Mount Stewart 1

Download Subtitles

Transcript

0:00:30 > 0:00:34This week we've crossed to the other side...of the Irish Sea

0:00:34 > 0:00:38to County Down, 15 miles from Belfast.

0:00:38 > 0:00:44Here the Ards Peninsula separates the Irish Sea and Strangford Lough, a tidal inlet rich with wildlife.

0:00:44 > 0:00:48On a clear day, unless you have a tear in your eye,

0:00:48 > 0:00:53you can see the Mountains of Mourne sweeping down to the sea.

0:01:02 > 0:01:09A good vantage point is the Temple of the Winds built in 1782 for the First Marquis of Londonderry

0:01:09 > 0:01:12as a place for mirth and jollity.

0:01:12 > 0:01:15He didn't want the view cluttered by buildings

0:01:15 > 0:01:22so an underground passage led to a wine cellar and pantry which supplied many a banquet and picnic.

0:01:22 > 0:01:28The leftovers and dirty dishes were carried back to Mount Stewart, home of the Londonderry family,

0:01:28 > 0:01:32who've held a lofty position in British society for generations.

0:01:35 > 0:01:42Classical elegance combines with homely Victorian decor and the occasional flash of exuberance.

0:01:42 > 0:01:49There's ample evidence of lives spent in politics and diplomacy - letters from Wellington and Nelson,

0:01:49 > 0:01:51photographs of royal friends,

0:01:51 > 0:01:55and caricatured busts of well-known leaders.

0:01:55 > 0:02:00The Londonderry heirs also shared a knack for wooing rich and influential women.

0:02:00 > 0:02:06The purchase of the Mount Stewart Estate was made possible by the dowry of Mary Cowan

0:02:06 > 0:02:10who founded the dynasty with her husband Alexander Stewart.

0:02:10 > 0:02:18Successive marquises married ladies from noble families who contributed wealth, connections, property

0:02:18 > 0:02:23and, in time, sons who would prove attractive to future heiresses.

0:02:23 > 0:02:28The sixth marquis and his wife, Charles and Theresa Bain Tempest Stewart

0:02:28 > 0:02:32were friends of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra,

0:02:32 > 0:02:37and this very big red book records their visit here in 1903.

0:02:37 > 0:02:42The royal guests were attended by a total of 274 staff

0:02:42 > 0:02:46including 13 valets, and 10 detectives.

0:02:46 > 0:02:50There were eight firemen...probably watching the King's cigar butts.

0:02:50 > 0:02:58The gardens at Mount Stewart were designed 80 years ago by Edith, wife of the seventh marquis.

0:02:58 > 0:03:02We'll take a look at her handiwork in the second programme.

0:03:02 > 0:03:08For now, let's concentrate on the Italian garden for another al fresco Roadshow.

0:03:08 > 0:03:11She came from my aunt's house to our house.

0:03:11 > 0:03:14- She's been in our home for about 40 years.- OK.

0:03:14 > 0:03:16That's all I know,

0:03:16 > 0:03:23apart from I found out he also did a bronze that's standing outside Selfridges in London.

0:03:23 > 0:03:27Quite right. We'll come to who "he" is in a minute,

0:03:27 > 0:03:30but let's have a look at the bronze itself,

0:03:30 > 0:03:36because whenever you see anything of this sort of particular structure, this sort of stance,

0:03:36 > 0:03:39you tend to think Art Deco -

0:03:39 > 0:03:42girls with hoops in the 1920s,

0:03:42 > 0:03:47you get lots of French bronzes of nubile ladies, big hoops.

0:03:47 > 0:03:51I mean, this is the age of keep fit, isn't it?

0:03:51 > 0:03:55This is the age of "keep young and beautiful, if you want to be loved",

0:03:55 > 0:03:58as the song of the day used to say,

0:03:58 > 0:04:04but just one look at this girl tells me we're not dealing with a French mademoiselle -

0:04:04 > 0:04:08we're dealing with an English rose, dare I say?

0:04:08 > 0:04:15Now, I mean, she could've been an Irish rose or an Irish shamrock - I'm not sure how it works here -

0:04:15 > 0:04:20but the point is, stylistically, it's an Impressionistic bronze.

0:04:20 > 0:04:26It happens to be by one of my favourite sculptors. His name's round here.

0:04:26 > 0:04:30Let's have a look at his name... Gilbert Bayes.

0:04:30 > 0:04:32Um, we appear to have a date.

0:04:32 > 0:04:40If you can just see "25" within a circle, and 1925 would be about right for this figure.

0:04:40 > 0:04:44Gilbert Bayes, born in London in 1872

0:04:44 > 0:04:49and he is very well respected, and quite rightly.

0:04:49 > 0:04:51He's a very inventive sculptor.

0:04:51 > 0:04:56There's something tactile about this sort of bronze - you just feel...

0:04:56 > 0:05:00You can't help but touch it. Maybe I have a problem.

0:05:00 > 0:05:04But this one does have a slight problem,

0:05:04 > 0:05:08which I think has been caused by it being sprayed

0:05:08 > 0:05:13by a polish that's not good for its base - there's slight pitting there

0:05:13 > 0:05:16and it extends over the base,

0:05:16 > 0:05:19and I think if I was to scratch this surface lacquer,

0:05:19 > 0:05:25it's not doing it any favours - it needs to be cleaned by an expert. OK, so...

0:05:25 > 0:05:30Girls with hoops, what's the going rate in Northern Ireland?

0:05:30 > 0:05:32- Not a lot.- Not a lot?- Not a lot.

0:05:32 > 0:05:39- So if I offered you £1,000, you wouldn't be very keen to accept £1,000?- I don't know, actually.

0:05:39 > 0:05:44No? I can tell you now that if I wanted to insure this,

0:05:44 > 0:05:49I wouldn't hesitate to probably put £4,000 on it.

0:05:50 > 0:05:55- Holiday.- Holiday.- No, I'm only joking. It's my father's, so...

0:05:55 > 0:05:59- Really?- Yeah.- Think what she'd have been worth if she'd been clothed!

0:06:02 > 0:06:06- Where did you get this cloth? - A local market about 25 years ago.

0:06:06 > 0:06:11- How much did you pay for it? - I'd think, at the most, £2.

0:06:11 > 0:06:15Let's just stretch it out. £2? You must be joking!

0:06:15 > 0:06:18- That's before decimal. - Before decimal! With old money?

0:06:18 > 0:06:26- Yes.- That's a brilliant thing, isn't it? That's full of geometry, but yet you've got organic growth.

0:06:26 > 0:06:32These pink designs are supposed to be carnations and poppies.

0:06:32 > 0:06:37Here's a brilliant carnation in a very stylised way

0:06:37 > 0:06:41surrounded by serrated, edged pieces of foliage,

0:06:41 > 0:06:43all very extraordinary,

0:06:43 > 0:06:47and this thing comes from Central Asia.

0:06:47 > 0:06:52It comes from close by the Caspian and it's called a suzani.

0:06:52 > 0:06:56If you notice, it's been done in various strips.

0:06:56 > 0:06:59There is a strip, there is a strip, there is a strip,

0:06:59 > 0:07:04there are four strips down that entire length of this covering

0:07:04 > 0:07:11and what happened was, the women in a tribe would each embroider a different section,

0:07:11 > 0:07:15principally before the women went off to be married,

0:07:15 > 0:07:21and it's a miracle you get the colours matching as they would've been woven by different people,

0:07:21 > 0:07:26not necessarily at the same time, and if the women were concentrating...

0:07:26 > 0:07:33- I'm afraid women do have a propensity to chat amongst themselves.- No(!)- "No," she says!

0:07:33 > 0:07:40..that is why that flower doesn't quite match up. It's the naive village craft.

0:07:40 > 0:07:47So we're on the banks of the Caspian Sea and the four groups of women are doing their embroidery

0:07:47 > 0:07:54and they're doing it in around about 1900 which, in suzani terms, is quite an early period.

0:07:54 > 0:07:59It's a high quality piece of work, and it's survived in a good state.

0:07:59 > 0:08:04- Now, how much did you pay for it?- I think about £2 about 25 years ago.

0:08:04 > 0:08:07- Well! What do you think it's worth now?- I've no idea.

0:08:07 > 0:08:14- If you were selling it at auction, you'd get between £2,000 and £3,000. - Really?

0:08:14 > 0:08:16That was a very good investment.

0:08:16 > 0:08:20Good investment?! I should say so!

0:08:20 > 0:08:25Look at that mark on top. See where that has been opened and that arc...

0:08:25 > 0:08:28200 years or more.

0:08:28 > 0:08:32- More?- Oh, yes! Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.

0:08:32 > 0:08:36The hinges may have been replaced, but let's look at the good parts,

0:08:36 > 0:08:39and of course the rare thing is,

0:08:39 > 0:08:44this is a gateleg table of the very early 18th century - very early -

0:08:44 > 0:08:48- and it's not made of oak or walnut, but of mahogany...- Right.

0:08:48 > 0:08:56..which is one the earliest pieces of domestic furniture made of mahogany I've seen in 40 years.

0:08:56 > 0:08:59- Really.- This thing here? - This thing here.

0:08:59 > 0:09:06- Everything's right - the turning on the columns.- Is that machine turned? - No, that was done on a pole lathe.

0:09:06 > 0:09:13- A pole lathe?- The pole was stuck in the ground and a string went from the pole lathe down onto a treadle,

0:09:13 > 0:09:17and then the guy...the turner put his foot down

0:09:17 > 0:09:23- and it spun this way, then that way, and created all these wonderful bits of turning.- Yeah.

0:09:23 > 0:09:27You can only do that with close-grained timber - oak's too...

0:09:27 > 0:09:31- Too open.- Absolutely, absolutely. And the original feet.

0:09:31 > 0:09:36Let's stand it up and look at the thing properly. Well done.

0:09:37 > 0:09:42- Now, there again, just down here, you see, this one is perfect.- Yes.

0:09:42 > 0:09:48- That's been... - That one is just gently worn away, then, as soon as it's open,

0:09:48 > 0:09:54- you can see why. People have sat round.- Yes. - There's been a few feet under here!

0:09:54 > 0:09:57Now, when you first look at it,

0:09:57 > 0:10:02the top's a strange colour, because it's been stripped at some time.

0:10:02 > 0:10:04I don't know when. 50 years ago.

0:10:04 > 0:10:09- I know.- You know? You had it done? - When it came into my possession.

0:10:09 > 0:10:14- Right.- The old man that owned it used it for a telephone to sit on,

0:10:14 > 0:10:21and instead of reaching for a piece of paper, he scribbled a telephone number on the top,

0:10:21 > 0:10:26- and I was lucky - sometimes it was done with a pin!- Well!

0:10:26 > 0:10:29That's the sort of guy he was.

0:10:29 > 0:10:32That beats writing on the hand, doesn't it?

0:10:32 > 0:10:35Well, it sure does.

0:10:35 > 0:10:41Well, well. You couldn't live with it as it was, but that's why, when you first look at it,

0:10:41 > 0:10:46you think, "Uh-oh," but there's no doubt that's perfectly OK.

0:10:46 > 0:10:51- 1720.- Is that right? So it's as old as that?- 1720. Oh, yes.

0:10:51 > 0:10:55I'll tell you what, it's still worth £12,500.

0:10:55 > 0:10:58Now can I tell you a story?

0:10:58 > 0:11:00Yes.

0:11:00 > 0:11:02Without libelling anybody,

0:11:02 > 0:11:06I took it into a Belfast auction room

0:11:06 > 0:11:09and they said, "Mmm, nice table.

0:11:09 > 0:11:15"Yeah, £400. It might make, on a good day, £500".

0:11:17 > 0:11:23- That would've been a bad choice. - That would have been a bad deal for me. Are you serious on the £12,500?

0:11:23 > 0:11:29Absolutely. This is one of the best examples you could ever wish to see. Thank you.

0:11:29 > 0:11:31Thank you very much. Thank you.

0:11:31 > 0:11:36This was carved at the end of the 19th century

0:11:36 > 0:11:42when large quantities of works of art of all sorts were coming out of Japan,

0:11:42 > 0:11:48and the Japanese had got a long tradition of carving in ivory,

0:11:48 > 0:11:51because, of course, they wore netsuke,

0:11:51 > 0:11:58toggles worn at the waistband, and once they stopped carving toggles, since they'd adopted western dress,

0:11:58 > 0:12:03they started to carve these larger group which are called okimono,

0:12:03 > 0:12:06They vary enormously in quality.

0:12:06 > 0:12:10Some of them, frankly, are really of no merit whatsoever,

0:12:10 > 0:12:16but they're - when they're good - they're really nice and I love this one.

0:12:16 > 0:12:20- Such a charming subject. - It's beautiful.- You love it?

0:12:20 > 0:12:22- I love it.- Where did you get?

0:12:22 > 0:12:30My mother was English and her great grandmother used to travel to the Far East in her bath chair.

0:12:30 > 0:12:33- In a bath chair?- In a bath chair.

0:12:33 > 0:12:37- Why?- she just loved to travel. Way beyond her time.

0:12:37 > 0:12:42- She would've bought this?- Yes. It lived in my grandmother's house,

0:12:42 > 0:12:49and, as a child, we used to go and look at her ivory collection, and this was one of my favourites.

0:12:49 > 0:12:55You're right, it's a charming subject. This is as good as it gets.

0:12:55 > 0:13:00A sister - I don't think she's a mother - with her baby brother on her back

0:13:00 > 0:13:04in this typical way of tying the child on there,

0:13:04 > 0:13:09and then two brothers who are feeding the chickens

0:13:09 > 0:13:11under the chicken coop,

0:13:11 > 0:13:16made from woven bamboo, which is the traditional way of doing it.

0:13:16 > 0:13:20Then the mother hen poking her head out from underneath

0:13:20 > 0:13:24and a couple of chicks. It's all in sparklingly good condition.

0:13:24 > 0:13:26I can't see anything wrong with it.

0:13:26 > 0:13:31If one were to see that coming up for auction,

0:13:31 > 0:13:37one would expect an estimate of somewhere around £800 to £1,500 on it.

0:13:37 > 0:13:41My goodness! Thank you very much. That's lovely.

0:13:42 > 0:13:45Hello. My golly, that looks like John!

0:13:45 > 0:13:49Give me your glasses, give me your glasses.

0:13:50 > 0:13:55That's you, Henry! That's definitely your father, John.

0:13:55 > 0:13:58Never seen it before in my life.

0:13:58 > 0:14:02- Well, thank you very much. - Anyway, um...

0:14:02 > 0:14:05Well, um, it looks like Souter Johnnie, doesn't it?

0:14:05 > 0:14:12- As in Tam O'Shanter and Souter Johnnie.- Is that...?- What do you think, John?- Can't be Derbyshire.

0:14:12 > 0:14:18- Um...- It's too well modelled for some of the Scottish ones.- OK. - This is a good, good model.

0:14:18 > 0:14:22You do get Doulton and Potts models of that.

0:14:22 > 0:14:26- Do you pour the drink out of there? - Out of his hat, yeah.

0:14:26 > 0:14:28You drink it from there?

0:14:28 > 0:14:31No. Maybe in Worcestershire, but in Lancashire...

0:14:31 > 0:14:35we'd pour it into a glass or a cup, Henry.

0:14:35 > 0:14:40- Couple of hundred pound?- About £200.- Yes.- OK, we'll go with that.

0:14:40 > 0:14:45- This is an interesting autograph book. It's yours, presumably?- Yes.

0:14:45 > 0:14:49- Laurel and Hardy in it!- Yes, yes. - So you're Margaret, are you?

0:14:49 > 0:14:54- I'm Margaret, yes.- Um, did you send away for it or...?

0:14:54 > 0:15:01No. Our neighbour in Belfast - we called him "Pop" - he had to do with the opera house in Belfast.

0:15:01 > 0:15:06Every so often, he'd take me with one of his granddaughters

0:15:06 > 0:15:11down at opening night and take us back to meet who was performing.

0:15:11 > 0:15:16That particular night it was Stan and Ollie, and they were lovely.

0:15:16 > 0:15:22We were in their room, and they give us the photograph, then signed our books,

0:15:22 > 0:15:25and put our name on it for us.

0:15:25 > 0:15:31- So you met them?- Yes.- You saw them? - Yes.- I think it's...- It would've been in the '50s when I got it.

0:15:31 > 0:15:38- It's nice to actually know that you've seen these signed with your own eyes.- Oh, yes.

0:15:38 > 0:15:41- So you spent five or ten minutes with them?- Yes.

0:15:41 > 0:15:46- What were they like?- Lovely. - As they appeared?- Lovely.

0:15:46 > 0:15:52- We don't often see Laurel and Hardy autographs. I think it has a value of around £200 to £300.- Lovely.

0:15:52 > 0:15:58- Lovely content.- Great. - Thanks for bringing it along. - Thank you very much indeed.

0:15:58 > 0:16:00This is an odd situation for me -

0:16:00 > 0:16:07an audience-eye view of the best double act in the antiques business, the Sandon Boys!

0:16:07 > 0:16:09Difficult to tell which is which!

0:16:10 > 0:16:15- Holding a teapot.- Yes.- Even though it's not a Worcester.- That's nice.

0:16:15 > 0:16:21Now the mark has worn off on that one, but why does the mark wear off sometimes?

0:16:21 > 0:16:26- It's OK on the saucers.- I'm guilty. - Have you been washing them badly?

0:16:28 > 0:16:30Hold your hand out.

0:16:30 > 0:16:33- Naughty!- You hit ME like that!

0:16:33 > 0:16:38- You deserved it. - Well, learning about the porcelain.

0:16:38 > 0:16:43No, looking after porcelain is a bit like looking after a man, really.

0:16:43 > 0:16:50LAUGHTER Lots of love and kindness and warmth, and very little washing.

0:16:50 > 0:16:52Speak for yourself!

0:16:56 > 0:16:58Now I've got to stop it!

0:16:58 > 0:17:03One of those novelty toys. In fact, they did make quite a lot of this particular toy,

0:17:03 > 0:17:07- Can you tell me where you...? - It came from America...

0:17:07 > 0:17:11- Right.- ..and ended up with my uncle, then came to me.

0:17:11 > 0:17:15- He lived in America or visited? - His relatives are there.- Right.

0:17:15 > 0:17:22Well, I suspect that when he saw this, it was a real novelty and to bring it back to Europe

0:17:22 > 0:17:27was quite good at the time. In fact, it has quite a reasonable value.

0:17:27 > 0:17:31At auction, it's going to be worth in the region of £300 to £400,

0:17:31 > 0:17:35- even though it's still quite a popular toy.- Yes.

0:17:35 > 0:17:41This is one of the most unusual clocks I've seen. Do you know where it came from originally?

0:17:41 > 0:17:46No, the wife purchased it locally from a collector who was moving house.

0:17:46 > 0:17:50He had the clock running on the outside of one of his buildings.

0:17:50 > 0:17:56- As I'm sure you know, it's a turret clock.- Yes. - A nice example of a turret clock.

0:17:56 > 0:18:02It would originally have been in a lovely house or a stable block or something of that sort,

0:18:02 > 0:18:09and the great thing about it is that it shows us in great detail how these things work.

0:18:09 > 0:18:11Now this particular maker -

0:18:11 > 0:18:15and this is an elaborate signature for a clock, that is unseen -

0:18:15 > 0:18:21is James Drury of London, and it's actually dated 1738.

0:18:21 > 0:18:27He was master of the Clockmakers Company in 1728 and died in 1740,

0:18:27 > 0:18:32so this is excellent to see one of his pieces that is signed and dated.

0:18:32 > 0:18:35The other thing is, on this dial here -

0:18:35 > 0:18:41and this is, of course, the dial with which we set the main hands -

0:18:41 > 0:18:47if you can imagine this sitting in maybe a church or a stable block

0:18:47 > 0:18:54and all the motion work and the dial would have stood on this side, but here we have the hand setting...

0:18:55 > 0:18:58..and what I'm going to do is, with this handle,

0:18:58 > 0:19:02which you've obviously used to wind this up.

0:19:02 > 0:19:07That's the winding square and this one here is for setting the time.

0:19:07 > 0:19:12If I can get that up to three o'clock, there goes the fly,

0:19:12 > 0:19:14and, um...

0:19:14 > 0:19:20if you can imagine that - which you've obviously had re-painted - sitting out here

0:19:20 > 0:19:28with some wonderful hands, and this would now be striking on a superb bell, ringing out across the land.

0:19:29 > 0:19:33All in all, I think you're jolly lucky to have got it.

0:19:33 > 0:19:38- How long had the collector had it? - I think he had it about 12 years.

0:19:38 > 0:19:42Right. And he simply has no idea where it came from?

0:19:42 > 0:19:46- And what did you pay for it? - I paid £2,000.

0:19:46 > 0:19:52- Did you?- Yes.- You did very well. - OK.- How long ago was that? - About two years.- Right.

0:19:52 > 0:19:59Well, to anybody vaguely interested in horology, this is a very good example.

0:19:59 > 0:20:03I think to the right collector, you'd probably double your money.

0:20:03 > 0:20:05- OK.- So you've done well.- Yes, good.

0:20:05 > 0:20:12- It's great you've got it on the stand. Do you have it working at home?- Yes. Ticking away.- Super.

0:20:12 > 0:20:19It's from a ship's fitting - a cross-channel ferry or a liner or... People buy marine artefacts,

0:20:19 > 0:20:22- and that's what this is.- Yes.

0:20:22 > 0:20:26The steward would fill the copper reservoir with water.

0:20:26 > 0:20:33You'd keep in this compartment your toothbrushes and your flannels and your washing accoutrement.

0:20:33 > 0:20:37When it was time to have a wash, you'd whizz open...

0:20:37 > 0:20:43Wow! ..the wash-hand basin, which would be filled by pressing this little nickel tap.

0:20:43 > 0:20:46You'd have your wash, and when you've had your wash,

0:20:46 > 0:20:52whoosh, it disgorges the waste into a galvanised container on the back,

0:20:52 > 0:20:58and when that needs to be disgorged, you undo the bottom flap and take out this.

0:20:58 > 0:21:02When it's full, chuck it overboard. Where did you get it?

0:21:02 > 0:21:08- I went to an auction, you understand?- Yes.- And it was sort of antiques at this auction.- Yes.

0:21:08 > 0:21:13- And that's why it was so expensive. - Did you have to pay a lot, then?

0:21:13 > 0:21:19- Well, I paid £52 in old currency. - What - in the 1950s?

0:21:19 > 0:21:23- Yes.- 52 old pounds?- Yes. - Gosh, that was a price!

0:21:23 > 0:21:30If you were selling it at auction in a marine sale, I think you could get between £200 and £300 for it.

0:21:30 > 0:21:32- Is that all?- Yes, that's all.

0:21:32 > 0:21:34My goodness!

0:21:34 > 0:21:40After all those years, and keeping anything myself for 50 years!

0:21:40 > 0:21:46- I know.- And I can only get £400. - Well, £400 top end, I reckon. - I never heard the like!

0:21:49 > 0:21:55It belonged to the Third Marquis of Londonderry when he was an officer in the Second Lifeguards.

0:21:55 > 0:21:59- The man who lived in this house. - That's correct.- Really?!

0:21:59 > 0:22:06What you have here is the 1832 pattern heavy cavalry sword of the Household Cavalry.

0:22:06 > 0:22:12- Now, he was in the Lifeguards, wasn't he, the third Marquis? - Second Lifeguards, yes.

0:22:12 > 0:22:20Second Lifeguards, and so this would be 1832, so he carried this in, say, the 1840s and 1850s probably.

0:22:20 > 0:22:24He carried it at the Duke of Wellington's funeral.

0:22:24 > 0:22:28- The sword itself is in remarkable condition, isn't it?- It is.

0:22:28 > 0:22:31Obviously, it's been in the right hands to be looked after,

0:22:31 > 0:22:39but a sword like this, without any history at all and in this condition is worth £1,000 or more,

0:22:39 > 0:22:44but you have the provenance, we know exactly who owned it,

0:22:44 > 0:22:49and it could be a sword worth £3,000, £4,000, £5,000.

0:22:49 > 0:22:55You're talking about serious money when you've got a sword of a notable person in nice condition

0:22:55 > 0:23:00- and you have the provenance. Wonderful.- That's really good.

0:23:03 > 0:23:07How do you tell a hand-painted plate and a lithoprint apart?

0:23:07 > 0:23:11It's not too difficult, if you look closely at it.

0:23:11 > 0:23:15There's different forms of printing. This is printed in outline.

0:23:15 > 0:23:19The whole thing is basically a transfer print,

0:23:19 > 0:23:24and then, if you want, you can colour it in, like that.

0:23:24 > 0:23:30- That's the same subject underneath. - And that's hand painted? - Hand painted over a print. Yeah.

0:23:30 > 0:23:35If you look carefully, you can see all the lovely little black lines,

0:23:35 > 0:23:41all these wriggly lines. Everything outlined - the trees, the branches - is all printed,

0:23:41 > 0:23:45and then the painter, with great skill, has to paint it over.

0:23:45 > 0:23:52- Yes.- A complicated one is lithographic transfers, which have been in vogue for quite a while

0:23:52 > 0:23:56and are the mass production work of today's generation.

0:23:56 > 0:24:02If you look carefully, perhaps with a magnifying glass, you can see all the little screen printed dots.

0:24:02 > 0:24:07- The whole thing is a mass of dots. - Like a newspaper.- Yes.

0:24:07 > 0:24:12You blow it up thinking you can see Uncle Charlie and it's a mass of dots,

0:24:12 > 0:24:18so that's a screen-printed litho, which is mass production, thousands of them made at a time.

0:24:18 > 0:24:24- And offensive to you?- Yes, because people pretend it's painting.

0:24:24 > 0:24:27Now, this, you see, IS painting.

0:24:27 > 0:24:30This is quality painting of the first order.

0:24:30 > 0:24:34Every brush stroke, every little thing is done entirely by hand -

0:24:34 > 0:24:39perspective, even the gold - by hand, that's a master plate.

0:24:39 > 0:24:45- No dots...?- Nothing at all. Everything is washed and beautifully done.

0:24:45 > 0:24:49- You need a magnifying glass.- Much better to use a magnifying glass.

0:24:49 > 0:24:53I've got a test for you. Two plates - one of which...

0:24:53 > 0:24:58They're both of about 1780 in date. One is Chinese, one is English.

0:24:58 > 0:25:00Now the Chinese one is hand-painted

0:25:00 > 0:25:03and the English one is printed.

0:25:03 > 0:25:07It's more difficult with blue and white,

0:25:07 > 0:25:13because the blue tends to blur, but can you tell which is the painting and which is the printing?

0:25:13 > 0:25:19- I can't, but going by what you've told me - and I haven't a magnifying glass...- No.

0:25:19 > 0:25:26- That's the printed one and that's the hand painted.- The other way round!- So a complete waste of time!

0:25:26 > 0:25:30These are all lines of print and this is hand-painted wash,

0:25:30 > 0:25:37finely done by the Chinese, but this is English transfer printing, going back 220-odd years.

0:25:37 > 0:25:42- Well, they're both cracked. - They're both cracked. So am I!

0:25:42 > 0:25:47I'm not sure what the subject is, but I can see the signature -

0:25:47 > 0:25:50TB Kennington, that's Thomas Benjamin Kennington,

0:25:50 > 0:25:54a Victorian artist whose work I'm interested in,

0:25:54 > 0:26:00but what intrigues me is what is the subject? What's happening?

0:26:00 > 0:26:07- He appears to be a pawnbroker, appraising the value...- Ah, yes. - ..of this lady's jewellery.

0:26:07 > 0:26:13- She, I'd imagine, has fallen on difficult times and...- Poor lady, having to sell her jewellery.

0:26:13 > 0:26:21..and he is appraising it for her. I'm not too sure that she's also too happy with the value.

0:26:21 > 0:26:25- She's looking slightly apprehensive, isn't she?- She is.

0:26:25 > 0:26:29As if waiting for the figure the pawnbroker's going to mention.

0:26:29 > 0:26:36Yes, well, this is typical of Kennington's sort of dramatic pictures of upper class life.

0:26:36 > 0:26:39He's an interesting figure.

0:26:39 > 0:26:46He began his career painting rather gritty sort of street scenes of London in the late 19th century,

0:26:46 > 0:26:50quite sort of sad pictures, but then he changed

0:26:50 > 0:26:57and he moved towards paintings of elegant Edwardian ladies, which is what he's best known for.

0:26:57 > 0:27:03- Right.- And sometimes they are slightly... pictures with a...with a problem.

0:27:03 > 0:27:08- The picture's in good condition, though it's rather dirty.- Yes.

0:27:08 > 0:27:10I'd recommend a good clean of this.

0:27:10 > 0:27:14The white of the pawnbroker's shirt and his cufflinks

0:27:14 > 0:27:19would all come up much brighter and crisper than it looks now.

0:27:19 > 0:27:22It's really very dirty.

0:27:22 > 0:27:29- As to value, well, I think in a sale now you'd get £10,000 to £15,000 for this.- Oh, that's fine. Very nice.

0:27:29 > 0:27:36- I think insurance, tell them £20,000.- Yeah, well it won't move from its present position.- Good.

0:27:39 > 0:27:41It belonged to my husband's family.

0:27:41 > 0:27:47They were jewellers. That is nothing to do with it, except that they collected things.

0:27:47 > 0:27:54- Where were they?- They were in Sussex.- Were they?- Yes.- So it's travelled a long way?- Yes, yes.

0:27:54 > 0:27:56You brought it from there?

0:27:56 > 0:28:02Yes, when the parents died, we had it, then my husband died, so I've had it all those years.

0:28:02 > 0:28:06The interesting thing about this particular fan,

0:28:06 > 0:28:11if it were a Chinese, it'd have probably a much stronger box,

0:28:11 > 0:28:17lacquer box or something like that, then the French ones - and I believe this is French -

0:28:17 > 0:28:21very often had... this is a sort of Carton box...

0:28:21 > 0:28:23but it's got a bit of design.

0:28:23 > 0:28:29- The family was a Huguenot family. - The what?- Huguenot family from Normandy, originally.

0:28:29 > 0:28:32I've got it right, then, haven't I?

0:28:32 > 0:28:34I think so, yes.

0:28:34 > 0:28:39What I love is the ivory with the mother-of-pearl inlay,

0:28:39 > 0:28:46a lot of work's gone into that, and this - these little tiny, tiny flowers and dots,

0:28:46 > 0:28:48I think that is pewter.

0:28:48 > 0:28:50Ooh.

0:28:50 > 0:28:56Circa...maybe 1880, something like that. Would that sort of fit in?

0:28:56 > 0:28:58I'd imagine so. I'd imagine so.

0:28:58 > 0:29:01Well, if you were to insure this,

0:29:01 > 0:29:06ie, if you were to go to a Bond Street jeweller's shop,

0:29:06 > 0:29:11- you'd be probably paying something like £1,500 for it.- My goodness.

0:29:11 > 0:29:14Are you a collector of Scrimshaw?

0:29:14 > 0:29:21I'm interested in whaling. I wrote a book about Irish whaling, so I've an interest in scrimshaw.

0:29:21 > 0:29:28- Was there a whaling industry in Ireland?- Yes. In Donegal Bay in the 18th century for a short time,

0:29:28 > 0:29:33then there were two Norwegian companies in the 20th century.

0:29:33 > 0:29:39- So you bought these due to their whaling connections?- Yes, indeed. - When did you buy them?

0:29:39 > 0:29:43I bought this one last year in Portobello Road.

0:29:43 > 0:29:45- I got the pair.- Yes.

0:29:45 > 0:29:49- I bought this in the Angel the previous year.- In London?- Yes.

0:29:49 > 0:29:52And I bought this in a local antique shop.

0:29:52 > 0:29:57And so you were aware that whaling images on scrimshaw,

0:29:57 > 0:30:01on walrus tusks and so on, are of great interest.

0:30:01 > 0:30:04It's a whaling and zoological association, really.

0:30:04 > 0:30:08- You're aware that they're quite collectable.- Yes.

0:30:08 > 0:30:11Can I ask what you paid for them?

0:30:11 > 0:30:15I bought two of these... The other one there... ..at £300.

0:30:15 > 0:30:19- Yes.- This was £250.- Yes. - This was £600, actually.

0:30:19 > 0:30:21Right.

0:30:21 > 0:30:27Did you have any...? Did you ever have any doubts about them? Did you think they were OK?

0:30:27 > 0:30:32No. I reckon those are sperm whale teeth and this is walrus tusk.

0:30:32 > 0:30:38I have my thoughts on this, but I'd like to get a second opinion from a colleague.

0:30:41 > 0:30:44These are super - 18th century sporting buttons.

0:30:44 > 0:30:50What's so super, with each of these, we have the names of different dogs.

0:30:50 > 0:30:56These would've been the real names in the 18th century, dogs belonging to the chap wearing these buttons.

0:30:56 > 0:31:03I mean, it's magic when you think about it. I think we'd be looking at at least £1,000, and probably more.

0:31:06 > 0:31:09- I thought he bought rubbish. - LAUGHTER

0:31:09 > 0:31:14- If it were right, it would be the ultimate whaling...- I know.

0:31:14 > 0:31:19Yes, and the owner has bought it relatively recently for about £500,

0:31:19 > 0:31:25- which is completely the wrong price. - It's either grossly too little or grossly too much.- Yes, yes.

0:31:25 > 0:31:30My feeling is, you're right - it's grossly too much, but I'm not sure.

0:31:30 > 0:31:33You do have everything - a ship crushed in the ice,

0:31:33 > 0:31:36polar bears being shot.

0:31:36 > 0:31:40- A whale coming up under a boat. - Whale coming under a boat.

0:31:40 > 0:31:44- Wouldn't want to stick my neck out. - It could be real.- It could be.

0:31:44 > 0:31:50My day would not be complete without finding an Irish peat bucket. That's what it is.

0:31:50 > 0:31:53Of its type, it's as good as you'll find.

0:31:53 > 0:31:58This ribbing round here is typical of Northern Ireland and Scotland.

0:31:58 > 0:32:05That's a very, very northern style and this banding round here - this reeding - is quite exceptional,

0:32:05 > 0:32:13I mean, this is the luxury model. Most of them are quite plain. And the value - round about £3,000.

0:32:14 > 0:32:20- My goodness!- Put your Christmas tree in it!- Completely shocked.

0:32:20 > 0:32:25Two areas of difficulty - these ARE old teeth, no doubt about that.

0:32:25 > 0:32:28As you know, those survive in large quantities.

0:32:28 > 0:32:33The difficulties are, one, the price charged by dealers

0:32:33 > 0:32:38who should know their business, was simply not enough.

0:32:38 > 0:32:41Secondly, the dating of the engraving.

0:32:41 > 0:32:45Now, I am very doubtful about... particularly that one...

0:32:45 > 0:32:50I've never seen a real one titled "Whaling in Greenland".

0:32:50 > 0:32:54Modern ones always tend to have flags, dates -

0:32:54 > 0:32:59things that appear to tie in a particular moment in time.

0:32:59 > 0:33:03Um, 1875 is not a particularly early date,

0:33:03 > 0:33:07but it's the fact that it's dated makes me suspicious.

0:33:07 > 0:33:13The real ones, while there are ones as detailed as this, tend to be quite simple,

0:33:13 > 0:33:16the decoration's straightforward, very accurately done,

0:33:16 > 0:33:21but they don't put it all in with flags and bells.

0:33:21 > 0:33:25And, as I say, this one, certainly a very old tusk,

0:33:25 > 0:33:30if this scene is real, this is one of the best we've ever seen.

0:33:30 > 0:33:34If it's added later, the whole complexion changes.

0:33:34 > 0:33:39Someone had dated the rigging on the ships for me at around 1860s.

0:33:39 > 0:33:45- That just means they've been accurate in their use of past records.- Yes.

0:33:45 > 0:33:47All I'm saying is, I am suspicious.

0:33:47 > 0:33:52I'm not saying... I think those are very dodgy indeed.

0:33:52 > 0:33:54This requires further exploration.

0:33:54 > 0:34:00It may be fantastic, but there are things about it that make me worry.

0:34:00 > 0:34:05Um, and...you know, if my worries are right,

0:34:05 > 0:34:10- they are borne out by the fact that the prices don't make sense.- Yes.

0:34:10 > 0:34:14You know, the most basic dealer in Portobello Road

0:34:14 > 0:34:17should know one of that quality is £800.

0:34:17 > 0:34:20- Yes.- Do you see what I mean?

0:34:20 > 0:34:22I could accept your views on those,

0:34:22 > 0:34:26- but I have reservations about that one.- So do I.

0:34:26 > 0:34:30- It came from Germany, I think. - Yes. OK, let us agree.

0:34:30 > 0:34:32- We're both doubtful about those.- Yes.

0:34:32 > 0:34:35- This one I'll reserve judgement on, too.- Right.

0:34:35 > 0:34:41- We have come across pieces where the engraving is clearly later.- Yes.

0:34:41 > 0:34:46A skilled engraver copying an original with an old tusk

0:34:46 > 0:34:50is doing something which is very difficult to date.

0:34:50 > 0:34:52- Yes.- I just think this is...

0:34:52 > 0:34:58- There is so much that is wonderful on it, if it's real, you've a fantastic bargain.- Yes.

0:34:58 > 0:35:00If not, it wasn't such a bargain.

0:35:00 > 0:35:06- I still enjoy it.- It's lovely, but let's leave the jury out on that one.- Righto.

0:35:06 > 0:35:09- We hope it's right. Thank you. - Thank you.

0:35:09 > 0:35:15It belonged to my grandmother. All I know is her father-in-law give it to her.

0:35:15 > 0:35:19- Pretty lavish gift! Two whopping great diamonds.- Beautiful.

0:35:19 > 0:35:24And they're set into two heart-shaped clusters,

0:35:24 > 0:35:29and joined with a true lover's knot, so it was probably a wedding gift,

0:35:29 > 0:35:32- something rather romantic? - No idea! Probably.

0:35:32 > 0:35:38It's mounted in silver and gold, and at the side there's a little pierced, open-gold gallery

0:35:38 > 0:35:44which supports silver settings, what we call cut-down settings -

0:35:44 > 0:35:50the diamonds are laid into channels, then they're cut away to leave them as fine as possible.

0:35:50 > 0:35:55Beautiful English jewellery. You've never worn it, have you?

0:35:55 > 0:35:59- No, never.- Do you know how I know that you haven't worn it?

0:35:59 > 0:36:04- There's no perfume on it. - Well, there will be soon.

0:36:04 > 0:36:10- When we turn it over it's perfectly obvious there's no way to wear it. - Absolutely.- No pin.

0:36:10 > 0:36:15There's a loop to hang it from a pendant. And see this fitting here?

0:36:15 > 0:36:22It has a thread in the middle for a screw fitting, then two prongs to hold that thread steady.

0:36:22 > 0:36:27It tells me this was not only a brooch - the fitting's now missing -

0:36:27 > 0:36:30but it was also possible to wear it in one's hair

0:36:30 > 0:36:34and also to wear it as a pendant, so it's very versatile.

0:36:34 > 0:36:39- Beautiful. Were you excited when you saw it?- Absolutely.- Of course!

0:36:39 > 0:36:44People want to know what it's like to wear something as beautiful as that.

0:36:44 > 0:36:48That's the right word. Beautiful piece of English jewellery

0:36:48 > 0:36:55set with diamonds, made in about 1900 at a time when entertainment was very, very important.

0:36:55 > 0:37:00This sort of jewellery was worn on great occasions.

0:37:00 > 0:37:04You couldn't hope to have anything more beautiful to wear.

0:37:04 > 0:37:08- So, um, no insurance?- No, no.

0:37:08 > 0:37:10- Want to insure it?- OK.

0:37:10 > 0:37:13What about £15,000?

0:37:14 > 0:37:17OK. Lovely.

0:37:17 > 0:37:21- Going to wear it then?- No! - Why not?- No, I wouldn't.

0:37:21 > 0:37:24Of course you're going to wear it!

0:37:24 > 0:37:28We'll get a fitting put on and you must have a go at this.

0:37:28 > 0:37:30- It's beautiful.- It is.

0:37:32 > 0:37:38You must be wondering why I'd like to discuss a picture that's had a pretty neglected life

0:37:38 > 0:37:42with holes in it and it's flaking along the lower margin

0:37:42 > 0:37:47and looks like the odd dog's run over it over the years. I mean, where has it been?

0:37:47 > 0:37:54It was in my husband's granny's shed, and when she died, which was about three years ago,

0:37:54 > 0:38:01it was actually thrown out onto a skip with a lot of other rubbish and I rescued it, so...

0:38:01 > 0:38:06- So it's been lying in the shed for many years?- A long, long time.

0:38:06 > 0:38:10It was in a terrible state, but I thought, "Well..."

0:38:10 > 0:38:13She associated no worth to it, I suppose.

0:38:13 > 0:38:16It wasn't really her kind of thing.

0:38:16 > 0:38:20She was in service to a Victorian lady -

0:38:20 > 0:38:26- we wondered if she was given it when she got married a long time ago.- But you salvaged it?- Yeah!

0:38:26 > 0:38:30Well, that's very interesting.

0:38:30 > 0:38:34You can see, if you look closely, that there's a linked A-E.

0:38:34 > 0:38:40Now, A-E is the monogram for a Dutch 19th century romantic painter

0:38:40 > 0:38:44- called Adrian Everson.- Right.

0:38:44 > 0:38:49And also, even more indistinct than the monogram, is the date 1852,

0:38:49 > 0:38:53which is a nice period in the work of Everson.

0:38:53 > 0:39:00- This is typical of his style.- Do you know what it's of?- There's a label on the back...- I couldn't read it.

0:39:00 > 0:39:02..which is fairly indistinct,

0:39:02 > 0:39:09- but you can see, albeit in rather a faint hand, the inscription for "Haarlem".- Yes.

0:39:09 > 0:39:12Now, Everson studied in Amsterdam.

0:39:13 > 0:39:17- He was a pupil of Cornelis Springer...- Mmm.

0:39:17 > 0:39:24..but he is regarded as one of the more interesting of the Dutch town painters.

0:39:24 > 0:39:28Condition is a problem, but, at the same time,

0:39:28 > 0:39:32things can be done to repair aspects of this.

0:39:32 > 0:39:38- This is the most difficult area, where an area of canvas has been lost.- Mmm.

0:39:38 > 0:39:43So what's necessary is a fairly major restoration job.

0:39:43 > 0:39:45In saying that,

0:39:45 > 0:39:53he's such a rare artist, if this picture was to come up for a sale at an auction in London in this state,

0:39:53 > 0:39:58- I think it could make in the region of £20,000 to £30,000.- Wow.

0:39:58 > 0:40:01Goodness me.

0:40:01 > 0:40:06- I didn't think it was worth anything, so there you go. - Neither did your aunt.- No.

0:40:06 > 0:40:11A really handsome pair of dishes. Are they yours?

0:40:11 > 0:40:16- Yes. Well, my sister's and mine. - So you've got one each?- Yes.

0:40:16 > 0:40:20- Are they hanging on the walls at home?- Yes.- Where'd they come from?

0:40:20 > 0:40:26All I know is my father bought them at auction, and I think it was Lord Charlemagne's auction

0:40:26 > 0:40:30near Moy in the late '40s.

0:40:31 > 0:40:38These were made at Arita in Japan, which was the main port in the centre.

0:40:38 > 0:40:43Decorated in an Imari palette - the under-glazed blue, iron-red, and gilding,

0:40:43 > 0:40:48and exported out through there by the Dutch.

0:40:48 > 0:40:55It's the sort of thing you find more in Holland than in this country, although there are a lot over here.

0:40:55 > 0:40:59The decoration shows two ladies

0:40:59 > 0:41:02who are pulling along this cart with a tassel

0:41:02 > 0:41:07with this wonderful spray of peony in them,

0:41:07 > 0:41:10and it may be... I mean, peony,

0:41:10 > 0:41:15THE sort of major flower, iconographically,

0:41:15 > 0:41:19and they...they symbolise purity amongst other things.

0:41:19 > 0:41:23We've got precious objects and diapers surrounding the scene.

0:41:23 > 0:41:26What have we got on the back?

0:41:26 > 0:41:29We've got...very unusual,

0:41:29 > 0:41:32very full decoration,

0:41:32 > 0:41:35and also that's uncommon.

0:41:36 > 0:41:39We've got these enormous scars

0:41:39 > 0:41:45left from the firing points where it was resting in the kiln.

0:41:46 > 0:41:49And what we've also got

0:41:49 > 0:41:57is one of the most extraordinary bits of suspension I've ever seen in my life.

0:41:57 > 0:42:00We knew you were going to say that.

0:42:00 > 0:42:02Now, date.

0:42:02 > 0:42:05These are late 17th century...

0:42:07 > 0:42:12..and they've survived in extraordinarily good condition.

0:42:12 > 0:42:14Do we have them insured?

0:42:14 > 0:42:16Not individually, no.

0:42:16 > 0:42:20- House insurance.- House insurance? - Yes.

0:42:20 > 0:42:26- Do you know how much your house insurance pays out if you damage them and they're not specified?- No.

0:42:26 > 0:42:29Most policies £200, £500.

0:42:30 > 0:42:34Do you know what this pair of dishes is worth?

0:42:34 > 0:42:37Haven't a clue.

0:42:37 > 0:42:39£16,000 to £20,000.

0:42:39 > 0:42:46- My goodness! As a pair?- As a pair. - Individually?- It wouldn't make a great deal of difference.- Right.

0:42:46 > 0:42:51I think you could say £8,000 without any trouble at all.

0:42:51 > 0:42:55- My goodness!- Thank you very much for bringing them in.

0:42:55 > 0:42:58They're wonderful, wonderful dishes.

0:42:59 > 0:43:03Mount Stewart was originally called Mount Pleasant.

0:43:03 > 0:43:09We intend to repeat the pleasant experience and come back here for another show.

0:43:09 > 0:43:14Many thanks to Lady Mairi and the National Trust for their kindness.

0:43:14 > 0:43:20I'm off to sample the local scallops, so until next time, from County Down, goodbye.

0:43:33 > 0:43:38Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd