0:00:31 > 0:00:36Today we're in Cambridge where some of the world's finest young minds come to be sharpened to a point.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38We've brought our own scholars,
0:00:38 > 0:00:43they could be in for a bumper time as Cambridge is a city of treasures.
0:00:52 > 0:00:57The university owns no fewer than eight museums and most of them are used for teaching.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00Life here is one great learning curve.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05Anthropology has a fine display of human artefacts from all over the world,
0:01:05 > 0:01:08including a huge ceremonial gong from Polynesia.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14Among the skeletons and stuffed animals in the zoology museum
0:01:14 > 0:01:18there are specimens that Darwin brought back from his voyage on The Beagle.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21You'd never guess that this was a museum.
0:01:21 > 0:01:26There are no glass display cabinets, no solemn labels, and...
0:01:26 > 0:01:29..you can sit in the chairs!
0:01:29 > 0:01:35This is like a real home, which in fact, until quite recently, it was.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43Not many places have a masterpiece in the bathroom,
0:01:43 > 0:01:48but the man who lived here was the first modern art curator of the Tate Gallery
0:01:48 > 0:01:55which is why Kettles Yard is festooned with examples of 20th century paintings and sculptures.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01If you prefer old masters, or if you're keen on ancient manuscripts,
0:02:01 > 0:02:06then you'll find them in Cambridge's premier museum...the Fitzwilliam.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11This was built before the National Gallery and the V&A
0:02:11 > 0:02:15so it has some important collections you might not expect to find outside London.
0:02:16 > 0:02:21Egyptian mummies, contemporary glass, suits of armour,
0:02:21 > 0:02:23the Fitz is famous for its variety.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26You can ogle fine porcelain
0:02:26 > 0:02:31or gasp at the stunning exhibition of Impressionist and post-Impressionist paintings.
0:02:32 > 0:02:37Cambridge is blessed with these treasures largely because of the calibre and generosity
0:02:37 > 0:02:40of the men and women who passed through its great colleges.
0:02:40 > 0:02:42Some of those Impressionist paintings
0:02:42 > 0:02:46were donated by the eminent economist John Maynard Keynes,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49who was a fellow and a bursar here at King's College.
0:02:51 > 0:02:56Today's Provost and the jolly good fellows of King's College have welcomed us onto their turf
0:02:56 > 0:02:59which is even more of an honour than it sounds.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03It requires permission from a Fellow for anyone to walk on the lawns.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06and we seem to have attracted a pretty good crowd.
0:03:08 > 0:03:14Now there the barometer is set fair, perfect day, perfect barometer, it's obviously very accurate.
0:03:14 > 0:03:15Yes, it is, yes.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17But a bigger question is...
0:03:17 > 0:03:19..why do you two ladies have a propeller?
0:03:19 > 0:03:21It belonged to our father.
0:03:21 > 0:03:27Yes. He flew in the First World War. So he was in the Royal Flying Corps? Yes, he flew in Camels.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29When did he join up?
0:03:29 > 0:03:32He joined the army at the beginning of the war.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Yes. And he went out on a troop ship to Salonica.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36Oh, right. Which took six weeks. Yes.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40When he got there all the fighting was over, so he was not going to return
0:03:40 > 0:03:46with his unit for another six weeks and the only way to stay there was to join the Royal Flying Corps.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48So otherwise he'd have gone back to France?
0:03:48 > 0:03:51Yes, and so he learned to fly and he had the talent to fly.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53I bet he had a wonderful time. He loved it.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57Because by that time, that sector of the war was pretty calm wasn't it?
0:03:57 > 0:03:59He got shot down. He got shot down?
0:03:59 > 0:04:05He was picked up by a battleship that was then torpedoed. Oh well, he had a few adventures.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07He did. I mean you were exposed weren't you?
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Oh, yes. In a cockpit. And you had no parachute...
0:04:10 > 0:04:13And you had no parachute so you just shot at each other.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17He spent his time rescuing sailors who couldn't swim
0:04:17 > 0:04:21and he thought, after that, that everybody must learn to swim. Very sensible.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24But I have to say, the fact that you are here
0:04:24 > 0:04:28indicates he had a better time than he might have had on the Western Front.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30Oh, definitely. Presumably.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33I can safely say he wouldn't be here or you wouldn't be here.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37No, no, no. Because the life expectancy of a pilot there was a couple of weeks.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40Coming back to this, this was what, a souvenir or...?
0:04:40 > 0:04:44No, no, he's reputed to have won it in a mess raffle.
0:04:44 > 0:04:45With the barometer or...?
0:04:45 > 0:04:48I think he probably had that put in.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52In those days, much more than now, a barometer was in every house.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56You were keen on recording the events of the day and the events of weather and so on.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59We had no weather forecast. You did it yourself. Yes.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03Anyway, you've got a wonderful propeller, a lovely souvenir of your father
0:05:03 > 0:05:05and quite a valuable item.
0:05:05 > 0:05:11Forget about the personal element, to a collector you're looking at...
0:05:11 > 0:05:13£600, £800, something like that.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15There won't be a question of selling it.
0:05:15 > 0:05:17Thank you. Thank you very much.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25What a charming little box, you know it's a carriage clock?
0:05:25 > 0:05:30Yes, it's sat on my mother in law's mantelpiece, usually out of the box
0:05:30 > 0:05:34and I admired it immensely and was fortunate enough to win it last week.
0:05:34 > 0:05:39Win in the sense of being told I could put it on my mantelpiece rather than...
0:05:39 > 0:05:43Oh, I see, so a very generous gift really. Yes, a very generous gift.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46It's actually in its original fitted travelling case,
0:05:46 > 0:05:50though you sometimes don't have it there. Look at the impression in the velvet,
0:05:50 > 0:05:55that thick velvet there against the handle. It's a charming little clock.
0:05:55 > 0:06:03Now, a beautiful silvered dial engraved with flowers and certainly leaves there
0:06:03 > 0:06:08and look at these columns, we've got fluted columns, they're silvered metal
0:06:08 > 0:06:15and then we've got gilded capitals and we've got other silver sections, so it's alternate colours of metal.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Now I can see here a very nice feature,
0:06:18 > 0:06:26just above my little finger is a very small stamp which is a baby beehive,
0:06:26 > 0:06:33with AM on either side and that is the stamp of Margain who was a very fine maker of French carriage clocks.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Really? So it's lovely to see it in its original box.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39Have you any questions about it?
0:06:39 > 0:06:41Yes, there are two things.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43There seems to be a slot in the back here
0:06:43 > 0:06:49and there also seems to be a slot in the front which this glass doesn't fit.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52Right. And I wondered why you would have a double glass on it.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55OK, bearing in mind that they were used as travelling time pieces,
0:06:55 > 0:07:03so if you can imagine a clock in there with the lid shut, that is actually quite subject to damage.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08Yes. It's fine if it's on your mantelpiece or on a bedside table, so what they did,
0:07:08 > 0:07:15there's even a little thumb piece fitted, you can withdraw that from the slot, and there it is,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18that's the original colour, OK? Yes.
0:07:18 > 0:07:23That's the original colour of the box and that slipped in there.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26I couldn't pull it out, that's intriguing.
0:07:26 > 0:07:32There we go. And that then makes it completely rigid and non-breakable.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34It's a sweet thing, in its state like that,
0:07:34 > 0:07:39even in the raw that's going to fetch at auction £1,200.
0:07:39 > 0:07:46Golly! And you wouldn't get away with much under £1,800 to replace it for insurance.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48Gosh, thank you very much.
0:07:48 > 0:07:49Do you know what it is?
0:07:49 > 0:07:57I've always understood it's a cup and saucer from the 18th century when they had no handles on cups.
0:07:57 > 0:08:02Right, I remember somebody saying to me "It's a handle-less cup"
0:08:02 > 0:08:03or in other words a tea bowl.
0:08:03 > 0:08:10Yes. And you're almost right, we're on that cusp between the 18th century and the 19th century.
0:08:10 > 0:08:15You can date the falling away of the tea bowl
0:08:15 > 0:08:20and the appearance of the handle on a tea cup almost exactly on 1800,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23There are exceptions but by and large that's true.
0:08:23 > 0:08:30Made in Staffordshire, it's a Pearl Ware body, this very blue pooling in the glaze,
0:08:30 > 0:08:36now if you had presented me with that on its own, I would have said you'd got a sugar bowl,
0:08:36 > 0:08:41but the fact that you've got that clearly indicates that it was meant as a tea bowl.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45Why is the saucer so big? Did they tip the tea into the saucer?
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Absolutely, it was perfectly acceptable to do that to cool your tea.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53Yes, yes. But then what did you do? Did you pour it back again?
0:08:53 > 0:08:57Or did you drink it...? No, you drank it from the saucer. Perfectly all right,
0:08:57 > 0:09:01even the upper classes did it, so no problem there.
0:09:01 > 0:09:06I think a tea bowl and saucer like that is going to be worth around £60 to £90
0:09:06 > 0:09:11but the value's not the thing...it's... I wouldn't part with it. Nor would I.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15Delightful little group of spoons here. What can you tell me about them?
0:09:15 > 0:09:20Well, they came from my family, my father's family, and I'm the third generation to own them.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22Right. And they're a bit of a mystery to us.
0:09:22 > 0:09:26We can't read the marks clearly, we've always called them the "shovel spoons".
0:09:26 > 0:09:32I don't quite know why but we had thought they might have been for snuff or for spices or even sugar,
0:09:32 > 0:09:35but they're too big, aren't they, for snuff or spices?
0:09:35 > 0:09:41Absolutely right to be suspicious of the idea of snuff for these and they are a bit big for that.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46What they are, are salt shovels, so you calling them the "shovel spoons" was right. Ah.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50And these are the forerunners of the salt spoons.
0:09:50 > 0:09:51Oh, were they?
0:09:51 > 0:09:55The marks are very difficult to read,
0:09:55 > 0:09:59that's because it's a tiny space to mark in.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03When those marks were hammered in, it spread the stem out.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06Yes. And when they got back to the goldsmith,
0:10:06 > 0:10:09he had to hammer that back into shape and it closed the marks up.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11Oh, right, oh.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13And have you noticed the initials are on the back?
0:10:13 > 0:10:15Yes, yes.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18That is the way up that they go. Yes, yes.
0:10:18 > 0:10:23Date-wise we're looking at the middle years of the 18th century. Mm.
0:10:23 > 0:10:28It was actually by about 1760 that they were starting to develop what we think of as the salt spoon today.
0:10:28 > 0:10:36It's lovely to find two pairs, often you find them individually but so few of the pairs have survived.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39Yes. Had you thought of value? Not at all, I've no idea.
0:10:39 > 0:10:44I would say you'd have to pay at least £150 a pair for those.
0:10:44 > 0:10:46Mm, yes, well that's very nice.
0:10:48 > 0:10:52I don't usually recommend putting fine furniture out in the sunshine
0:10:52 > 0:10:59but for a few moments it won't hurt and what it does do is to bring out the depth of colour in a good piece.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01I particularly like this,
0:11:01 > 0:11:05well, it looks like an IB. In fact it's most likely to be JB,
0:11:05 > 0:11:13that's the normal typeface for a J and 1694. Can you actually trace it back that far? Yes, I can do that.
0:11:13 > 0:11:19It could be a John, a Joseph, a Jeremiah, a Jacob. I can't do any more than that.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21That's enough. I should think so.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26And certainly is of the period and most of those names, certainly Jacob and Jeremiah.
0:11:26 > 0:11:31The problem with this type of settle upon which we are settled
0:11:31 > 0:11:37is that in the 19th century so many of them were put together out of earlier pieces
0:11:37 > 0:11:41and dates were carved in to add authenticity.
0:11:41 > 0:11:46Yes. But there are certain features in a good piece of oak and one of them is the colour,
0:11:46 > 0:11:50and if there were any doubt about this, the sunshine would have exposed it.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54There is no doubt that this is absolutely of the period
0:11:54 > 0:11:58and there are just one or two pieces I would like to point out to you.
0:11:58 > 0:12:03Just look at the depth of colour inside of that little flower head,
0:12:03 > 0:12:06that's oxidisation.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10When first made this was treated with oil and a wax
0:12:10 > 0:12:16and that has darkened over the years and created, as it's been rubbed, these wonderful highlights. Yes.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18Giving it greater three-dimension.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21Below the JB we come to these panels
0:12:21 > 0:12:27which are common panels to all joined furniture of the 16...
0:12:27 > 0:12:29..well, the late 1600s really.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33They're done with a half round chisel, do you see these little "s" scrolls?
0:12:33 > 0:12:38That is one chip with a half round chisel, followed with turning the chisel the other way
0:12:38 > 0:12:43and coming at it from underneath and then a little tiny punch in the centre
0:12:43 > 0:12:48and you've got that little scroll, I mean it's so clever and full of life, full of life.
0:12:48 > 0:12:55The settle is a traditional box form, erm, and it has a lift up seat
0:12:55 > 0:12:59and when we lifted it up just now to have a look we found these inside.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01But tell me, do these fit into the story somehow?
0:13:01 > 0:13:03It rather depends what they are.
0:13:03 > 0:13:09I've always hoped that they would be pharmacy jars because in a very early part of this family,
0:13:09 > 0:13:12it's the same family. Right.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15There were apothecaries working in London
0:13:15 > 0:13:20and there were four generations and I'm really hoping that this is what they are but I've no idea.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23Um... You're going to say "no" aren't you?
0:13:23 > 0:13:24Well, no I'm not, not definitely.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28Well, this one says "number one"
0:13:28 > 0:13:35and it says "BP" on the bottom which is one of the Delft factories, this one is Blume Pot. Is it Delft?
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Yes, Blume Pot. Wow!
0:13:37 > 0:13:43And its date is round about 1745-1755, difficult to be precise.
0:13:43 > 0:13:50This one doesn't have a mark but, you know, it's exactly the same body, same glaze and this one says "tonka".
0:13:50 > 0:13:52Do you know what tonka is? No.
0:13:52 > 0:13:57Tonka is a bean, and it was used as a flavouring, an alternative flavouring
0:13:57 > 0:14:02and it's still used today, it's an alternative to vanilla or almond.
0:14:02 > 0:14:09Is it? But the point is that it was used in the 18th century as a flavouring for tobacco.
0:14:09 > 0:14:14Was it? Now then. This would be number one snuff.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17So these basically are to do with tobacco. Yes.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21But an apothecary would have sold them. Really? Oh, yes.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24Oh, so we are getting there. Yes, you are getting there.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28There is little doubt that these would have been in an apothecary's shop.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31Yes, yes, I love it.
0:14:31 > 0:14:32So, all right.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Oh, heavens!
0:14:34 > 0:14:37They are a traditional form, these are the original lids.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Are they? Oh, yes. I did wonder.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43Yeah, that wonderful untouched colour. If you didn't want to polish it,
0:14:43 > 0:14:46it would look like that all over, you don't have to clean them.
0:14:46 > 0:14:54Although a little bit nibbled around the edges, basically very good form, nice decoration,
0:14:54 > 0:15:01these cartouches are lovely and now retail value round about £1,500 each.
0:15:01 > 0:15:07Each? Back to the settle, as an exceptionally good one, an exceptionally good one,
0:15:07 > 0:15:13I suppose this has to be in the region of £4,500 to £5,000.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15Splendid! But what a lovely piece
0:15:15 > 0:15:20and with the story beyond value, beyond value, it's been a joy. Yes, yes, yes.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24This is tremendous, I've seen a few of these,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27usually they're knackered, this one's in good condition.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31I'm not really sure on that one. The lady who actually owns it,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35she's just had it on her wall for the last 11 years that I know of
0:15:35 > 0:15:39and as someone said, it's like moved from house to house with them so...
0:15:39 > 0:15:43OK, they're actually made of very, very, very fine threads
0:15:43 > 0:15:48used almost as an architectural relief on a piece of silk.
0:15:48 > 0:15:50They were called hair paintings
0:15:50 > 0:15:53because people believed that the black bits were human hair.
0:15:53 > 0:15:58Right. And I don't think this is so. We're looking at threads but they're very fine
0:15:58 > 0:16:02and what we have is probably the most saleable image of all country houses,
0:16:02 > 0:16:06a wonderful view of Chatsworth in its Derbyshire dale, sitting there
0:16:06 > 0:16:09with the superb great hill of the moors rising up behind,
0:16:09 > 0:16:14what was known as a "howling wilderness", and it has some interesting features,
0:16:14 > 0:16:19the way that the stitches are actually used to give the impression of bulk for the trees is fascinating,
0:16:19 > 0:16:23and she's used silver here, tiny stitches, you can hardly see them,
0:16:23 > 0:16:29but even this is done so finely with a minute needle, it's a marvellous, marvellous thing
0:16:29 > 0:16:36and this is exactly today what decorators want to buy to put in posh flats and houses in London.
0:16:36 > 0:16:40This picture wouldn't be in the Fulham Road more than a half-hour before somebody bought it,
0:16:40 > 0:16:44the price somebody would pay for this would reflect what the image is,
0:16:44 > 0:16:46and the time and work that went into it.
0:16:46 > 0:16:51I wouldn't be surprised if somebody didn't ask £3,000 to £4,000 for this, retail,
0:16:51 > 0:16:53and you certainly should insure it for £3,000.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57That's wonderful but I don't think they would sell it,
0:16:57 > 0:17:01and if they do then I'll certainly try to buy it, I just love it.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04Good. Every bit of it fascinates me.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07Tell me about this. What do you know of the background to this?
0:17:07 > 0:17:09Well, it was given to me recently
0:17:09 > 0:17:15but I know that it came from the estate of Wilfred Blunt who was art master at Eton at one time,
0:17:15 > 0:17:18so I assume that it had some merit to it.
0:17:18 > 0:17:24The Wilfred Blunt connection of course with this college is through his brother Anthony.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27Although he was studying at Trinity, they would meet,
0:17:27 > 0:17:30the Cambridge Group would meet here with Dadie Rylands,
0:17:30 > 0:17:35so King's was the sort of focal point of that particular group. I didn't know that.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40So this has come indirectly back into the family, as it were, in this wonderful courtyard.
0:17:40 > 0:17:46But the actual screen itself is not what it seems, this is not a fireplace. No.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49All these bits and pieces, the small tiles and the larger ones,
0:17:49 > 0:17:52were taken from another screen, a Chinese screen.
0:17:52 > 0:17:58They're all hand painted and everything on this is auspicious or scholarly in some respect.
0:17:58 > 0:18:03These mountainous retreats which symbolise rejection of the everyday world,
0:18:03 > 0:18:09all these animals and figures like the deer here, that symbolises longevity. The crouching tiger,
0:18:09 > 0:18:13you've heard of the film "Hidden Dragon, Crouching Tiger",
0:18:13 > 0:18:16this is the crouching tiger and he symbolises the west in many ways
0:18:16 > 0:18:21and then the elephant which is not indigenous to China, would have been brought in,
0:18:21 > 0:18:23symbolises peace in the Far East. Oh.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26So all this has been put together and rather well
0:18:26 > 0:18:33by material made in China at a place called Jingdezhn, probably around about 1830-1840.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36Coming to value, have you had this thing valued? Not at all.
0:18:36 > 0:18:41Well, it's quite difficult to put it on because it's now no longer in its Chinese context.
0:18:41 > 0:18:48I think you're looking at, I suppose, £600 to £800, maybe even £1,000 in a retail outlet.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52That sounds reasonable. Yes, considering all the work that's gone into it.
0:18:54 > 0:19:00Our search for the nation's most dedicated collector could be subtitled "Tales of the Unexpected"
0:19:00 > 0:19:03because we have come across some rather strange fixations,
0:19:03 > 0:19:08and our Cambridge collector's motto could be "flash, bang, wallop"
0:19:08 > 0:19:10because what she does, Nelda Utilini,
0:19:10 > 0:19:12is to collect wedding photographs.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Nelda, why?
0:19:14 > 0:19:17I've always been a bit obsessed about weddings.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21When I was a child I would stand outside the local church on a Saturday afternoon,
0:19:21 > 0:19:27wait for the bridal couple to come out and the bridesmaids, then go home and draw them and paint them.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31They're very emotional. There's fear, hope, there's all kinds of things.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35Yes. They're very much a social document. Yes. What's the earliest one you've got?
0:19:35 > 0:19:37Well, one of the earliest ones is this one,
0:19:37 > 0:19:44that's an early Victorian one, they're hiding the background with a tarpaulin as you can see,
0:19:44 > 0:19:47but they look as if they're middle class with their top hats.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52They're well dressed and you've got the whole range from the very elegant to the very simple.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55Yes. He looks as if he hasn't got a few bob.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57What about that? Probably a borrowed suit.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02A borrowed suit? Yes, they would have borrowed each other's suits for the wedding photograph.
0:20:02 > 0:20:07As you can see the jacket's tight and the trousers are very short.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10How many do you have in your collection? Around 4,000.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Wow. And where do you get them from?
0:20:12 > 0:20:18Well, I used to go to the Royal National Hotel in Bloomsbury, they have a fair once a month.
0:20:18 > 0:20:24It's sad the pictures are no longer with the families. Yes, yes, it is really, but families die out
0:20:24 > 0:20:28and people move and when people moved then they threw a lot of stuff out.
0:20:28 > 0:20:32It's amazing to think they'd do that. When you look at these pictures,
0:20:32 > 0:20:37do you invent a story for the situation as you see it, something's going on here isn't there?
0:20:37 > 0:20:44Yes, well yes, I see it as a quite upper class wedding in a marquee and I see her as an old retainer,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48possibly an old nanny and she's saying "I will go now, my Lord"
0:20:48 > 0:20:52and she's saying "Oh, how sweet!" because that's what they say, isn't it?
0:20:52 > 0:20:59Or he's saying "That child was never mine!", something like that, and this is another jolly scene.
0:20:59 > 0:21:04Yes, that's a working class wedding reception, you can see the sauce bottles on the table,
0:21:04 > 0:21:06but look how jolly they are!
0:21:06 > 0:21:09Yes, yes, got your sauce, you're happy.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12They say every picture tells a story, now this one...
0:21:12 > 0:21:14you would think it was just a rehearsal shot
0:21:14 > 0:21:19because the body language means that it's not going to be a great life together.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21She doesn't want to get married.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25And the way he's standing, you know, I don't think I'd like to marry him either.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27You've got a theory about this one?
0:21:27 > 0:21:33Yes, well as you can see, somebody's been rubbed out and they've etched a chair in.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35So this was once a guest?
0:21:35 > 0:21:37Well, it looks like it, doesn't it?
0:21:37 > 0:21:42That chair's been etched in and they're all looking rather strangely in that direction.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45If you look, even the bride, can you see her?
0:21:45 > 0:21:49Yes. You know, he's either got drunk or something like that.
0:21:49 > 0:21:54Gosh, I wouldn't like to go to a wedding with you, you'd pick a quarrel with anybody.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58So this is your painting, one of your many wedding paintings. Yes.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02So what do you take from these to transfer to your version, as it were?
0:22:02 > 0:22:07Well, I just love doing the wedding reception and wedding cake and the dresses,
0:22:07 > 0:22:12the bridesmaids, the page boy. You've really got every aspect of the wedding there.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16Yes, yes, that's how I imagine the table would be set.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Someone else who would be interested in this but professionally,
0:22:19 > 0:22:24is of course Paul Atterbury who's been watching us with his lips dripping with saliva.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26What do you reckon to this collection?
0:22:26 > 0:22:29I wish I'd done it, it's as simple as that, I think
0:22:29 > 0:22:33the wedding is a fantastic thing that is the history of our culture.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37Here you've got fashion, you've got social change, you've got the class system,
0:22:37 > 0:22:42and you've got this wonderful thing of the eternal triumph of hope over experience,
0:22:42 > 0:22:44which is what every wedding is.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47Today there is no wedding without a photographer, it'll go on into the future
0:22:47 > 0:22:52and this is just such a wonderful record of our time, as I say, I wish I'd done it.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00"Metropolitan Police, Property Found, Dalston, October 1951.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03"The platinum and diamond brooch found by you
0:23:03 > 0:23:09"in 1943 or 1944 in Ridley Road, E8"
0:23:09 > 0:23:11Who found this in Ridley Road, E8?
0:23:11 > 0:23:15That was my aunt, Miss Smith she was known as, but Miss Elsie Rolls Smith.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19That's right, so Miss Elsie Smith, 55 Ronalds Road, N5.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22She worked in London and it was during the war time,
0:23:22 > 0:23:25I know little about it other than that. So let's look at it,
0:23:25 > 0:23:32she's found the brooch in either 1943 or 1944, she's held onto the brooch
0:23:32 > 0:23:36and she's then submitted it to the police in 1951.
0:23:36 > 0:23:42Do you think she had some kind of pang of conscience that she'd held on to it for so many years?
0:23:42 > 0:23:48Yes, that brooch is worth money and she realised she had to hand it in.
0:23:48 > 0:23:54Of course it begs the question, you know, 1943 or 1944, we're suffering bombing in London.
0:23:54 > 0:23:58The person who lost that brooch, would it have been a casual loss
0:23:58 > 0:24:02or would it have been someone trying to flee a burning or bombed out building,
0:24:02 > 0:24:07taking all their possessions with them, and you can almost see them running along the road
0:24:07 > 0:24:09and then it falls out of the bag. That's correct.
0:24:09 > 0:24:15Because it's quite a significant brooch and the description here, "platinum and diamond brooch",
0:24:15 > 0:24:18absolutely right, because this is not a small brooch.
0:24:18 > 0:24:26It's a Deco diamond brooch, platinum frame, rectangular form set with three principal diamonds here
0:24:27 > 0:24:32in a geometric frame of smaller diamonds and then you've got diamonds
0:24:32 > 0:24:37in these sort of side panels here, so what happened then was this.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41In 1951 she gives it to the police
0:24:41 > 0:24:47and then it says here "deposited by you on this day in 1951."
0:24:47 > 0:24:52"If we cannot trace the person who owns it, it will be restored to you in due course. "
0:24:52 > 0:24:57Well, once it was restored to her, it became her property then.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59We move onto the question of value.
0:24:59 > 0:25:03Everyone is buying Art Deco at the moment, it's extremely popular.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06I think in auction today if it was being sold,
0:25:06 > 0:25:11it would probably achieve a price between £2,000 and £2,500, that's the auction price.
0:25:11 > 0:25:15In a retail shop, where these things do very well,
0:25:15 > 0:25:22I think you're looking at something more in the region of about £4,000 for it. A good find.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25OK, yes, very nice indeed, thank you very much, I love it.
0:25:25 > 0:25:31Stingray Annual and there, there they are at their controls. Gosh, this takes me back!
0:25:31 > 0:25:35Was it Sunday evenings, spent watching the puppets doing their thing?
0:25:35 > 0:25:39Was that part of your...no, you're too young for that, surely?
0:25:39 > 0:25:40No, no, I mean...
0:25:40 > 0:25:44we get the re-runs as well on BBC2 and on cable as well.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48That's true, so you're a bit of a fan?
0:25:48 > 0:25:51Casual fan, I wouldn't say I'm a die-hard fan, no.
0:25:51 > 0:25:58But you've got some good Gerry Anderson things here. Captain Scarlet Annual,
0:25:58 > 0:26:00Century 21...
0:26:00 > 0:26:03where are you getting them from?
0:26:03 > 0:26:10I've had these for about, I don't know, 20 years or so, from when I was a nipper.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14These ones specifically I found at a jumble sale for pennies,
0:26:14 > 0:26:17some, believe it or not, people threw away. Throw away where?
0:26:17 > 0:26:21Are you going through...going through dustbins? You can tell us.
0:26:21 > 0:26:26Well, I 'fess up, on occasions I do, but...
0:26:26 > 0:26:30All right, nobody will know, so dustbins or skips or...
0:26:30 > 0:26:32..or tips or...
0:26:32 > 0:26:34It's just a case of keeping your eyes peeled.
0:26:34 > 0:26:40Exactly. A lot of people don't seem to value these, I think because they think it's pop culture.
0:26:40 > 0:26:41Exactly. It has no value.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46It's sort of real throw-away... throw-away material in every sense of the word.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49Indeed, yeah. Good for you, for being a conservationist.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52And an archivist as well. Yes, exactly. Looking at this,
0:26:52 > 0:27:00first of all you've got a very good eye because you're honing in on what I call TV, the TV generation.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Exactly, yes, yes, yes.
0:27:02 > 0:27:07The TV generation are all about people who love Gerry Anderson, who love Star Trek. Absolutely, yes.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09James Bond, people like you and me, you know?
0:27:09 > 0:27:12Yes, yes. We are the people who are buying this.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16And I think although at the moment we're talking about a small amount of money,
0:27:16 > 0:27:22you have zeroed in on exactly that rich seam of collecting that people
0:27:22 > 0:27:25will look for in the future. I just love the books.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27Fantastic.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31Well, we've got a very fine pair of percussion pistols here, English.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34Do you know what their purpose was when they were built? I believe they're duelling.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36Possibly target practice.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39Yes, it's interesting, the time that they were built...
0:27:39 > 0:27:44and I can actually be very precise about it, to within four years which is pretty good for antiques.
0:27:44 > 0:27:49Oh, good. And they were made between 1837 and 1841. Right.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53And I know that because the maker was William Parker
0:27:53 > 0:27:58and it says "Maker to His Late Majesty, Holborn, London"
0:27:58 > 0:28:02so that must have been William IV, who we know died in 1837.
0:28:02 > 0:28:05Now Parker we know died in 1841 so it's a four year window.
0:28:05 > 0:28:09Right, oh, fine. When these pistols were made.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13At this time, duelling was greatly frowned on in England,
0:28:13 > 0:28:16there'd been scandal when the Duke of Wellington, who was Prime Minister,
0:28:16 > 0:28:21fought the Earl of Winchelsea over the Catholic Emancipation Bill, people were horrified...
0:28:21 > 0:28:26the Prime Minister was out there effectively condoning attempted murder, which is what it was,
0:28:26 > 0:28:33for all that duelling was socially acceptable three or four decades earlier, it was always illegal.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36Your idea that they are for duelling is absolutely right,
0:28:36 > 0:28:40but also they would be perfect for target practice. Right.
0:28:40 > 0:28:47One thing suggesting they were intended for target practice is that they have sights on them. Ah.
0:28:47 > 0:28:51Real pure duellists wouldn't use sights, they'd regard it as very unsporting
0:28:51 > 0:28:56and not the sort of thing to do and the other thing is this...
0:28:56 > 0:28:58..can you see that tiny screw there? Yes.
0:28:58 > 0:29:03That is a set trigger and when I push that forwards, it goes click
0:29:03 > 0:29:08and it sets the mechanism so that when you put the pistol up to the point of aim,
0:29:08 > 0:29:12you've only got to touch it and off it goes. It makes it a hair trigger.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16You're not there shaking with it and it's exactly what people call a "hair trigger".
0:29:16 > 0:29:22Like most firearms of the period, they come in this very nice mahogany case
0:29:22 > 0:29:25which has everything you need for cleaning, maintenance and loading.
0:29:25 > 0:29:27How did you come by them?
0:29:27 > 0:29:31They were given to my grandfather by an acquaintance
0:29:31 > 0:29:37and my grandfather then just passed them on to my father and I've inherited them from him.
0:29:37 > 0:29:42Any duellists in the family? No, unfortunately there's no gory details behind them,
0:29:42 > 0:29:43not that I know of anyway...
0:29:43 > 0:29:46Very occasionally you get details of duels,
0:29:46 > 0:29:49there are quite a lot of them but few people were ever killed
0:29:49 > 0:29:54and statistically it was very low and as soon as Queen Victoria comes to the throne in 1837
0:29:54 > 0:29:57she made it plain that she wouldn't tolerate duelling
0:29:57 > 0:30:01and anybody who was known to have duelled wouldn't be received at court. Right.
0:30:01 > 0:30:05So we have a very fine pair of pistols in absolutely wonderful condition,
0:30:05 > 0:30:10I think that they are worth between £4,000 to £5,000.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13Thanks very much.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16Even I know this is a racing silk, but who does it belong to?
0:30:16 > 0:30:18It's supposed to belong to Fred Archer.
0:30:18 > 0:30:21And why's it missing half the front of it?
0:30:21 > 0:30:27Because when they win a famous race, they're supposed to tear that piece there
0:30:27 > 0:30:29so that no other jockey can use that silk.
0:30:29 > 0:30:33Right, well Fred Archer in his time was the David Beckham
0:30:33 > 0:30:37and he was a superstar, he died tragically at the age of, I think, 29,
0:30:37 > 0:30:44and there were tens of thousands of people at his funeral, so he really was highly highly considered.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47I think he won the Derby five times
0:30:47 > 0:30:53so for collectors this is an iconic piece of racing memorabilia
0:30:53 > 0:30:55and really should be in a museum.
0:30:55 > 0:30:56Any idea about value?
0:30:56 > 0:31:00Well, I have had it valued and that was valued between £1,000 and £2,000.
0:31:00 > 0:31:06Mm, I think it's quite conservative, collectors would give anything almost to acquire a piece like this,
0:31:06 > 0:31:11and I would see this at auction at an estimate of between £2,500 and £3,000 but it could make more,
0:31:11 > 0:31:18you know, Archer is considered the ultimate, and you've got a truly historic and fabulous piece.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24Blue and white... the classic Oriental colour scheme...
0:31:24 > 0:31:31..these are exactly the sort of things you can see somebody with an eye collecting.
0:31:31 > 0:31:35If you had to dismiss one object...
0:31:35 > 0:31:38..or the pair...to get rid of...
0:31:38 > 0:31:40..which one would go? I think that one.
0:31:40 > 0:31:45That's the one you like least? Yes. OK, and which do you like best?
0:31:45 > 0:31:47I like this pair best.
0:31:47 > 0:31:51OK, well, we'll put those to one side.
0:31:51 > 0:31:56Here is an 18th century Chinese blue and white plate,
0:31:56 > 0:32:02typical of the class that came across for use by the shipload.
0:32:02 > 0:32:08Six million pieces were landed in the mid 18th century every year.
0:32:08 > 0:32:14Good heavens. Yes, plate like that, going to be worth £100 to £150.
0:32:14 > 0:32:16Really? As much as that.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19Yes, this one is a bit earlier.
0:32:19 > 0:32:22This one is about 1700.
0:32:22 > 0:32:27We've got a crack in here which destroys the value to a great extent.
0:32:27 > 0:32:33That is going to be worth around £70 to £100.
0:32:33 > 0:32:40This one was made during the reign of the Emperor K'ang Hsi who reigned from 1662 to 1722.
0:32:40 > 0:32:42So that's even earlier.
0:32:42 > 0:32:47This is about 1680-1690. Really?
0:32:47 > 0:32:53This wonderful vibrant blue, almost pulsating with colour. Yes, it's a lovely colour, mm.
0:32:53 > 0:32:59That's going to be worth around £300 to £500.
0:32:59 > 0:33:05These are interesting to me because we've got a date, a firm date at the end of the 19th century.
0:33:05 > 0:33:11Many people will tell you that these were 20th century, they're Japanese, not Chinese.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15Ah yes, that accounts for the slightly different style.
0:33:15 > 0:33:20Yeah and they're Seto porcelain, they're not much collected yet,
0:33:20 > 0:33:25not really understood so I'm afraid that pair is, at the best, £60.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27Really? Yes.
0:33:27 > 0:33:32But the one that you wanted to chuck out is the most interesting. Oh, really?
0:33:32 > 0:33:33It is so often the way.
0:33:33 > 0:33:37Yes. This is what we call transitional porcelain,
0:33:37 > 0:33:44the Ming dynasty collapses over the first 50 years of the 17th century
0:33:44 > 0:33:46and is replaced by the Ch'ing dynasty.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48In between we have the transitional,
0:33:48 > 0:33:51this is a classic transitional pot.
0:33:51 > 0:33:56So what sort of date is that? Relatively heavy, 1630-1640.
0:33:56 > 0:34:02Really? Yes. But what I love about this is this mad bird sort of crashing out of the sky,
0:34:02 > 0:34:09I love the painting of this, it's wonderful, rare piece of porcelain.
0:34:09 > 0:34:13If you're going to chuck it out, fine, I'll take it home, thank you very much.
0:34:13 > 0:34:19I've changed my mind about that. Well, exactly, we're looking at £600 to £1,000 there.
0:34:19 > 0:34:21Really? Oh, I'll take care of it. It's a lovely vase.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23I found it in my boyfriend's house
0:34:23 > 0:34:29which is quite an old dilapidated place with lots of rooms, it was up in an attic room coated in dust,
0:34:29 > 0:34:36obviously not cared for very much so he said would I like to look after it as I clearly did like it
0:34:36 > 0:34:41and a little while later we discussed what would become of it, if we should part,
0:34:41 > 0:34:46or anything else happened. Right. By then he was using my viola
0:34:46 > 0:34:51and we decided we'd be happy that he'd keep the viola
0:34:51 > 0:34:54and I'd keep the cupboard. What do you know about it as an object?
0:34:54 > 0:35:00I'm afraid nothing, because his family over the years has been left all sorts of bits of furniture
0:35:00 > 0:35:01so we don't know how old.
0:35:01 > 0:35:06Well, that's easy in fact, it's made of mahogany and it's made in Holland, it's Dutch,
0:35:06 > 0:35:09it's Dutch marquetry which was very popular in the 17th century
0:35:09 > 0:35:15and was revived in the early part of the 19th century and exactly to when this dates to
0:35:15 > 0:35:19and one of the easiest ways of dating this is the door, you've got this sort of Gothic arch,
0:35:19 > 0:35:25Gothic revival arch which would come into England and Northern Europe in around the 1810-1820 period.
0:35:25 > 0:35:31It's amazing, I find, in the early 21st century that we still find things in the attic.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33Now what's the viola worth?
0:35:33 > 0:35:37Well, it was an English handmade one that I paid about £700 for.
0:35:37 > 0:35:41Right, so is it a good swap or not?
0:35:41 > 0:35:44Right, well this is worth between £700 and £800.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47Oh, really!
0:35:47 > 0:35:49Well, we're both very happy still.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52No winners, no losers, that's perfect. Gosh.
0:35:54 > 0:35:59Where did he come from? He's German, I grew up in Germany and lived in Germany
0:35:59 > 0:36:05and when I was about eight, which is nearly 30 years ago, I got him from a private car boot sale.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08Do you know the story? Why somebody was selling him?
0:36:08 > 0:36:12Yes, there was a mother and her daughter, she was quite a bit younger than me
0:36:12 > 0:36:16and she was crying and I learned that she had to sell the bear
0:36:16 > 0:36:19because they were moving into a much smaller apartment.
0:36:19 > 0:36:23And mother made her child sell her bear? Yes, she was crying.
0:36:25 > 0:36:29He's really rather lovely, I mean I'm fiddling with his tail here
0:36:29 > 0:36:34because he's got this armature inside which links through to this little stubby tail
0:36:34 > 0:36:40and as you move the tail from right to left, so his head moves and if you move it up and down so he can...
0:36:40 > 0:36:43..he can answer simple questions. Do you have a name?
0:36:43 > 0:36:45He actually hasn't got a name.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48Oh, sorry, "No, I don't have a name!"
0:36:48 > 0:36:52You could have hours of fun with this, but looking at the back here,
0:36:52 > 0:36:55you also, I can see the other important thing which is,
0:36:55 > 0:36:56I presume, a musical box. Yes.
0:36:59 > 0:37:01"Rock-a-bye baby on the tree top?"
0:37:01 > 0:37:05MUSICAL BOX PLAYS
0:37:05 > 0:37:09Identifying teddy bears is not an exact science, I have to say,
0:37:09 > 0:37:13but I feel that he's almost certainly by a company called Schuco,
0:37:13 > 0:37:21the reason that I say that is because Schuco invented this wonderful yes/no mechanism, as it's called. Oh.
0:37:21 > 0:37:28In 1921, and they used that in a lot of their novelty bears
0:37:28 > 0:37:30right through into the 1950s and '60s
0:37:30 > 0:37:33so that holds him in very good stead.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36The other thing which I think is very appealing
0:37:36 > 0:37:41is this wonderful sort of lost puppy look that he has.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44Yes, very earnest. Very earnest, good name for a bear.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47THEY LAUGH
0:37:47 > 0:37:53But he also, he has this "take me home and love me" look about him, which obviously appealed to you.
0:37:53 > 0:37:58Back then, can you remember what you paid for him? It must have been either two or five marks.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01Well, a good investment. I have to say,
0:38:01 > 0:38:07because today he'd be worth something in the region of £600, maybe £700.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12Right. So you really were a rescuer of a bear, well done.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15Well, this is an absolutely fascinating note.
0:38:15 > 0:38:20"This scarf was worn by Drill Sergeant McLellan, First Battalion, Coldstream Guards,
0:38:20 > 0:38:28"who was killed at the Battle of Inkerman in the Crimea on Sunday November 5th 1844, Guy Fawkes Day"
0:38:28 > 0:38:34and it says "This is preserved by Corporal Frederick Bridges of the same regiment".
0:38:34 > 0:38:36Right. How did you get it?
0:38:36 > 0:38:40I got it via my grandmother and my aged aunt
0:38:40 > 0:38:46who inherited these relics from my great great grandmother.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49And there it is, this is the sash that the chap was killed in.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52Yes, that's right. That is quite extraordinary.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54It's at the Battle of Inkerman.
0:38:54 > 0:38:59That just is...I mean pieces of history like this, the fabric of history,
0:38:59 > 0:39:02that is, that is more than fabric isn't it, I mean that is just incredible.
0:39:02 > 0:39:08All the other stuff that you've got here is all to do with this Mr Bridges.
0:39:08 > 0:39:12Frederick Bridges. Frederick Bridges. We have his discharge papers,
0:39:12 > 0:39:15he was discharged in consequence of being unfit for further service.
0:39:15 > 0:39:19Right, he was severely injured in the Battle of Inkerman. Yeah.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22And it was at the Crimea where he met Florence Nightingale.
0:39:22 > 0:39:24Did she actually treat him?
0:39:24 > 0:39:31She did, as I understand it, and they became relatively good friends
0:39:31 > 0:39:37which led to her seeking to obtain a position for him as a Buckingham Palace messenger.
0:39:37 > 0:39:41Oh, well that's absolutely tremendous because we go on from that item to this item.
0:39:41 > 0:39:46Yes. "Colonel Phipps requests Corporal Bridges to call at Buckingham Palace
0:39:46 > 0:39:50on Saturday morning at half past ten o'clock", presumably for a job?
0:39:50 > 0:39:55That's my understanding. But then here, a letter in pencil.
0:39:55 > 0:40:00Yes. "35 South St, Park Lane West - Mr Bridges, I have returned to London
0:40:00 > 0:40:04"as I promised to let you know when I wanted you again and I have done so.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07"I find you have left the Corps of Commissionaires"
0:40:07 > 0:40:11which I assume means the Corps of Commissionaires at Buckingham Palace,
0:40:11 > 0:40:16"and if you have found a permanent situation, I could not advise you to take mine"
0:40:16 > 0:40:20so presumably she also wanted a messenger, or something like that. Presumably.
0:40:20 > 0:40:26But I now give you the opportunity, as I said I would, sincerely wishing you well as you know I do",
0:40:26 > 0:40:32it's signed "Florence Nightingale". Exactly. A very typical letter in Florence Nightingale's pencil,
0:40:32 > 0:40:36she wrote in pencil more often than she actually wrote in ink.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39Really? Quite extraordinary, so there's no doubt about it,
0:40:39 > 0:40:42that is a Florence Nightingale letter, absolutely wonderful.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45All this stuff is incredibly difficult to value,
0:40:45 > 0:40:51except of course the Florence Nightingale which I can value definitely.
0:40:51 > 0:40:54The sash, my goodness, you know, what value could you put on that?
0:40:54 > 0:41:00That is extraordinary, but the Florence Nightingale letter, I would value that at about £1500.
0:41:00 > 0:41:03Really? Yes, absolutely, but the collection...
0:41:03 > 0:41:04..well, who knows?
0:41:06 > 0:41:10I'm trying to work out the mathematics here... what sum is he doing?
0:41:10 > 0:41:17Well, we wondered about this, he's either just divided 112 by 14 and that's the answer, eight,
0:41:17 > 0:41:21or he's just beginning to multiply them and that's the two times four.
0:41:21 > 0:41:23We haven't decided.
0:41:23 > 0:41:27There may be a clue in the title, there you've got the name "The Diligent Scholar".
0:41:27 > 0:41:32That's right. That's the title of the figure and there the group, potted by Doulton and Co,
0:41:32 > 0:41:34of course great figure makers indeed.
0:41:34 > 0:41:40And that's all I know about it. We're looking at a figure here made in about 1920. Oh, right.
0:41:40 > 0:41:45And we see lots of Doulton figures on the Roadshow, they were very prolific figure makers. Yeah.
0:41:45 > 0:41:48But I must admit I've never actually seen this one.
0:41:48 > 0:41:53Really? I mean I know it from the books and I've seen it in the books but I've never held one in the flesh,
0:41:53 > 0:41:56because when it was issued I guess nobody bought it.
0:41:56 > 0:41:58Ah, does that mean it's no good?
0:41:58 > 0:42:02Well, I mean luckily in collecting terms it works the other way round.
0:42:02 > 0:42:08Right. Because when it was produced, um, they tried out different modellers at Doulton,
0:42:08 > 0:42:12this was by a modeller called William White
0:42:12 > 0:42:17and for some reason his models just weren't as successful as the others by Harradine
0:42:17 > 0:42:21and other successful sculptors, they only made a few of his.
0:42:21 > 0:42:25I think they're a bit uncomfortable in their scale compared to the pretty Doulton figures.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30Most of the Doulton figures we see are crinolined ladies, the Dickens characters.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33They have obvious appeal, so the pretty ones that everybody bought
0:42:33 > 0:42:37and everyone has at home are not worth much money now.
0:42:37 > 0:42:40If you had to go to a Doulton specialist to buy one,
0:42:40 > 0:42:43for a collector it's probably going to cost you £4,000.
0:42:44 > 0:42:47Ooh! The cats walk round it on the shelf!
0:42:49 > 0:42:52Haven't knocked it off...? Not yet, no, no.
0:42:52 > 0:42:54I guess they won't be doing that any more.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57Wow. No, it's exciting to find.
0:43:00 > 0:43:02I said that Cambridge was rich in treasures,
0:43:02 > 0:43:08it's also rich in Vitamin D if today's weather is anything to go by and this is just our first visit.
0:43:08 > 0:43:12Next time we shall go into the cool and magnificent chapel which took five kings
0:43:12 > 0:43:15and four master masons more than a century to build.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19Untill then, from King's College in Cambridge, goodbye.
0:43:37 > 0:43:40Subtitles by Chris Boyd BBC Broadcast 2004