0:24:37- But what is interesting is that it is the shape of a Georgian bureau. - Right.
0:24:37 > 0:24:43From the second half of the 18th century, carved with amateur 1900 Art Nouveau decoration.
0:24:43 > 0:24:46- I think it's amateur carving.- Right.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50There's a lot of this all over the country, and Glasgow was no exception -
0:24:50 > 0:24:53people would be carving at home.
0:24:53 > 0:24:59And I wonder - it's so well done, that this is something that somebody's bought,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02I assume like this, I don't know if it would be in kit form or not -
0:25:02 > 0:25:07whether the panels were separate or made, and carved this with their own little inscription on it.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11Shall we move on?
0:25:11 > 0:25:14So you call this Arts and Crafts? It's interesting the difference.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17They're both very well-made -
0:25:17 > 0:25:23I think this is probably slightly better-made. Let's have a look. Look at the quality of that drawer.
0:25:23 > 0:25:30This centre mount here is typical of this period, around 1900.
0:25:30 > 0:25:34And again in the corner here, it's beautifully made - really expensive drawer to make.
0:25:34 > 0:25:39And looking at this, there's one London shop that comes to mind - Liberty.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44- Really?!- I can't be sure, but it feels like a Liberty piece to me.
0:25:44 > 0:25:49And what I like especially is that pylon-shaped side.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54So it's from the old Egyptian Temple of Pylon where it goes out like that,
0:25:54 > 0:25:58and very much part of the Liberty Tudric-type decoration.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02A very solid, English holm oak.
0:26:02 > 0:26:08- You bought that at an antique fair three years ago.- Yes. - How much did that cost you?- £900.
0:26:08 > 0:26:15It's very difficult for me to value that because it's virtually a unique piece.
0:26:15 > 0:26:22- I would certainly insure that for £1,500, £1,800. And may I ask what you paid for that?- That was £350.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25What do I put on that for value?
0:26:25 > 0:26:31- It doesn't seem a lot for a Liberty piece of furniture.- How would you ever find out if it was Liberty?
0:26:31 > 0:26:38There are records of Liberty designs. We can see what designs are available.
0:26:38 > 0:26:44- I'd certainly say £500. You're certainly doing well. - Thank you very much.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47It's one of the best pieces of trench art I've ever come across.
0:26:47 > 0:26:53What's the story? Was your granddad in the trenches or...?
0:26:53 > 0:26:56No. It was a prisoner of war,
0:26:56 > 0:27:00actually, as far as I know, that made it.
0:27:00 > 0:27:07I've wondered whether they were made in the trenches or if they were made when the troops got home.
0:27:07 > 0:27:14- So how long's it been in your family?- I bought it from a car boot last week.- Really?
0:27:14 > 0:27:19I reckon it's got to be worth the best part of £100 of somebody's money, maybe even £150.
0:27:19 > 0:27:24- So here comes that question - how much did you pay for it?- £1.
0:27:24 > 0:27:29It was my mother's. My mother used to work in London years ago.
0:27:29 > 0:27:33She was a cook for a well-to-do family - worked for the mother first
0:27:33 > 0:27:37and then worked for the daughter.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40- They are all royals of Europe.- Yes.
0:27:40 > 0:27:46We have Queen Mary, we have Alexandra, we have King George V.
0:27:46 > 0:27:50That's lovely. It's not particularly unusual,
0:27:50 > 0:27:54but then I was turning over, turning over,
0:27:54 > 0:28:02- and suddenly - there we are - this is King George V tiger-shooting in India.- Yes.
0:28:02 > 0:28:06Now, that is a really collectable postcard.
0:28:06 > 0:28:11One of the most collectable postcards family that you could find
0:28:11 > 0:28:14is the Russian royal family.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17- That's the girl they couldn't find. - Exactly.
0:28:17 > 0:28:23All these here - that is Tatiana of Russia, Anastasia.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25Anastasia.
0:28:25 > 0:28:31The Tsarina of Russia. These are so collectable, and have you any idea what these are worth?
0:28:31 > 0:28:36No - just kept them because my mother gave me them.
0:28:36 > 0:28:43You should insure this album because you've got probably as much as £3,000-worth here.
0:28:43 > 0:28:45That's a surprise.
0:28:45 > 0:28:51All this lot's come from the Internet. Mostly from America.
0:28:51 > 0:28:55- Really? And how long have you been at it?- About five years.
0:28:55 > 0:29:01Once the Internet started going for works of art, which is only about five or ten years,
0:29:01 > 0:29:04my reaction was, "This is madness."
0:29:04 > 0:29:09I mean, nothing could be stupider than buying a work of art unseen.
0:29:09 > 0:29:15But I have to say that I'm beginning to revise my opinion,
0:29:15 > 0:29:22because I have heard a lot of very good reports from people. There are great bargains out there.
0:29:22 > 0:29:26But I think you've got to spread, as you have done,
0:29:26 > 0:29:31to balance up ones that don't work with ones that do work.
0:29:31 > 0:29:38I think if you know what you want. Like a Moorcroft, for example - you know it's a William Moorcroft,
0:29:38 > 0:29:40therefore you've got a good idea
0:29:40 > 0:29:47what you'll get, if you buy from a dealer who has some reputation.
0:29:47 > 0:29:53- This one, of course, is restored. - Yes.- Did you know that? - Yes, we bought that as restored.
0:29:53 > 0:29:58- Why did you buy a restored one? - Basically because of the size.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01It's a beautiful piece. It didn't cost a great deal of money.
0:30:01 > 0:30:07- Can I ask what a great deal of money is?- About £250.- Well, yes... - That was shipped.- That's very good.
0:30:07 > 0:30:10I mean, to a purist, and me,
0:30:10 > 0:30:13it slightly offends me that we've
0:30:13 > 0:30:17- got all this restoration round here. - Yes.
0:30:17 > 0:30:23The shape's not quite right. £250, that's OK. And what have you paid for this?
0:30:23 > 0:30:29- I find it's a very attractive cornflower pattern. - Yeah, that was about £100.
0:30:29 > 0:30:33- This is a rare one. - Yes, I've never seen that before.
0:30:35 > 0:30:37More than double your money.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40- There is a very slight... - Is there slight restoration?
0:30:40 > 0:30:45- It's not restoration, but it's a little bit of paint seeped from here.- Oh, yeah.
0:30:45 > 0:30:50- Which was also explained. - It's not a major problem, that.- No.
0:30:52 > 0:30:55- Impressed "Moorcroft" there. - That's right.
0:30:55 > 0:31:00And the signature, as we would expect. What about the bronzes?
0:31:00 > 0:31:04We bought that for 74, shipped.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07- Really?! Shipped? - Shipped from America.
0:31:07 > 0:31:11It must have been 4 for the bronze and 70 for the shipping.
0:31:11 > 0:31:17- Because it's not light, is it?- No. - That's not the original.
0:31:17 > 0:31:23- No. We must get it restored. - It's probably signed, is it?
0:31:23 > 0:31:26- We don't know what the signature is. - Will it fall apart on me?
0:31:26 > 0:31:32This is the worst thing to do is to carry something like this with loose bits over...
0:31:34 > 0:31:37That's signed Guoko.
0:31:37 > 0:31:42It's a nice-quality bronze. I'm going to put it down for safety.
0:31:42 > 0:31:45You've done extremely well. What about the other one?
0:31:45 > 0:31:50This one, obviously not such fine bronze, but he cost 200 shipped.
0:31:50 > 0:31:58It is remarkable. That one, I think over here, would sell for around £600-£800.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02- Really? Yes. - And that one, probably £1,500.
0:32:02 > 0:32:08- So you've done jolly well on the Internet and I congratulate you. - Thank you.
0:32:08 > 0:32:14I think he got it when he was getting a load of buttons, when he goes round car-boot sales.
0:32:14 > 0:32:18- Do you know who it might be by? - I think it's Faberge.
0:32:18 > 0:32:23What made you think it was Faberge - anything in particular?
0:32:23 > 0:32:26I looked up books at home.
0:32:26 > 0:32:30Well, Faberge it is and so it's quite a find.
0:32:30 > 0:32:36That's one excellent thing about it. The second is the condition.
0:32:36 > 0:32:40This is all enamelled in white. It's a very pretty, subtle colour.
0:32:40 > 0:32:47So they've taken a tool and they've engraved on the surface of the field of the piece
0:32:47 > 0:32:54this delightful pattern, and then they've covered it up in layer upon layer of coating of colour,
0:32:54 > 0:32:56firing each layer as they go.
0:32:56 > 0:33:01Let's have a look at the back. What I don't like about it is what all this scraping is on the back.
0:33:01 > 0:33:08- Do you know how that got there? - He gave it to one of his friends and it came back like that.
0:33:08 > 0:33:13- So the friend took a file to it? - I don't know.
0:33:13 > 0:33:20Oh, that's a little tragic, because he's obviously testing it to see what the metal is.
0:33:20 > 0:33:25Can you see there a little sort of cartouche-shape mark there?
0:33:25 > 0:33:27- Yes.- That's got the Russian silver stamp.
0:33:27 > 0:33:33If we're talking about a value, obviously the name is fantastic,
0:33:33 > 0:33:40but it's a buckle and they're not necessarily so wearable as a necklace or a pendant.
0:33:40 > 0:33:46And then you've the disappointment with the scraping at the back.
0:33:46 > 0:33:52So I'll take all that into account. I think it's probably going to be worth in auction around £1,000.
0:34:02 > 0:34:07We've been so lucky with the weather - it's been threatening all day but never actually arrived,
0:34:07 > 0:34:11but somehow I think it's our time. It is belting down.
0:34:11 > 0:34:18Luckily it's late in the day, but we've got time for more treasures.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20What a wonderful summer's day(!)
0:34:20 > 0:34:23I'm sorry, we've been driven in by the rain,
0:34:23 > 0:34:30but I think it's one of the most sensitive portraits by Stanley Spencer that I've ever seen.
0:34:30 > 0:34:37It's just so beautifully executed. Tell me, who is the sitter?
0:34:37 > 0:34:39Walter Arnfield.
0:34:39 > 0:34:42- And was he a relation of yours? - Yes, he was my mother's brother.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45And how did he know Stanley Spencer?
0:34:45 > 0:34:53Well, another of his sisters had been housekeeper-companion to Mrs Carline,
0:34:53 > 0:34:57who was, of course, mother of Spencer's wife.
0:34:57 > 0:35:03- When you say the name Stanley Spencer, of course, you imagine Cookham.- Oh, Cookham, yes.
0:35:03 > 0:35:09And all those wonderful pictures were sort of crammed in of all life and had biblical stories
0:35:09 > 0:35:12based in rural Berkshire.
0:35:12 > 0:35:16This portrait, though, has a sort of Pre-Raphaelite feel to it.
0:35:16 > 0:35:24It's got beautiful draughtsmanship. It shows what an amazing talent Stanley Spencer was.
0:35:24 > 0:35:30Well, his draughtsmanship, you usually don't notice it really in the paintings.
0:35:30 > 0:35:35- Exactly. And what date do you think this is?- About 1944.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39To have any member of the family painted by Stanley Spencer is wonderful,
0:35:39 > 0:35:43and I'm very jealous and I would suggest that for insurance
0:35:43 > 0:35:49- you should perhaps think about sort of £2,500.- Really?
0:35:49 > 0:35:51But it's a wonderful drawing.
0:35:51 > 0:35:58- It belonged to my husband. He bought them in the late '50s. - And still in their original boxes.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01But he played with them a lot.
0:36:01 > 0:36:08We've got two robots. This one, we've got the maker's name.
0:36:08 > 0:36:10Down here in this little lozenge,
0:36:10 > 0:36:11there are the initials SH,
0:36:11 > 0:36:16which is for the company called Horikawa.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19So that's one maker and we can see
0:36:19 > 0:36:23very clearly that it's made in Japan. Any expert can see that.
0:36:23 > 0:36:30It really all started in about 1956 when there was a film that came out called Forbidden Planet.
0:36:30 > 0:36:38- And in that film there was a robot called Robbie. Did you see it? - Yeah, I watched the film.
0:36:38 > 0:36:42Well, I don't have to tell you what a superstar Robbie was.
0:36:42 > 0:36:48Then in 1957, Sputnik was launched and suddenly science fiction became science fact
0:36:48 > 0:36:52with the fact that there was something in space.
0:36:52 > 0:36:57So these robots actually date from the early '60s.
0:36:57 > 0:37:04This maker didn't start producing until about 1959, so it's going to be some time after that.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08So let's give him a go and see what he does.
0:37:08 > 0:37:15That's "slow" and there's something here says "quick". I don't know if it'll fly off the table.
0:37:19 > 0:37:26Well, it's actually quite a nice action. Sort of slow and smooth and it's in good condition.
0:37:26 > 0:37:29I'm amazed that the lights still work here.
0:37:29 > 0:37:35When I say "good" condition, I mean it's almost perfect. Do you like it?
0:37:35 > 0:37:38No, I think they're ugly!
0:37:40 > 0:37:44Well, when I tell you the value of this little one, perhaps you might like it a bit better,
0:37:44 > 0:37:48because this one is probably worth about £300.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51- Like it a bit more now?- Not really.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56Let's put that one away and have a look at this one.
0:37:56 > 0:38:03And this is another Japanese toy and again in lovely condition.
0:38:05 > 0:38:07What does this one do?
0:38:07 > 0:38:11Oh, Lord! Well, he's completely random.
0:38:14 > 0:38:18Does he...? Yes, well, I think we've had enough of that.
0:38:20 > 0:38:24He's very different to the other one, in that it's as if he's got a skirt on.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28He hasn't got these legs and a much plainer sort of design.
0:38:28 > 0:38:32But I love the action there and I think he's worth quite a lot more.
0:38:32 > 0:38:40- I would have thought that he's going to be in the £600 to £800 bracket.- Crikey.
0:38:40 > 0:38:41I like that one!
0:38:45 > 0:38:49Well, I can tell you it's been in the family at least 200 years.
0:38:49 > 0:38:51So, um...
0:38:51 > 0:38:59It probably stands a chance that it is from this chap here who's put his name and date on it.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02That's one of the great things about these -
0:39:02 > 0:39:07they were art that was generally done by the owner.
0:39:07 > 0:39:12They would sit with the tip of a knife or a needle and put the designs in.
0:39:12 > 0:39:18And then they rubbed soot or carbon from - say off a cooking pot or something - into it to enhance it.
0:39:18 > 0:39:25And there we see "Thomas Ring, his hor 1775" - he's forgot the "n" off it.
0:39:25 > 0:39:29Perhaps reading and writing wasn't his strong suit.
0:39:29 > 0:39:35But he liked it well enough to put his name on it and that's wonderful from our point of view.
0:39:35 > 0:39:42We were always led to believe that it was American, no...Canadian. Do you think it was American?
0:39:42 > 0:39:47It's certainly between the two countries.
0:39:47 > 0:39:52- So you think that the person who did it, did all the carving on it?- Yes.
0:39:52 > 0:39:55He'd have done it for various reasons.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59They were "map" horns because they were navigational aids as well.
0:39:59 > 0:40:06And they gave you the sort of topography between parts, and at the top here you can see Niagara.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09I think that's why I thought, you know, Canadian.
0:40:09 > 0:40:16The British in North America were going up and down to establish themselves as owners of the area.
0:40:16 > 0:40:20Yet down the bottom here we have New York.
0:40:20 > 0:40:27And there's a representation of it there with the towns and churches and the Union flag.
0:40:27 > 0:40:33As well as that, there's a glorious, naive version of a big river with all these fish swimming in it.
0:40:33 > 0:40:38- Things he saw every day. - Who would own something like this?
0:40:38 > 0:40:43Anybody who needed to carry gunpowder in the back woods.
0:40:43 > 0:40:47And horn is light and completely waterproof.
0:40:47 > 0:40:53What they've done to make this into a powder horn is just to put a wooden plug in the bottom
0:40:53 > 0:40:57with these very characteristic brass-headed nails.
0:40:57 > 0:40:58Yes. That doesn't fit too well now,
0:40:58 > 0:41:02- but obviously it did.- No, it didn't.
0:41:02 > 0:41:05It's the powder measure.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09So there was something else they pushed in there?
0:41:09 > 0:41:12A simple piece of wood or cork.
0:41:12 > 0:41:19He would have bitten the top off it, poured that in there, and then poured it into his gun.
0:41:19 > 0:41:23- And then put the stopper back. - What about this? Is this original?
0:41:23 > 0:41:29Yes, I am certain it is, and that really makes this - it's a good object on its own -
0:41:29 > 0:41:32but rarely do you see the little measure.
0:41:32 > 0:41:37And even rarer do you see the suspension strapping.
0:41:37 > 0:41:44It's some sort of vegetable fibre that's been dyed with these lovely browns and greens and then fringed.
0:41:44 > 0:41:49But the best bit of it is, it has these little tiny beads.
0:41:49 > 0:41:54Originally made out of shell, these appear to be glazed porcelain,
0:41:54 > 0:42:00and a very skilled weaver worked them into this lovely pattern.
0:42:00 > 0:42:05I couldn't quite understand, when you look at it, these don't seem
0:42:05 > 0:42:08- to be hanging the right way.- Yes.
0:42:08 > 0:42:12Why did they do it like that? Was it just as it was fastened here?
0:42:12 > 0:42:17Depending on whether you're right or left handed, it would go in close to the body.
0:42:17 > 0:42:22The curve of the powder horn brought it close to the gun.
0:42:22 > 0:42:27And you'd fill the measure and if you were desperate, you probably wouldn't bother to measure,
0:42:27 > 0:42:31you'd just think you'd got enough in there.
0:42:31 > 0:42:36It's interesting for the date - 1775 - time of great turmoil.
0:42:36 > 0:42:42The American colonies shaking off British governments and there is the royal arms,
0:42:42 > 0:42:48which suggests he was a loyalist. That was not a good thing to be carrying at the time.
0:42:48 > 0:42:54It's a beautiful thing in very fine condition and quite valuable.
0:42:54 > 0:42:59- It's going to be worth between £3,000 to £4,000.- Really? - It's a super thing.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02And that's the end of our visit to Renishaw Hall.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05Our sincere thanks to Sir Reresby and Lady Sitwell
0:43:05 > 0:43:08for allowing us to saunter through their lovely gardens.
0:43:08 > 0:43:12From Renishaw Hall, goodbye.
0:43:34 > 0:43:37Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd