Dumfries Antiques Roadshow


Dumfries

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This is the Old Blacksmith's shop at Gretna Green, and a mecca for runaway romantics since 1754,

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when English law decreed that you had to be 21 years old to tie the nuptial knot.

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The law has changed,

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but 1,500 couples still get married here each year

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and they could do worse than linger awhile among the delights of Dumfries and Galloway.

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# When rosy May comes in wi' flowers

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# To deck Her gay, green-spreading bowers

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# Then busy, busy are his hours The gard'ner wi' his paidle

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# The crystal waters gently fa'

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# The merry bards are lovers a'... #

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That song was one of hundreds written by Robert Burns,

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the bard of Caledonia.

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# Should auld acquaintance be forgot... #

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Many of his songs and poems came to him while he was on horseback.

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He began as a ploughman and became a tenant farmer here at Ellisland,

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just north of Dumfries.

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A statue of the poet has pride of place in Dumfries town centre,

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and there's a heritage trail linking sites associated with him.

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This is where he lived and died.

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Here is where his bones were laid.

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Robert Burns was one of the founders of Dumfries Theatre Royal,

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which, 100 years later, influenced a pupil from Dumfries Academy.

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James Matthew Barrie became, in a word, hooked,

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and he went on to write over 30 plays of his own.

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The inspiration for JM Barrie's most famous creation

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came while he was playing pirates with two friends in this garden overlooking the River Nith.

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WOMAN: Boys! Tea time!

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And so was born perhaps the most famous character in children's literature -

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Peter Pan.

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Now there are plans for the house to be made into a hotel and museum

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to keep the origins of Neverland alive. Wooden swords on request.

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Today's Roadshow comes from the Dumfries Ice Bowl,

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usually the setting for ice-skating and bowls championships.

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Clive Farahar and his fellow judges will be giving maximum points

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to anyone turning up with relics of local heroes.

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What a lovely dish! How long have you had it?

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Oh, all my lifetime.

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My mother bought it after the Second World War, about 1946,

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and, um...she paid £4 10s for it.

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-What, from a shop?

-Yes, from an antique shop.

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-Heavens! £4 10s?

-Yes, he wanted £5,

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-but she only had £4 10s on her.

-Oh-ho, that's crafty!

-Yes.

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-So £4 10s all those years ago?

-Yes.

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It's, of course, Chinese and extremely beautiful.

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Made in the reign of Emperor Yung Cheng,

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which is around about 1735, 1740,

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so that's 200 and... Ooh, my maths aren't very good... 260 years old?

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Which is a long time to remain in this absolutely perfect condition.

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One hopes it's perfect. If you ring it, it should - if perfect - sound like a little bell.

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TINGS LIKE A BELL

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Lovely, isn't it? Absolutely mint.

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Mint as the day it was made.

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Beautifully decorated in the style of Imari.

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And her £4 10s has now increased to around about...

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-£400 to £500.

-Very good. Thank you.

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They are massive stones. They make an absolute punch, don't they?

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The size of them! Scottish pebble jewellery was extremely popular

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from around about the 1860s right the way through to around about 1900

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and there was a temptation for a blend of stones that brought to mind the heath and the heather,

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these sort of greens and browns

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and russets. And you've got a sort of a jasper stone here,

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this lovely round-cut jasper,

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grey chalcedony,

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smoky quartz. That is transparent, this dark brown smoky quartz.

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Bloodstone

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and yellow jasper.

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Mounted up in gold,

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with these sort of entwined hoop-like settings between,

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in the original fitted case.

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I'd date this to about 1845,1850, so it's early - tip-top condition.

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I think if you were selling it today that's going to make something in the region of £1,000 to £1,500.

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This brooch doesn't look inspiring, does it?

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-You've got this blue stone in a surround of diamonds.

-We were told it was a Burmese sapphire.

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I don't know much about it. The gentleman that gave it to my aunt

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did say a story along the lines that it had come from India -

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whether that is true or not, we don't know - and that his wife had worked for royalty.

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India rather more than Burma, I would agree with that.

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It's a cushion-shaped native-cut sapphire

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in a diamond-star cluster frame, date it to about 1885, 1895.

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Um, it's actually really rather a good sapphire.

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It's this very collectable blue colour, a medium milky-blue colour.

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Now, I think it weighs in the region of about four-and-a-half carats,

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and these are what people are after, so this piece,

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if you were selling it, we're looking at £2,000 to £3,000 for it.

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-OK.

-So, although that's got the punch, that's got the value.

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-OK, thank you.

-Terrific. Thank you.

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MUSIC: "I Love A Lassie" by Harry Lauder

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MUSIC DROWNS SPEECH

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-I think we've got the gist of it.

-Yes.

-That was his most famous song.

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-And here - this is the piano on which he actually composed this song...

-And many other songs on it.

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I notice that it says here "Acquired...

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-"..by Jimmy Logan.

-By Jimmy Logan."

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-Who was the comedian.

-The famous Scottish comedian.

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-"From Lauder Ha'"...

-In 1966.

-"1966. "

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Lauder Ha' was Sir Harry's last home, just outside of Strathaven.

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-Yes.

-He had several homes during his lifetime, but he retired to Strathaven with his niece Greta.

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And Greta was a great friend of my grandmother's,

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and that, and the fact that my grandfather used to sing Keep Right On To The End Of The Road,

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when I was 6 or 7 years old, gave me an initial interest in Lauder.

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I see you've got a couple of photographs of the old man himself.

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Yes. This was at Lauder Ha'. These were items that were in Lauder Ha' and sold from his estate.

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-Right. What I noticed was in the collection...

-Yes.

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-..you've got books and all sorts, but you haven't got a stick.

-Ah, funny you should mention that.

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Last year I was at an auction in Edinburgh and there was a stick and it got to about £1,500

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and I bid one more time and then I thought, "There is this bush called the Lauder bush,"

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-and being a Scot I thought I would just grow one rather than buy one.

-Oh, very Scottish of you! Splendid!

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-Well, it's a difficult thing to value. The piano itself is not a particularly valuable piano.

-No.

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But the Lauder connection absolutely makes it,

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-and it would be wonderful if you put it on display.

-That's what we want.

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-"To Sir Harry Lauder..." He was knighted after the war.

-For his work with the war service.

-Of course.

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Well, you've got over £10,000 worth of stuff here

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-and it's been a pleasure looking through it.

-Thank you.

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I can see the name of the sitter - David Anderson. Who is he?

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He's my four times great-grandfather.

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-Lovely pearls, with his initials.

-Don't know how they did that then.

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Absolutely stunning, very nice. And he looks like he was quite important.

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He was Warren Hastings' right-hand man in India.

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Oh, right. About when?

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1790s. Well, probably earlier because there was a portrait of him in 1797.

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Right, right, right. So he's obviously a very important man

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because this is a very beautiful miniature indeed. Really quite an important thing.

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-I'll take your word for it!

-Well, this inscription goes on...

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and it says over here "Cosway". Now, is that who you think the artist is?

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Supposedly, yes, um... It's in the family book of pictures is that as well, and it's on the frame.

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Well, the thing is that it's not actually signed by Cosway.

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-Signed by "E".

-Exactly, there's a large "E" in it.

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-It's a very cursive "E", slightly tilted over.

-Right.

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And I have no doubt that it is the signature of another artist, called Englehart.

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-Oh, right, yeah.

-Englehart was very prolific

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but he was also very good, and he didn't really drop his standards.

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I think it's about 1800,

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so that would post-date your great, great, great, grandfather's tour of duty.

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-It's worth about £5,000, £6,000, £7,000.

-Right.

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And yet it's such a good one, so rich, so strong, that it could well reach five figures.

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Crazy.

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-That is lovely.

-Good.

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-I wonder if there's a family resemblance?

-It's not the nose!

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Well, this takes me back to my early teens, I have to say, when much to my mother's horror...

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-Yes.

-..I used to go on the back of a bike, clutching my boyfriend -

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not one of these, I have to say - something a bit more modern.

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Obviously it's too old to be yours, so where did it come from?

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My father bought it in London in 1919.

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He went to London to visit his brother

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who was studying to become an income-tax inspector and he...

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There was a rail strike and my father couldn't get home

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so they bought this bike from Maude's Motor Market.

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-He bought the bike simply because he couldn't get home?

-Yes.

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-OK. And how much do you think he paid for it?

-He paid... 100 guineas for it.

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-You're fiddling with a piece of paper.

-Yes, this paper shows this...

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-This is the evidence, is it?

-£105 13s 6d, with all the little bits and pieces.

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£105... I mean, that was a fortune.

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-In 1919, you could have bought a house for that amount of money.

-A flat or something like that, yes.

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An extraordinary amount of money.

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-Was your dad a seasoned motorcycle rider?

-No, he hadn't ridden one before.

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Hold on. So he goes to London, he gets stuck in the strike, he buys a bike, drives it off,

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having never set foot on a bike before, and heads off to Dumfries?

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-How long did it take him, do you think?

-Two days.

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-He slept overnight somewhere in South Yorkshire.

-Yes.

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And he put the bicycle on its stand, took his raincoat off

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and made the raincoat into a tent and lay there till daybreak.

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Amazing!

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-He picked up a hitchhiker on the back of the bike.

-On this?

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And while they were going along he thought he felt the hitchhiker feeling for his wallet.

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-Oh, when he had his arms round him?

-Yes. So they stopped at a pub for a bite to eat,

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but as soon as the guy got off, Father just drove off and left him.

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Well, that's an incredible story, the history of it.

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But then - let's have a look at the machine because the machine is no less extraordinary.

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It's made by a company called Phelon and Moore

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and what is very special about all the Phelon and Moore bikes is this.

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It's the cylinder casing, the single cylinder here, which forms part of the frame,

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and that's completely unique to this particular company.

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So because of this slope, they called it the sloper.

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If it was made before the end of the year 1914,

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it can take part in the pioneering race from London to Brighton,

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which immediately puts a sort of collector's premium onto the bike.

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Is there any way that you think we could say that it was made before 1914?

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-'14? No. I'm in touch with the club at Cleckheaton.

-Oh?

-And they're going to try and establish

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-from the serial numbers when the bike was made, because it wasn't new when my father bought it.

-Ah.

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Assuming that it is made after 1914,

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-which would fit in with the family story, it would have a value of around £4,000.

-Yes.

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If by any chance it can be pinpointed to that magic golden period before the end of 1914,

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it would shoot the value up to perhaps £6,000,

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-so it's certainly worth continuing with your investigations.

-Yes.

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-It's been great to have it and it's brought back lots of memories for me.

-For us as well.

-Thank you.

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It's an unusual combination - a case that apparently is for the Turkish market, retailed in Northern Ireland

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-with an American movement.

-Yes.

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-Have a guess as to what it might be worth.

-I have no idea. Might it go to four figures or not?

-Absolutely.

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I'd be terribly disappointed if it didn't. It's very, very commercial.

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-I think, at auction at the moment, between £1,200 and £1,500.

-Good!

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Very pretty item.

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-Bunny, what can I do for you?

-I thought you'd be interested in this elephant. Underneath it's got that.

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-Very intriguing.

-I don't know that it's got anything to do with clocks

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but... This is broken. It's French.

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I wondered if you'd seen one.

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I have never seen anything like it before.

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"Dites electronique." And then it's got various patents.

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Patent Paris.

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I would suggest that it's the equivalent of a table bell.

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Yes. What fun! How would it go off?

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You'd press the top.

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-Early 19th century.

-Quimper - somewhere like that.

-Thanks.

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Now, what's in this box?

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-A child's tea set.

-Now, that's very different. Very unexpected.

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-You say it's enamel.

-Yes.

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I think so.

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When I got it, it was totally black.

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It had either been in a fire or left in a loft for years and years.

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-Where did you buy it?

-In Edinburgh, in auction, in 1991.

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We've got these lovely illustrations, all different,

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of childhood scenes with animals, in farmyards. It is delightful.

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Have you heard of a toy manufacturer called Bing?

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Gebruder Bing Nuremburg, Bavaria.

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Bing are very, very famous as manufacturers of tin toys,

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model railways, models, ships - everything to do with model-making...

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-Right.

-..and toys in the metal area. I've never seen them making a tea set.

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-How much did you pay?

-£41.

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I think you did very well.

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-I would say £300, £400.

-Oh, lovely! Thank you!

-Thank YOU!

-Right!

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-It's known as Mum's Queen Anne bureau.

-Mum's Queen Anne bureau.

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Well, it's actually quite correct.

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Oh.

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It's an escritoire in two pieces,

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not much after 1710. One or two things to look at straightaway.

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Obviously, these are 1760-type handles,

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and we're looking at something made 1710, 1715, perhaps.

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You've got three marks there which is where the original handles went.

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Hello - and the feet.

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-One of the feet has been a brick for some years.

-Lovely!

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When you look inside, there you can see three holes.

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That was probably the original, and then they put something on later.

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-A lock has been taken out and patched there.

-Yes.

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But that's quite healthy. I don't mind that at all.

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Much better that than all disguised and camouflaged.

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A good thing to look at on an early piece of quality - a little domed top to the side of the drawer,

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rather than a flat surface.

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That came in and stayed in until the 1740s.

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Always a mark of quality.

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So...

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This is also good.

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Signs of wear, where the underneath has rubbed.

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There you can see compatible signs of wear.

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We're building up a picture of authenticity.

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Two-part furniture was always suspect

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because, in the 18th century, when these were second-hand,

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they were sold by auction. It never went up in its social surroundings.

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The farmer went to the lord's sale, the lord never went to a farm sale.

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The farmer couldn't get it in his home. He put a top on here for a chest of drawers, and feet on that,

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-and two pieces of furniture.

-Fascinating.

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Let's have a look at the top,

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which has this wonderful cushion-moulding drawer.

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-Now, inside, I imagine will be... Shall I give you that key?

-Yes.

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..a host of secret drawers.

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We can't go into all of them,

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but that's typical. There were secret drawers everywhere, in a decent piece.

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-These come out. Little ones at the back.

-This comes out.

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That slides forward. Great quality.

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Let's see if we can get our friends here to put the two together

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and we can see it in its former glory.

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I shall come over here.

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Chaps, if we can prop up... Put some feet on it.

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And then you start to see it. These mouldings are wonderful.

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-Do come in.

-Right.

-These are wonderful.

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Applied with the grain going from top to bottom.

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-By the 1730s, the grain of the wood went this way.

-Yes.

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It's a lovely colour, isn't it?

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OK.

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Fingers!

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Now...

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-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Look at that.

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It's just lovely.

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Walnut furniture of this type has gone up in value considerably -

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particularly when it's of this quality. Big mouldings... It's a person.

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-Erm...

-And restoration?

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Restoration - I would do very, very little.

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I've always felt guilty about not doing something to it.

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-It's smiling at you. It's saying, "I'm quite happy."

-I love it!

-Good.

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-And, for insurance, between £25,000, £30,000.

-Really?!

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It's just on the house insurance.

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-I wouldn't sell it if it was worth a million.

-I'm sure.

-Thank you.

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-You've got them all.

-Yes.

-OK.

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That's volume one. They were too heavy to fetch them all with me.

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Yeah. Bear in mind we're all creatures of habit,

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-and when this sort of thing comes out, we all buy it.

-Aye.

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It's usually when somebody dies, out of the attic it comes.

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What I'm saying is there are a lot of these around.

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They don't fetch a great deal of money in auction.

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-If you had the whole set, they'd fetch about £40.

-Yeah.

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I've been collecting what might be termed Scottish provincial silver

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-for well nigh 40 years.

-You started at the right time

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because 40 years ago there were very, very few people

0:21:330:21:36

collecting Scottish provincial silver.

0:21:360:21:40

What we have here, what I'm really excited to see,

0:21:400:21:44

is a piece of Dumfries silver,

0:21:440:21:47

which is denoted by the fouled anchor sign.

0:21:470:21:52

This mark here. And it has the maker's mark - DG for David Gray.

0:21:520:21:59

Fairly prolific maker - mainly of flatware.

0:21:590:22:02

This is a fish slice, with a basic decoration.

0:22:020:22:06

-Can you remember where and when you bought that?

-Vividly,

0:22:060:22:09

because it was one of the first pieces that I bought

0:22:090:22:14

and I believe that the vendor really didn't know of the maker's origin.

0:22:140:22:19

-You knew what it was at that time?

-I had pretty good idea.

0:22:190:22:24

-Can you remember what you paid for it?

-Memory's not what it was,

0:22:240:22:29

-but I think it was £28.

-£28?

-Yes.

0:22:290:22:34

That's not bad, because if you came to sell it now,

0:22:340:22:38

you're looking at about £700.

0:22:380:22:41

-Well!

-That's not a bad start.

-Much better than in the bank.

0:22:410:22:46

The thing about Dumfries silver

0:22:460:22:49

is it's much more common to see flatware like this

0:22:490:22:53

than it is hollow-ware.

0:22:530:22:56

And this little box, as plain as plain could be,

0:22:560:23:00

but open it up and inside here we've got the mark "MH",

0:23:000:23:05

for Mark Hinchliffe, another well-known Dumfries silversmith.

0:23:050:23:11

I'm glad to tell you that a box like this, if you came to sell it,

0:23:110:23:17

you've got to think of at least £3,000, possibly more.

0:23:170:23:22

Extremely good news!

0:23:220:23:24

Now, the rarest of all

0:23:240:23:27

is this wine funnel.

0:23:270:23:29

And it's got the mark "IP", which is for Joseph Pearson.

0:23:290:23:35

Again, another Dumfries maker.

0:23:350:23:37

I've never seen a Dumfries wine funnel.

0:23:370:23:41

I would confidently expect it to be worth between £4,500 to £5,000.

0:23:410:23:47

Thank you very much for bringing them in.

0:23:470:23:52

-You get crystal bowls on stems for drinking out of.

-Right.

0:23:520:23:56

You'd have a job cleaning it out. It wouldn't be that healthy

0:23:560:24:00

-but it's rather nice to hold.

-Yes.

0:24:000:24:03

I wouldn't mind drinking a dram of whiskey out of that.

0:24:030:24:07

I've taken this around to various experts. Some say they don't know,

0:24:090:24:12

but those who are sure they know, say it's to do with picture-framing. Are we right?

0:24:120:24:19

You're wrong. You're way out.

0:24:190:24:21

Give us a clue.

0:24:210:24:23

-I'm in the music business.

-Music.

0:24:230:24:26

I'm in the music business.

0:24:260:24:28

Would this do something to the piano?

0:24:280:24:32

N... No, not to the piano.

0:24:320:24:35

-I give up.

-Do you?

-Yes.

0:24:350:24:39

Have a little look at it now.

0:24:390:24:43

-There's felt down two sides. Is that significant?

-Yes.

0:24:440:24:49

-I give up.

-Well...

0:24:490:24:52

It stretches your fingers. It stretches the width between them.

0:24:520:24:57

-It's an instrument of torture!

-Call it what you like, but it has been put to use.

0:24:570:25:03

-Were these mass-produced?

-No, it's a one-off.

-Hello?

0:25:030:25:07

-Can you sign this?

-Is this for your mum or for you?

-Me.

-What's your name?

0:25:070:25:12

-Nadia.

-Nadia. Lovely. What do you think it is, Nadia? Is it a toy?

0:25:120:25:18

-No.

-What's it for?

0:25:180:25:21

-Putting on the window ledge.

-For what?

-Putting on the window ledge.

0:25:210:25:26

She's got it. Putting on your window ledge.

0:25:260:25:30

Well done! Thank you.

0:25:300:25:32

This is by a potter called Sobei Kinkozan.

0:25:320:25:36

He was the most prolific of the top three makers.

0:25:360:25:41

Kinkozan had this vast factory churning out pots,

0:25:410:25:47

and a studio making really good ones.

0:25:470:25:51

-And this is one of the good ones.

-Oh!

0:25:510:25:54

I like the shape. At first sight it's just a square, but it isn't.

0:25:540:26:00

It's very subtle the way these shoulders lead down.

0:26:000:26:04

In fact, these panels aren't quite flat.

0:26:040:26:07

They curve inwards, and it gives it a really strong shape.

0:26:070:26:13

The panels are beautifully painted.

0:26:130:26:17

This is quality painting.

0:26:170:26:19

It dates from about 1885, 1895 - somewhere around there.

0:26:200:26:25

This is generically called Satsuma-ware,

0:26:250:26:29

but the majority wasn't made in Satsuma, it was made in Kyoto.

0:26:290:26:33

That's where Kinkozan's studio was.

0:26:330:26:36

-How did the damage happen?

-They had a fire and it was damaged in it.

0:26:360:26:42

That is amongst the worst bits of restoration I've ever seen in my life!

0:26:420:26:48

Probably, they done it theirself.

0:26:480:26:50

It's what I call chewing-gum repair.

0:26:500:26:54

It could be broken down by a skilled restorer, and it should.

0:26:540:26:59

This pot deserves money spent on it

0:26:590:27:03

to restore it to its previous condition.

0:27:030:27:06

To get that restored would cost you £300, £400.

0:27:060:27:11

-Sounds like a lot of money for a chip.

-Yeah.

0:27:110:27:14

But you've got a pot which at the moment is worth £2,000.

0:27:140:27:21

-Oh, right.

-And if you spent the 300 on it, it would be worth £3,000.

0:27:210:27:27

-Very good. Thank you.

-So I'd recommend you did that.

0:27:270:27:31

-Thank you for bringing it.

-Thanks.

0:27:310:27:34

That bit was missing and it was completely red-rusted.

0:27:370:27:40

-You've redone it completely.

-I stripped it completely

0:27:400:27:45

and it still works.

0:27:450:27:47

-Have you done the washing in it?

-No.

-Why not?

0:27:470:27:52

I don't think my wife would be very pleased with the result.

0:27:520:27:56

It could be brilliant!

0:27:560:27:58

This type, which has the dolly, which moves to and fro,

0:27:580:28:04

was developed in the 19th century, mechanically, but done by hand.

0:28:040:28:09

You've probably seen the earliest version - a pole with spikes -

0:28:090:28:14

and you go up and down like that.

0:28:140:28:16

-That then became mechanised, with a handle on the top.

-Oh, yes!

0:28:160:28:21

Electricity makes the whole thing, in a sense, modern.

0:28:210:28:25

The first electric versions of this were made in America between 1906 and 1908.

0:28:250:28:33

-We weren't sure of the date.

-This may be later

0:28:330:28:36

because the technique

0:28:360:28:38

of making that process mechanical was developed about 1908.

0:28:380:28:43

So, you've got that, and then that does it in there.

0:28:430:28:48

Then you take the clothes out and you feed them through the mangle,

0:28:480:28:52

-which would've been by hand.

-And you can either wash or wring it.

-That's right.

0:28:520:28:59

-Now, this is made by Beatty's, isn't it?

-Yes.

-What do you know about them?

-Nothing.

0:28:590:29:05

-We've got the manual.

-That came with it.

-The White Cap machine.

0:29:050:29:11

Here is a wonderful lady demonstrating how it works.

0:29:110:29:16

Looking at her dress and her shoes, I think we're about 1915,

0:29:160:29:21

which gives us roughly the date of the machine.

0:29:210:29:24

We can't be more certain than that.

0:29:240:29:27

What I like best is this lovely quotation.

0:29:270:29:30

"Put the clothes in, touch the button, close the lid, the washer does the rest." Just like today.

0:29:300:29:37

"You can tend to something else while it washes the clothes.

0:29:370:29:41

"Come back in 8 or 10 minutes and every garment is snowy white."

0:29:410:29:46

-8 or 10 minutes only. Better than a modern one.

-Now it takes an hour.

0:29:460:29:51

-Technology's gone backwards.

-Yes.

0:29:510:29:54

Very collectable. Great fun.

0:29:540:29:56

Very rare to find an early one like this,

0:29:560:30:00

-and, therefore, I should think the value's £300 to £400.

-Very good.

0:30:000:30:06

Thank you very much.

0:30:060:30:09

It's from the Black Forest

0:30:090:30:11

and it's a typical, top-of-the-range trumpeter clock.

0:30:110:30:15

Most people would initially think, "Maybe it's a cuckoo clock."

0:30:150:30:19

But you've probably peeked inside. I'll do the doors manually.

0:30:190:30:24

You've got these two men who should be blowing trumpets. What happened?

0:30:240:30:29

The trumpets were nicked, really. They were stolen in a flitting.

0:30:290:30:34

-What a shame!

-Yes. I don't know what happened.

-What a shame!

0:30:340:30:38

These nice doors, which we've got at the sides, show the movement.

0:30:380:30:43

And a series of pipes, a fantastically large spring barrel.

0:30:430:30:48

When did you last have this thing working at home?

0:30:480:30:51

-I would say about 25 years ago.

-That long ago!

0:30:510:30:56

Yes. The bellows seem to have perished.

0:30:560:31:00

We've got a series of horns.

0:31:000:31:02

Most of these trumpeters,

0:31:020:31:04

it's just a two or three tone - # Doo-doo. #

0:31:040:31:07

But you've got a full music barrel that is both pinned and bridged.

0:31:070:31:12

You've got an enormous amount of levers here.

0:31:120:31:16

It's a shame that it's not working. It's completely jammed up.

0:31:160:31:20

If you haven't seen it working for years, I won't try to get it going.

0:31:200:31:25

You've got these massive bellows here which would have driven air through all these pipes.

0:31:250:31:31

Those figures would have come whistling out of that door,

0:31:310:31:35

played a marvellous tune and then popped back in again.

0:31:350:31:39

I only took the back off for the first time yesterday.

0:31:390:31:44

-You've never seen inside before.

-Never seen inside it.

0:31:440:31:47

We've got a series of pipes.

0:31:470:31:50

It's on a par with an organ clock. This is top of the range.

0:31:500:31:55

I'm going to suggest a date, probably 1870s, 1880s.

0:31:550:32:00

I love it.

0:32:000:32:02

These novelty clocks are very commercial.

0:32:020:32:06

Up and running, and bearing in mind it has a great movement, with a full range of pipes,

0:32:060:32:12

when those figures are done,

0:32:120:32:15

that is going to be an absolute minimum of £3,500 to £4,000.

0:32:150:32:19

So, it's going to be worth spending a bit of money having it cleaned and overhauled.

0:32:190:32:26

-The bellows are easy to do.

-Yes.

0:32:260:32:29

-That's...

-It'd drive you mad when it was running!

-I could stand the noise.

0:32:290:32:35

Good.

0:32:350:32:37

This is so detailed.

0:32:390:32:41

A mouse reading a newspaper, on a stool, with its lovely tail.

0:32:410:32:45

That is absolutely incredible.

0:32:450:32:48

And I notice it's signed "HBP" - Helen Beatrix Potter. And "1890".

0:32:480:32:54

Well, 1890 was 12 years before she wrote Peter Rabbit.

0:32:540:32:58

But she was doing these drawings then. These are very early.

0:32:580:33:03

I particularly like this one.

0:33:030:33:06

Again signed. Again, really detailed.

0:33:060:33:09

She's doing really fine brushwork.

0:33:090:33:12

Those two are probably worth between £5,000 and £10,000 each.

0:33:120:33:16

Where did you get them?

0:33:180:33:20

-They belong to my daughter-in-law's mother.

-Goodness!

0:33:200:33:25

They came from Beatrix Potter to her aunt

0:33:250:33:30

who was a personal friend of the Potter family. So they came...

0:33:300:33:35

The Borders are not far from the Lake District, which is how the connection is made, is it?

0:33:350:33:42

-I think Beatrix Potter's brother farmed in the Borders.

-Really?

0:33:420:33:46

-And so this is the connection.

-Yes.

0:33:460:33:48

This one of a sinister fox, rather like Mr Todd,

0:33:480:33:52

but I don't think it's Mr Todd.

0:33:520:33:55

This one's worth about £5,000.

0:33:550:33:58

And then these wonderful ones of squirrels.

0:33:580:34:01

These must've been a design for a Christmas card

0:34:010:34:05

because we have stages of this.

0:34:050:34:08

There's that one, this one -

0:34:080:34:10

and the date 1894 here on the side.

0:34:100:34:13

Not so well finished.

0:34:130:34:15

But then we go to this, which is beautifully finished.

0:34:150:34:19

That is stunning. Those two - £5,000, £6,000, £7,000 each.

0:34:190:34:25

-Were these working drawings?

-Some of them.

0:34:260:34:30

This one - we'll go to another pile here... I can hardly believe this!

0:34:300:34:35

This is beautiful, and very delicate - again unfinished -

0:34:350:34:40

but in the corner, we have all the farm implements,

0:34:400:34:43

everything that Beatrix Potter would've known - forks and spades -

0:34:430:34:48

and two rabbits, again black and white, working.

0:34:480:34:52

That one probably about £10,000.

0:34:520:34:55

Another one here - I love this one, actually.

0:34:560:35:01

I think this is my favourite.

0:35:010:35:03

"Squintena Tabby. Licensed dealer in tea."

0:35:030:35:08

And there she is, looking very cross, squinting at these cats,

0:35:080:35:14

who are obviously kittens, looking through the window.

0:35:140:35:18

That is absolutely fantastic.

0:35:180:35:20

-That would be worth £12,000, probably.

-Good gracious!

-Or more.

0:35:200:35:25

And this one. This is fantastic.

0:35:250:35:28

I'm sure I know this drawing. I'm sure it's from a book.

0:35:280:35:32

-I think so.

-A little robin actually looking at a tiny little shoe,

0:35:320:35:37

possibly left by Peter Rabbit's father or Peter Rabbit himself.

0:35:370:35:43

£15,000. Probably more for that.

0:35:430:35:47

One with a rabbit in. It's only a little drawing, but it's superb.

0:35:480:35:53

-I'd say £10,000. She's signed it.

-Yes.

0:35:530:35:57

Then, uncharacteristic - possibly an early study for Peter Rabbit - is this one.

0:35:570:36:04

It's very much like Durer, the Durer picture of the rabbit.

0:36:040:36:08

It's meticulously finished. Beautifully done.

0:36:080:36:11

I'd say £12,000 for that one.

0:36:110:36:14

Last, but not least, are the ones you've had framed.

0:36:140:36:18

And these are absolutely stunning.

0:36:180:36:23

This lovely one of rabbits going through the snow,

0:36:250:36:30

I can't remember what that comes from, but it's one of her books.

0:36:300:36:35

This one I don't recognise at all.

0:36:350:36:38

-It's some rabbits round a bag of buns.

-Yes.

0:36:380:36:42

The keys are there, and on the label is "HBP" -

0:36:420:36:46

her initials once again.

0:36:460:36:48

Those are fantastic! Absolutely!

0:36:480:36:51

I would say £50,000 for those...each.

0:36:510:36:54

-Gosh!

-So you've got 23.

0:36:540:36:57

You've got the best part of £250,000 worth of goods.

0:36:570:37:02

-It's incredible. Thank you for bringing them in.

-Thank you very much.

0:37:020:37:09

My late father was a farmer in Dumfriesshire, who played many musical instruments -

0:37:090:37:14

Jew's harp, banjo, mandolin, bagpipes,

0:37:140:37:19

-bones, spoons, tin whistles... I think that was all.

-Fantastic!

0:37:190:37:25

In a village concert party, between the 1950s and 1970s, which raised a lot of money for charity.

0:37:250:37:33

-So that was all there was in your lives - music, music, music?

-Music and dogs.

0:37:330:37:38

-Sheepdog trials and concerts in local halls.

-Well, there he is.

0:37:380:37:41

He's obviously sitting in front of the object here.

0:37:410:37:45

So, I'll ask you to hang on to that whilst we open up...the coffin.

0:37:450:37:51

-And now you tell me about this.

-He called it his musical glasses.

0:37:510:37:57

-I think he paid between £40 and £60 for them...

-Ooh!

0:37:570:38:01

..which for a canny Scot and farmer 30 to 35 years ago was quite a lot.

0:38:010:38:06

I've never seen one of these. I'm absolutely fascinated to see one.

0:38:060:38:11

There are two ways in which glasses are tuneable. One's the actual size,

0:38:110:38:16

the diameter of the glass itself - and that determines the note -

0:38:160:38:21

or if you put water into a glass, you can change the pitch.

0:38:210:38:25

-Is this a replacement glass?

-Yes.

-And if you put water in at the right level,

0:38:250:38:29

it'll reach the pitch. Even though it seems to be out of sync in terms of sizes, it will achieve that note.

0:38:290:38:36

This lovely board tells us what the notes are.

0:38:360:38:39

I'll take this out because it looks as if it may rub on the glasses.

0:38:390:38:43

It almost has the look of a homemade musical glasses set, and actually that's what it is.

0:38:430:38:49

We're not going to see another one of these for a very, very long time.

0:38:490:38:53

And for a collector of quirky musical instruments...

0:38:530:38:57

this would be a must. I mean, you could also keep your drinks on those, drink OUT of it!

0:38:570:39:04

I think that, um...you would have to pay £2,000 EASILY

0:39:050:39:11

to find an equivalent in a London shop.

0:39:110:39:15

-The secret is not to have the glasses wet, but to have your fingers wet.

-Yes, it is, yes.

0:39:150:39:20

OK, we've got what looks like two octaves, so if I start halfway through the register...

0:39:200:39:26

GLASSES "SING" IN DIFFERENT NOTES

0:39:260:39:29

PLAYS "Auld Lang Syne"

0:39:290:39:32

Wrong note!

0:39:490:39:51

Oh, they recognise it, they recognise it!

0:39:510:39:55

I first knew her in a drawer in my mother's house, just the head and the limbs and body all in pieces.

0:39:580:40:04

And, um...it used to belong to her mother, then one day she decided...

0:40:040:40:10

There was a doll's exhibition, so she got it put together again

0:40:100:40:14

and had its wig made, made clothes for it

0:40:140:40:18

-and then we were allowed to hold her carefully sometimes.

-How lovely!

0:40:180:40:23

My grandmother's father went to Paris - he was a jeweller -

0:40:230:40:27

-and she used to leave her dolls by the fire, and they were wax ones and melted.

-Oh, my God!

-So...

0:40:270:40:33

-Don't believe it!

-So he came back one day with this doll, apparently.

0:40:330:40:37

-To make up for all the wax.

-To make up for all the wax ones.

0:40:370:40:41

Ah, what a lovely story. Well, you're quite right,

0:40:410:40:45

she was made in Paris, um...

0:40:450:40:49

She's probably made of bisque, which is unglazed porcelain.

0:40:490:40:53

-That's the face?

-That's the head.

0:40:530:40:56

Her eyes are made of wonderful glass known as "paperweight eyes"

0:40:560:41:01

because it's the same process as making glass paperweights in Paris.

0:41:010:41:06

Um, you say she had a new wig made for her?

0:41:060:41:10

Now, this is human hair, and so often they made...

0:41:100:41:15

-The original wigs would have been made of mohair, which is from the mountain goat.

-Yes.

0:41:150:41:21

The eyes would have been stuck in with wax,

0:41:210:41:25

so if you ever cleaned her, you should avoid the eyes.

0:41:250:41:28

And I'll just show you underneath...

0:41:280:41:31

I always look at a Jumeau body, which I'm sure she has,

0:41:310:41:35

and it should have a stamp on the behind, as it does.

0:41:350:41:40

"Jumeau medaille d'or Paris."

0:41:400:41:43

Now, that means that probably in either the 1870 exhibition

0:41:430:41:50

or even maybe a bit later in Paris,

0:41:500:41:53

the Jumeau factory won a gold medal for making Jumeau dolls.

0:41:530:42:00

I always think the head looks really quite sort of small

0:42:000:42:03

-compared with these rather hefty limbs.

-Yes.

0:42:030:42:07

She's not an ordinary dolly face.

0:42:070:42:10

She's known as a "Jumeau triste"

0:42:100:42:13

because she looks rather wan and sad.

0:42:130:42:18

Well, I think you should go home and tomorrow ring your insurers

0:42:180:42:24

and insure her for £10,000.

0:42:240:42:28

That's, um... Heavens!

0:42:320:42:35

Bit of a worry, suddenly.

0:42:360:42:39

Yes, it puts her in a different sort of category.

0:42:390:42:44

We'd better give you some special wrapping to take her home.

0:42:440:42:48

Yes, I don't know that she should go in that old bag again!

0:42:480:42:52

Well, the show may have come to you from the Dumfries Ice Bowl but it's been as warm as toast here all day.

0:42:520:42:57

We found some Dumfries silver and there was that amazing collection of pieces by Beatrix Potter,

0:42:570:43:03

but the only sign of the great Rabbie Burns so far has been this -

0:43:030:43:08

a miniature loving cup made in Germany for the souvenir market

0:43:080:43:12

in about 1900. Small but perfectly formed.

0:43:120:43:16

And now it's time for us Sassenachs to head for the border, which is less than 30 miles away.

0:43:160:43:22

So to the people of Dumfries and Galloway, thank you. And from this lovely part of the world, goodbye.

0:43:220:43:28

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