0:00:35 > 0:00:38It's very reassuring to see that the roadshow
0:00:38 > 0:00:40is still an attraction after 30 years.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43We sometimes get up to 2,500 people at a venue,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46which means, of course, countless cups of tea and energy bars
0:00:46 > 0:00:49for the experts who are duty-bound to examine the contents
0:00:49 > 0:00:52of every carrier bag and wheelbarrow.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54And still there are lots of items
0:00:54 > 0:00:57left at the end of the day that we're not able to fit in.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00So, here are two sparkling selections of unseen gems,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03starting at our show at Highcliffe Castle in Dorset.
0:01:09 > 0:01:14Dendy Easton has already met a man with a passion for the place.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17I'm interested in the history of Highcliffe
0:01:17 > 0:01:21and I collect anything that's got to do with Highcliffe.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23It's taken me in all different directions
0:01:23 > 0:01:26but this, I think, really, is the best that I've got.
0:01:26 > 0:01:31I think this is fantastic because I would date this at about 1780, 1790,
0:01:31 > 0:01:35but what interests me, we've got a distant view, I think,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38of Bournemouth, but it's the pagoda-style summerhouse there.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42Um, yes, it was designed by Capability Brown.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Probably the only beach hut he ever designed.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48Um, he was employed by Lord Bute
0:01:48 > 0:01:52who built this house here, um, to do the grounds.
0:01:52 > 0:01:55But what is interesting, we've got this wonderful detail
0:01:55 > 0:01:57of the pagoda-type summerhouse,
0:01:57 > 0:01:59the lady walking down to the promenade on the beach,
0:01:59 > 0:02:03but I love these people here almost shoring up the cliff.
0:02:03 > 0:02:07Well, that's been a long-standing thing happening here,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10the, um, the cliff falling down,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12and right from the start it was obviously a problem.
0:02:12 > 0:02:17- And the bottom one here, which is of the old castle.- Yes, indeed.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20And I love the coach and four coming in.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23I mean, it's just... It's really, really good
0:02:23 > 0:02:24that it's sort of 1780, 1790,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27it shows what it was like around here at the time
0:02:27 > 0:02:30and the colour on these watercolours is very, very good.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Who painted these? Well, there was an artist called Arthur Devis,
0:02:33 > 0:02:35but I'm not going to put a name to this.
0:02:35 > 0:02:40I'd say that these were probably English school, circa 1780, 1790.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43But what is so interesting are these two pictures you have here
0:02:43 > 0:02:48- because they're by Louisa, Marchioness of Waterford.- Yes.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Whose father actually lived here.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53- Built the castle.- The new castle.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Yes. Who was the grandson of Bute who built that one.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00And I like the continuity here, because I know her
0:03:00 > 0:03:04as being a very good amateur artist in the mid-19th century.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08Friend of Ruskin, she studied under Ruskin,
0:03:08 > 0:03:13and, um, was actually very gifted, and over the years
0:03:13 > 0:03:16I've seen many, many of her drawings and watercolours
0:03:16 > 0:03:18that have come out of sketchbooks.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21But this one here is inscribed "Highcliffe, April",
0:03:21 > 0:03:24which is absolutely wonderful, and an interior in the house,
0:03:24 > 0:03:26obviously taken at the time
0:03:26 > 0:03:31and then we've got one down here, which is of the garden statue...
0:03:31 > 0:03:35Where we are now, that was a boy on a dolphin fountain
0:03:35 > 0:03:39which stood over there, so you're looking down towards the sea from there.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41And do we know where the statue is now?
0:03:41 > 0:03:43Last heard of in Hollywood.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46Um, Dean Martin had it in his garden.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50I think after he died I think Brad Pitt had it.
0:03:50 > 0:03:55Brad Pitt was selling the house a year or so ago. We tried to find it,
0:03:55 > 0:03:57get the details from the real estate agent,
0:03:57 > 0:03:59but we didn't hear anything,
0:03:59 > 0:04:02hoping that we'd get a brochure with that fountain on it.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05Can't he donate it?
0:04:05 > 0:04:08You know, really, when it comes to putting a value on these, I think
0:04:08 > 0:04:12this one here is worth somewhere in the region of,
0:04:12 > 0:04:16and because of local interest, £1,500, £2,000 for this one.
0:04:16 > 0:04:17The bottom one here,
0:04:17 > 0:04:21which has got a lot going on in it and the coach and four,
0:04:21 > 0:04:24I would think sort of £2,000 to £3,000.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28There are a lot of watercolours and drawings like this
0:04:28 > 0:04:33by Louisa, and I think, I would say on these
0:04:33 > 0:04:37somewhere in the region of £500 to £700 each.
0:04:37 > 0:04:38- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41We moved into a house we bought, we didn't have any furniture,
0:04:41 > 0:04:43my husband had managed to pick up
0:04:43 > 0:04:46a table and two chairs from the sale rooms
0:04:46 > 0:04:50- and I went to a bungalow sale round the corner...- Right.
0:04:50 > 0:04:55Picked up two kitchen chairs and this was there for a pound.
0:04:55 > 0:04:57So, you had no idea what this was?
0:04:57 > 0:04:59- Not at all.- A convenient trunk for you to use?
0:04:59 > 0:05:02I needed something to put sheets and blankets in.
0:05:02 > 0:05:08- And you never thought any more about it?- And never thought on it.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11Well, and had you not thought about it much more until today?
0:05:11 > 0:05:13No. My husband wondered why I'd brought it home.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16- Right.- And then decided that we'd...
0:05:16 > 0:05:19He wallpapered the bedroom, which was pretty with roses on.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22He asked me if I'd like this to match and I said yes,
0:05:22 > 0:05:26- so he cut all round it...- So it was covered in rose-pattered wallpaper.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30- Yes, it was, yes.- Let's have a look at it in more detail.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34We have an original 19th century piece of Louis Vuitton luggage.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38He was an interesting character in that he started the firm of
0:05:38 > 0:05:43Louis Vuitton as a bespoke luggage maker.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46In fact, what he was, essentially, originally was a bespoke...
0:05:46 > 0:05:49packager, um, and I think he saw
0:05:49 > 0:05:52an opening in the market for a good quality brand of luggage.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57A case like this has a poplar frame to it, it's got a canvas
0:05:57 > 0:06:01waterproof cover with this chequerboard design on it,
0:06:01 > 0:06:05which of course is not the trademark that we associate.
0:06:05 > 0:06:10In fact, if we look closely you can see that it says Marque L Vuitton
0:06:10 > 0:06:12within that chequerboard design.
0:06:12 > 0:06:16In fact, the logo, the LV that we know, um, his trademark,
0:06:16 > 0:06:19came in around 1896, I believe.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23With this particular piece we've got his trade label in the back,
0:06:23 > 0:06:25which is in excellent condition,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28so although we have some spotting inside,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30it's totally original, which is lovely.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34The trade label there has a selection of medals that he's won
0:06:34 > 0:06:38in various parts of the world - we've got Chicago 1893, Paris
0:06:38 > 0:06:441889, London 1890, so that dates the trunk very, very well for us
0:06:44 > 0:06:48and it's got this very interesting padded interior to the lid
0:06:48 > 0:06:50with the French kind of tricolour colours
0:06:50 > 0:06:53- over the inside, which gives it a little more pizzazz.- Yes.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57What we're looking at is a very, very good piece of luggage
0:06:57 > 0:07:00from the late 19th century
0:07:00 > 0:07:04and it's with pieces like this that that global brand began to evolve.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07I suspect that if you pop this into a good auction
0:07:07 > 0:07:10you would get £1,000 for it.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14- Great...for a pound. - Not a bad investment for a pound!
0:07:14 > 0:07:17For a pound. No, definitely not, no.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23This is a barber's bowl...
0:07:23 > 0:07:27and you went to the barber maybe once every other day
0:07:27 > 0:07:32and he would take down off the wall a nice barber's bowl,
0:07:32 > 0:07:36and it would be hanging by a loop that went through the foot rim,
0:07:36 > 0:07:39and it presented itself really as an ornament.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42This is actually rather a beautiful barber's bowl.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45- Any idea where it's from? - No idea at all.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49It's made from hard paste porcelain, it's decorated in blue and white,
0:07:49 > 0:07:53- and these birds have a very oriental look...- Yes.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55so we're moving towards...?
0:07:55 > 0:07:57- China, I suppose.- China. Absolutely.
0:07:57 > 0:08:02This was made in China in the city of Jing De Zhen,
0:08:02 > 0:08:04where most Chinese blue and white porcelain
0:08:04 > 0:08:06and enamel porcelain came to England
0:08:06 > 0:08:09- throughout the 18th and 19th century.- Right.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Um, it's beautifully painted. I mean, the bird in the branch
0:08:13 > 0:08:19on this lovely, lovely lush garden, um, pencilled in outline...
0:08:19 > 0:08:24You know, he drew the outline first and then he charged his brush
0:08:24 > 0:08:30with more cobalt and he blobbed in the various darker shades of blue.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34It looks as though it was made yesterday, just one tiny chip there.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37- What date would you hazard? - I would have thought it was...
0:08:37 > 0:08:40It came to this country in Victorian times.
0:08:40 > 0:08:45- Right. This was made some time in the 1730s...- Gosh.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48..in China for the European market.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50This is a totally un-Chinese shape.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53Somebody would have sent out an order from London
0:08:53 > 0:08:55or from the Continent,
0:08:55 > 0:08:59saying, we want you to make bowls with a whole section missing.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03And of course, you know what the section is missing for?
0:09:03 > 0:09:06Go round your neck?
0:09:06 > 0:09:08It fits, it fits perfectly.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10But one other thing - not just your neck.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14- No.- Do you know what that other thing might have been?
0:09:14 > 0:09:17- If I go...like this.- Oh, I see.
0:09:17 > 0:09:21And if I bring up my scalpel, you roll up my sleeve,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24- I'll just let your blood.- Oh, God.
0:09:24 > 0:09:29Because if you went to the barber, he was in fact a barber surgeon.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32- Yes, yes.- And if you were in the wrong humour...
0:09:32 > 0:09:36the thing to do is to bleed enough blood out of you
0:09:36 > 0:09:38to put you back into the right humour.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41So, this would have doubled as a bleeding bowl as well.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45To a collector of Chinese blue and white porcelain,
0:09:45 > 0:09:48to a collector of barber's bowls,
0:09:48 > 0:09:55to a collector of Chinese porcelain made specially for European designs,
0:09:55 > 0:09:58this would appeal to all those three categories of collector.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02- Right, yes.- And I reckon that it's worth somewhere in the region
0:10:02 > 0:10:06of £1,500 to £2,500.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09- My goodness me. - Time for a little bleed, I think.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15Oh, I'll certainly be more careful with it.
0:10:15 > 0:10:16My goodness.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22Well, I think this is the very earliest piece of glass
0:10:22 > 0:10:25I've ever handled in my life and I'm excited about it. What's the story?
0:10:25 > 0:10:30Stuart de Rothesay collected stained glass and painted glass
0:10:30 > 0:10:33and put the glass in many of the windows of the castle.
0:10:33 > 0:10:34Um, when the castle became derelict
0:10:34 > 0:10:38in the '60s it was taken out by glass conservators
0:10:38 > 0:10:41and recently Christchurch Borough Council have acquired it back.
0:10:41 > 0:10:43It's now in safe storage,
0:10:43 > 0:10:46but we'd love to put it out to public view
0:10:46 > 0:10:48because it is a national treasure.
0:10:48 > 0:10:53This is St Christopher wading across a stream with the young Christ child on his shoulder.
0:10:53 > 0:10:58- I see, so Flemish, from about 1450. - That's right.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01The way this was made is that glass would have been poured
0:11:01 > 0:11:05onto a block and allowed to cool and then snibbled off and then painted.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10Well, on a valuation, I mean, we have an intact piece of
0:11:10 > 0:11:15enamelled glass, um, and it's got to be a few thousand pounds.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18But clearly, the best place that it could possibly be
0:11:18 > 0:11:20is bang, right up there again.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28I notice in your lapel you're wearing the famous caterpillar badge
0:11:28 > 0:11:31only given to those people who bailed out
0:11:31 > 0:11:34during the Second World War over occupied territory.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39Yeah, we'd been to Italy and we were coming back over France,
0:11:39 > 0:11:42and, er...
0:11:42 > 0:11:45I saw the fighters take off...
0:11:45 > 0:11:48but, er, they hit us from underneath...
0:11:48 > 0:11:51They could fire upwards,
0:11:51 > 0:11:54and, ah, the pilot was killed
0:11:54 > 0:11:57and the bomber was killed but...
0:11:57 > 0:12:00the rest of us bailed out.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05But after bailing out I was in an orange suit...
0:12:05 > 0:12:07they called it a tailor suit.
0:12:07 > 0:12:14- Right.- ..Electric suit, and, um... the German pilot thought
0:12:14 > 0:12:19we were dropping ammunition and guns to the French Resistance so he opened
0:12:19 > 0:12:20fire on me
0:12:20 > 0:12:26and hit the parachute in quite a few places so, um....
0:12:26 > 0:12:31- So you came down a bit quicker than you'd hoped to?- I had a double fracture of the back.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33But the Germans, um...
0:12:33 > 0:12:36were very good, they took me to hospital.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38And how long did you spend in hospital?
0:12:38 > 0:12:42- 34 weeks.- Wow, a long time. And then after that you went to camp?
0:12:42 > 0:12:46They released me to Stalag 4B.
0:12:46 > 0:12:51You've got here a souvenir of this incredible part of your life.
0:12:51 > 0:12:56Well, the main thing with that picture is that the man
0:12:56 > 0:13:01standing up with his back towards you is a lookout.
0:13:01 > 0:13:07They were cooking a meal in the open and the Russian compound was wired off...
0:13:08 > 0:13:14..from us but if the Germans had seen them cooking a meal outside
0:13:14 > 0:13:16they would have shot them.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20They were very hard up for food and they knew I was sort of
0:13:20 > 0:13:26friendly towards them and I used to give them my potato peelings every
0:13:26 > 0:13:29day and they were grateful for that.
0:13:29 > 0:13:35And I actually see down here at the bottom it says Stalag 4B. Where was that?
0:13:35 > 0:13:37It was near Leipzig and Dresden.
0:13:37 > 0:13:43- So who actually painted this image? - Well, one of the prisoners, yes.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46It was done from the soil.
0:13:46 > 0:13:50- We had paint but they didn't have paint.- So just made from the dirt?
0:13:50 > 0:13:54Yes, from dirt. And if they wanted green they used dandelion.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56So you bought this?
0:13:56 > 0:14:00I bought it for two cigarettes, yes.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03- Which was a huge amount. - Yes, two cigarettes was worth...
0:14:03 > 0:14:07- Oh, £100 in those days. - And why did you buy it?
0:14:07 > 0:14:13We had not a hard time but it wasn't easy but they had a terrible time.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16- Practically no food, no. - So where did you keep it?
0:14:16 > 0:14:20Ah, I kept it by my uniform, yes.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22- Amazing story.- Yeah.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Really extraordinary times.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28The little caterpillar that you proudly wear,
0:14:28 > 0:14:31it's extraordinarily rare today because there are so few
0:14:31 > 0:14:33people around who are still alive.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36Well, they fetch about £500 in England.
0:14:36 > 0:14:41In America they fetch about £1,500. Because your name is engraved upon the back.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46That's right. But the painting is something...
0:14:46 > 0:14:49extraordinary, and I think it's such an evocative
0:14:49 > 0:14:52image of what was a terrible time.
0:14:52 > 0:14:57Well, I know the story of that you see, there's a story to it.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59As you say, an incredible story.
0:14:59 > 0:15:03It's been a great privilege to meet you, thank you very much indeed.
0:15:07 > 0:15:12Well, I went to a garden fete and it was on the bric-a-brac stall
0:15:12 > 0:15:16- and I bought it for 20 pence about 30 years ago.- Some bric-a-brac.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19It's worth at least a pound now.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21I suppose especially on that basis.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24Well, it's really great fun...
0:15:24 > 0:15:29Cartoon character - HM Bateman, he was actually one of the most famous
0:15:29 > 0:15:33cartoonists of the 1920s and '30s. Do you know anything about him?
0:15:33 > 0:15:39I did look up in the library and saw HM Bateman, and saw that he was this sort of
0:15:39 > 0:15:41cartoonist for Tatler.
0:15:41 > 0:15:45Yes, he was a great purveyor of the social scene and this is
0:15:45 > 0:15:47particularly amusing because
0:15:47 > 0:15:51you've got a boxer and a novice, he gives him a thump...
0:15:52 > 0:15:56..and then the story carries on inside.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00And the poor chap is lying flat on the floor seeing stars.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03And it really is most beautifully enamelled.
0:16:03 > 0:16:09- Is it a snuff box?- It might be, but I think it's actually for cigarettes because they would have
0:16:09 > 0:16:13had those nice little coloured cigarettes, cocktail cigarettes,
0:16:13 > 0:16:17and you would have flashed this at a cocktail party, usually with
0:16:17 > 0:16:19a long cigarette holder as well.
0:16:19 > 0:16:23But what I really like about this is the humour of it and...
0:16:23 > 0:16:25it is beautifully enamelled.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29The interesting thing is, because Batemen was such an
0:16:29 > 0:16:34English character, that the box was actually not made in England at all.
0:16:34 > 0:16:40- Oh, right.- It's hallmarked here on the side - it's an import mark.
0:16:40 > 0:16:44It's likely it was made in Austria where they really specialised
0:16:44 > 0:16:47in this beautiful enamelling, and it's a beautifully-made box
0:16:47 > 0:16:50as well, because look at that hinge.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52And it takes real skill to make
0:16:52 > 0:16:54something as beautiful as that and all this here.
0:16:54 > 0:16:59I'm just amazed that you could buy this for 20 pence.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03It's actually an amusing thing that I think this could be worth anything
0:17:03 > 0:17:08- between £600 and £1,000.- Oh, wow.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11- So haven't you done well?- Yes, that's really good news. Thank you.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17Well, this is the most extraordinary little armorial book
0:17:17 > 0:17:22that I've ever seen. What are these two figures standing either side?
0:17:22 > 0:17:24- There's a rabbit...guinea pig? - A guinea pig.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28- What is it with guinea pigs? - Well, as far as I can gather
0:17:28 > 0:17:32it was the sort of fashionable thing for children to do in
0:17:32 > 0:17:35- the time when he wrote these books. - And tell me whose they were.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37The gentleman is called Charles Lamb,
0:17:37 > 0:17:40Charlie Lamb, and he was born in the early 1800s,
0:17:40 > 0:17:46and he wrote these books between the age of seven and 11.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50He was encouraged by his father to develop his interest in them
0:17:50 > 0:17:54- and he gave them all heraldic titles and names.- And here they all are.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58And here's the king... of the guinea pigs.
0:17:58 > 0:17:59Here he is, Guinea,
0:17:59 > 0:18:02first king of, what is it Winnipeg?
0:18:02 > 0:18:04- Winnipeg. - Winnipeg is the name of the...
0:18:04 > 0:18:10He actually invented a kingdom called Winnipeg and his father built
0:18:10 > 0:18:12him a castle, a small castle
0:18:12 > 0:18:16for him to house the guinea pigs in the grounds of Beauport House.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19- Right.- And he drew a map of the Kingdom of Winnipeg for the
0:18:19 > 0:18:21- guinea pigs to live in. - I think that's absolutely wonderful.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24- And how did they come down to you? - Well, my wife primarily.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28It was my wife's godfather who died, from his mother's side, or his
0:18:28 > 0:18:30grandmother, I should say, she married into the Lamb family.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33Right, and here's a picture of the man himself.
0:18:33 > 0:18:38- That's Charlie Lamb, yeah. - He must have been a very mild chap.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40- He was far from it.- Really?
0:18:40 > 0:18:43He was a very eccentric person from what I can gather.
0:18:43 > 0:18:48He died very young actually, he died, blind, at the
0:18:48 > 0:18:50age of 40, disowned by his father,
0:18:50 > 0:18:55- living in a cottage on the estate of Lord Eglinton in Scotland.- Yes.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59We could put those to one side there and then start to look at these,
0:18:59 > 0:19:06these wonderful watercolours, which are, of course, of the Eglinton Tournament, which was held when?
0:19:06 > 0:19:08About 1840, was it?
0:19:08 > 0:19:101839, the tournament.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12And there was a tournament Earl...
0:19:12 > 0:19:15who was Charlie Lamb.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17I think that's Charlie Lamb.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20Well, he certainly looks mad, bad and dangerous to know, doesn't he?
0:19:20 > 0:19:27He was considered quite out of this world by his contemporaries of the day.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30Now what about this famous Eglinton Tournament?
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Well, it was staged to snub
0:19:33 > 0:19:37Queen Victoria's coronation the year before, because she had wanted a
0:19:37 > 0:19:41- low-key coronation and didn't want any pomp and circumstance...- Yes.
0:19:41 > 0:19:46- That annoyed quite a few people, so he decided to hold this tournament of pageantry...- Yes.- ..And jousting.
0:19:46 > 0:19:52The tournament cost... I think it cost Lord Eglinton £40,000 to put on in those days,
0:19:52 > 0:19:54but the weekend that it took place...
0:19:54 > 0:19:59Over 200,000 people attended, but it was a washout because it just rained.
0:19:59 > 0:20:01Don't you love Wimbledon?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04- He lost a lot of money. - Yes, I bet he did.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07And so a lot of these events never took place.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09- Yes, that's right. - So they were all imagined?
0:20:09 > 0:20:11- Absolutely.- ..By Nixon.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14- And he later published them, didn't he?- Yes.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17Oh, this is a fabulous one here.
0:20:17 > 0:20:19This is, um, look at that.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22Wonderful movement. The colours are absolutely...
0:20:22 > 0:20:24- The colours are beautiful. - They are absolutely fantastic.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27And relatively unfaded too.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30He died in 1844,
0:20:30 > 0:20:32the artist.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35So some of these, I think, are unfinished.
0:20:35 > 0:20:40But they are absolutely marvellous and absolutely fantastic, of a very eccentric person
0:20:40 > 0:20:44and his life.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47From guinea pigs right the way through to jousting.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50I mean, what could be better?
0:20:50 > 0:20:54Um, the guinea pig books... Any children's book collector
0:20:54 > 0:20:57would absolutely give their eyeteeth for those,
0:20:57 > 0:20:59those are absolutely fantastic.
0:20:59 > 0:21:04I would say probably somewhere in the region of £1,000, £1,500.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06- Mm-hm.- That sort of thing.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09The miniature, a little bit damaged, I think,
0:21:09 > 0:21:11it's a little bit faded, wouldn't you say?
0:21:11 > 0:21:16- Yes, yes.- Even so, it's got to be sort of 500 or 600.
0:21:16 > 0:21:18- Really?- Yes.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22Now you have got, you have got... I mean, we've had a look at five,
0:21:22 > 0:21:26but you've got, in all, 18 of these watercolours.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28Have you any idea what those would...
0:21:28 > 0:21:30No idea at all.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32Well...
0:21:32 > 0:21:34I think they're worth
0:21:34 > 0:21:36the best part of...
0:21:36 > 0:21:39What, £800 each?
0:21:39 > 0:21:41- Really?- £900 each.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44Perhaps more as a collection.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48- Yes.- They are absolutely fantastic. Nearly £18,000 worth.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52- Really?- I mean, and in total, I mean, possibly nearly 20.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54- Wonderful.- Fantastic, and thank you for bringing them along.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56No, you're welcome.
0:21:56 > 0:22:00There's a motto on the balustrade here at Highcliffe Castle which
0:22:00 > 0:22:04translates as, "Sweet it is when on the mighty sea
0:22:04 > 0:22:09"the winds are buffeting the waters to look from the land on another's
0:22:09 > 0:22:13"great struggles." I think that's what the Germans call Schadenfreude,
0:22:13 > 0:22:14or "I'm all right, Jack".
0:22:15 > 0:22:19We were certainly all right on our visit to Alnwick Castle
0:22:19 > 0:22:22in Northumberland, where Eric Knowles was the first to lend an ear
0:22:22 > 0:22:24and his expertise.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30I was adopted the day after war ended and I tried to trace my real mother
0:22:30 > 0:22:36and it was her mother's sister who left me that off the windowsill
0:22:36 > 0:22:40in Scotland, a Scottish lady from Glasgow, and her daughter
0:22:40 > 0:22:45phoned me after our mam had died and said, "Could I go up? There was something off the windowsill for us."
0:22:45 > 0:22:51And this is what I brought back off the train to Sunderland and...
0:22:51 > 0:22:54- And is it on your windowsill as a result?- No, no.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57Well, it was never meant for anybody's windowsill, of course,
0:22:57 > 0:23:01because this is a table centrepiece that was meant
0:23:01 > 0:23:03for a dining table.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07This one has got quite a nice pedigree to it,
0:23:07 > 0:23:10because I've had a sneaky look underneath and I can see the maker.
0:23:10 > 0:23:16And the maker is Minton and that's good news because Minton,
0:23:16 > 0:23:17for my money anyway,
0:23:17 > 0:23:22were perhaps the most important ceramic manufacturer -
0:23:22 > 0:23:26certainly in England - throughout the 19th century.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28And we don't hear much about it today
0:23:28 > 0:23:30and the factory is alas no more,
0:23:30 > 0:23:35but it was situated in Stoke, as in Stoke-on-Trent.
0:23:35 > 0:23:41But what I like about this piece is that it's got, I don't know,
0:23:41 > 0:23:43it's got a sense of movement.
0:23:43 > 0:23:48You've got these two sort of cherubs supporting this huge amphora-type vase
0:23:48 > 0:23:53on this lovely sort of chocolate-brown glaze.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56I mean, this is so good, it's almost edible, I could almost eat it.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00Date-wise, you're looking around about 1870.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03But what makes it unusual
0:24:03 > 0:24:08is that it's got this colour which is almost a sort of salmon pink.
0:24:08 > 0:24:14Strictly speaking, this is a material which is called Parionware
0:24:14 > 0:24:19and it's actually been glazed to give it this gloss finish.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23Their art director was a man called Leon Arnoux
0:24:23 > 0:24:27and they had the great Louis Solon,
0:24:27 > 0:24:29who was doing something called pate-sur-pate work.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33Now this, if I can look at this top band, you see this key?
0:24:33 > 0:24:36- Yeah.- This sort of Greek key? This is pate-sur-pate.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40And this also, if I can show it down here, this motif,
0:24:40 > 0:24:42it's a sort of Vitruvian scroll.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45That is also pate-sur-pate
0:24:45 > 0:24:48and that basically is one layer of enamel
0:24:48 > 0:24:52placed very carefully after another layer, after another layer,
0:24:52 > 0:24:53it's a very painstaking job.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56So to produce this would have taken quite some time.
0:24:56 > 0:25:01Today, because it's got a hairline crack, hasn't it, in the base?
0:25:01 > 0:25:04That is going to reduce its value considerably.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08However...I wouldn't hesitate to say that it's going to be worth
0:25:08 > 0:25:12somewhere in the region of around about £800 to £1,000.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14Ah, right.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20Well, soldiers are well-known for finding comedy
0:25:20 > 0:25:25in terribly harsh and adverse conditions
0:25:25 > 0:25:30and one of the soldiers who found the greatest amusement,
0:25:30 > 0:25:35the greatest comedy out of the terrible horror of World War One
0:25:35 > 0:25:42was one called Bruce Bairnsfather, a wonderful artist and writer
0:25:42 > 0:25:47and found amusement in almost any of the dreadful circumstances
0:25:47 > 0:25:51surrounding him and all of the other troops during the First World War.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Bruce Bairnsfather's cartoons and illustrations
0:25:55 > 0:25:58appear on a multitude of different objects
0:25:58 > 0:26:01and you've brought one or two different things,
0:26:01 > 0:26:04- I guess from your collection today, have you?- Yes, I have.
0:26:04 > 0:26:09- You have a big collection?- I've got quite a few plates, jugs, books,
0:26:09 > 0:26:11but I haven't brought them - a bit too much to bring.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15OK, well, here we see a jardiniere,
0:26:15 > 0:26:18the sort of thing that a big aspidistra would emerge from,
0:26:18 > 0:26:21a tankard, what's this, a rose bowl?
0:26:21 > 0:26:23Rose dish?
0:26:23 > 0:26:27- Yeah, rose vase.- OK, and here we even have cigarette cards.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29These are from, what, O'Hills cigarettes.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32Wonderful, and they contain some wonderful cartoons -
0:26:32 > 0:26:36in fact, there's one I really like here that, um,
0:26:36 > 0:26:39it's got a soldier who's obviously hiding in a chimney
0:26:39 > 0:26:43and a shell hitting the base of the chimney... What does it say here?
0:26:43 > 0:26:46"They've evidently seen me."
0:26:46 > 0:26:48Wonderful.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51But what is interesting to me is you've got his autograph here.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55- Now where did you get his autograph from?- From an auction.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58- I just I saw it and... - You had to have it, didn't you?
0:26:58 > 0:27:02- Yeah.- And he's done a little sketch here of Old Bill.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05And it says here "From Old Bill, Bruce Bairnsfather."
0:27:05 > 0:27:08I think that's wonderful. But there's a piece here which
0:27:08 > 0:27:12I've not really seen before. Tell me about this.
0:27:12 > 0:27:17That was on the internet and it was just a doll advertised,
0:27:17 > 0:27:21an Old Bill doll and I just had to have that as well.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24Well, this is, of course, characterising Old Bill,
0:27:24 > 0:27:28but what I think is incredibly rare is the fact that you've still got
0:27:28 > 0:27:32this little round label on it that says, what does it say?
0:27:32 > 0:27:35"Old Bill mascot."
0:27:35 > 0:27:37But I have heard about these.
0:27:37 > 0:27:39Isn't there some tale about a theatre?
0:27:39 > 0:27:44Yes, he wrote a play, The Better 'Ole, it was called,
0:27:44 > 0:27:48and they used to throw the mascots out at the end of the play to the audience.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51- These mascots?- Yes.- That's probably how this mascot came into
0:27:51 > 0:27:55- the possession of the person who sold it.- Yes, just catching it.
0:27:55 > 0:27:56Let's talk about values,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00because obviously there is a reasonable value to some of these,
0:28:00 > 0:28:01they're highly collectable.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05For the Grimwades pottery pieces,
0:28:05 > 0:28:07certainly if you bought it from a shop
0:28:07 > 0:28:12the jardiniere would cost you £300.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15The tankard, because it's actually very rare,
0:28:15 > 0:28:17would probably cost you 300,
0:28:17 > 0:28:20could even cost you more, depends, you know, on the dealer.
0:28:20 > 0:28:25The rose bowl I think probably £180.
0:28:25 > 0:28:30The Old Bill doll, well, I've never seen one before so I don't know.
0:28:30 > 0:28:36I mean, it's probably going to be £250, I should think, retail value.
0:28:36 > 0:28:39The autograph...
0:28:39 > 0:28:42£60, £70, and the cards,
0:28:42 > 0:28:48I guess retail £100. So you've got actually a considerable value here.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50You've got well over £1,000 worth.
0:28:50 > 0:28:51It's just part of it as well.
0:28:51 > 0:28:53- Just part of it?- Yes.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56- So it's 1967?- That's right.- Where were you in the Summer of Love?
0:28:56 > 0:28:59It was my long vacation and I went over to America
0:28:59 > 0:29:01to work in a children's summer camp,
0:29:01 > 0:29:03following which I had five weeks to spare,
0:29:03 > 0:29:06so we travelled round the USA on a Greyhound bus.
0:29:06 > 0:29:08OK, so this is you?
0:29:08 > 0:29:10Yes, it is. I'm afraid so.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13Oh, very good, very good.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16Well, your hair's actually not that long, I expected it
0:29:16 > 0:29:20at least to be to your shoulders, but perhaps that happened later!
0:29:20 > 0:29:25So there you are in the Yosemite Valley and then what's this?
0:29:25 > 0:29:27It looks like the inside of a poster shop.
0:29:27 > 0:29:30Yes, that's in San Francisco, it's in Haight-Ashbury,
0:29:30 > 0:29:33the hippy district, and I was just overwhelmed
0:29:33 > 0:29:36by all the magnificent posters in the shops there.
0:29:36 > 0:29:38There were several shops selling posters,
0:29:38 > 0:29:42the like we'd never seen before, so I just had to go and buy one.
0:29:42 > 0:29:45- So you indulged and this is what you came out with?- I did.
0:29:45 > 0:29:49Jefferson Airplane, I mean Jefferson Airplane, the great band,
0:29:49 > 0:29:54formed in 1965, first gig was at the Matrix pub in San Francisco,
0:29:54 > 0:29:58went on to become absolutely huge and worldwide success
0:29:58 > 0:30:03and this is one of the early posters from the 19th of May, 1967,
0:30:03 > 0:30:07playing the Californian Polytechnic in the men's gym, eight o'clock.
0:30:07 > 0:30:11What were the ticket prices? Ticket prices, 1.75.
0:30:11 > 0:30:16Great bit of art. I mean, this type of graphic design
0:30:16 > 0:30:21became known generically as Fillmore East or Fillmore West design,
0:30:21 > 0:30:23with artists like Wes Wilson
0:30:23 > 0:30:26creating these extraordinary designs.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29And they have stood the test of time.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32I mean, they were weird and wacky when you saw them in 1967,
0:30:32 > 0:30:34even though you swear you were only a tourist
0:30:34 > 0:30:37and you were not on anything in any way mood enhancing...
0:30:37 > 0:30:41- Oh, no.- But they were, they were kind of hallucinogenic,
0:30:41 > 0:30:47that was the idea behind these extraordinary new graphic designs.
0:30:47 > 0:30:51Now, you bought it, you took it home and by the look of the little holes
0:30:51 > 0:30:54in the corners here, you immediately put a drawing pin in
0:30:54 > 0:30:57- and stuck it on the wall. - I did indeed, yeah.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00It's now been put away in a drawer for the last 15 years,
0:31:00 > 0:31:01something like that.
0:31:01 > 0:31:07Um, it's a bit worn but for me, it's got those special memories.
0:31:07 > 0:31:09Exactly. I'll tell you the condition will do,
0:31:09 > 0:31:11not a great problem with condition.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15These posters from the west coast of America, from that golden age
0:31:15 > 0:31:19at the beginning of hippydom, are extraordinarily collectable.
0:31:19 > 0:31:23Ah, a poster like this would sell in America
0:31:23 > 0:31:27- for around 2,500.- No!
0:31:27 > 0:31:33- Really?- The exchange rate the way it is now, that's about £1,250.
0:31:33 > 0:31:34Yeah.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37That's what it would sell for if you wanted to buy it.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40If you wanted to sell this, you'd have to expect
0:31:40 > 0:31:44a little bit less, particularly because of the damage at the corners
0:31:44 > 0:31:46and the little rip down here too.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49But I still think with the wind behind it
0:31:49 > 0:31:52- you'd get at least 500, maybe £700. - That's amazing.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54- It is amazing.- Thank you very much.
0:31:54 > 0:31:55- Pleasure.- Thank you.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58This is a very typical midshipman's book.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02- A midshipman was a trainee officer. - What age?
0:32:02 > 0:32:05He would be about sort of 15 or something like that, 14, 15,
0:32:05 > 0:32:07- and he had to do exercises.- Yes.
0:32:07 > 0:32:12Here is our Mr Midshipman, and obviously he's a British midshipman because of the...
0:32:12 > 0:32:15- Union Jack.- Union Jack up there.
0:32:15 > 0:32:17And here we are, we start off on trigonometry.
0:32:17 > 0:32:20He was a bit of a mucky chap, I mean beautiful
0:32:20 > 0:32:24copperplate handwriting but rather dirty some of the stuff.
0:32:24 > 0:32:27Here's a nice one, the Swedish ship,
0:32:27 > 0:32:31the Gustavo Adolph, a little bit of foxing there.
0:32:31 > 0:32:33Tell me the story, where did it come from?
0:32:33 > 0:32:36My grandmother was quite an avid collector of things,
0:32:36 > 0:32:40mainly furniture and... she picked things up along the way.
0:32:40 > 0:32:43She passed this down to my father and he died last year
0:32:43 > 0:32:49- and we were going through a box and came across it.- Where did your gran get hold of it?
0:32:49 > 0:32:53I don't really know. I mean, where did she get hold of most things?
0:32:53 > 0:32:57- Could it be something delightful at a jumble sale?- I imagine it was.
0:32:57 > 0:33:01- So she's paid pence.- A shilling, something along those lines.
0:33:01 > 0:33:06Well, I've seen a lot of these and, and not all are as beautiful as this. This does need tidying up.
0:33:06 > 0:33:08Here's another one, this is lovely.
0:33:08 > 0:33:14- Illustrations in this one. - There's a beautiful gouache almost.
0:33:14 > 0:33:15A Moonlight Night.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19But I love the way he goes through and these are all lessons
0:33:19 > 0:33:22that midshipmen had to learn, it was like an exercise book.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25With the problems and solutions and...
0:33:25 > 0:33:28Problems and solutions, yes. Rather lovely things.
0:33:28 > 0:33:33He talks about, yes, here we are... problems and solutions.
0:33:33 > 0:33:36Quite frankly, when you're in the middle of a gale, I mean...
0:33:36 > 0:33:39- Get your book out. - Get your book out, yes. Splash!
0:33:39 > 0:33:42What sort of date are we talking about?
0:33:42 > 0:33:47This is about 1820-1830s, Regency period, that sort of thing.
0:33:47 > 0:33:49The binding, not bad.
0:33:49 > 0:33:54Little bit of tender loving care there, but it's not bad at all.
0:33:54 > 0:34:00Value. Well, they're great fun and as I say an illustrated one is jolly nice. I think about £400.
0:34:00 > 0:34:02- Excellent, excellent.- Great, thanks.
0:34:02 > 0:34:03Thank you very much.
0:34:05 > 0:34:09Kenneth Williams, best loved person in British show biz, he did the lot,
0:34:09 > 0:34:12he was radio, television, films,
0:34:12 > 0:34:15wrote books and you've concentrated on his theatrical career.
0:34:15 > 0:34:16- I have, yes.- Why is that?
0:34:16 > 0:34:19I fell in love with Kenneth Williams as a child through
0:34:19 > 0:34:22Willo The Wisp mainly.
0:34:22 > 0:34:25And he was a very good, serious actor, wasn't he?
0:34:25 > 0:34:29He was, yes, up until St Joan in which he played the Dauphin,
0:34:29 > 0:34:34and he was noticed by a few people in there and that's how he got into Hancock's Half Hour
0:34:34 > 0:34:36and from there basically it was the Carry Ons and...
0:34:36 > 0:34:40But he did the Carry Ons mainly for money and friendship.
0:34:40 > 0:34:42He was keen on both of those, no doubt about it.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45- But he worked with some big names. - Yes, Siobhan McKenna,
0:34:45 > 0:34:48Ingrid Bergman, yes.
0:34:48 > 0:34:53This is from Moby Dick and Orson Welles noticed him in St Joan
0:34:53 > 0:34:57and he was in Moby Dick too so he worked with him.
0:34:57 > 0:35:00- Did you ever see him perform live? - I didn't.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03- I would have loved to, fantastic. - He was an extraordinary man.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05I've saw him on your programmes in the '80s.
0:35:05 > 0:35:09Yes, I remember him on that because we had Loretta Swit.
0:35:09 > 0:35:13Kenneth would come in at a moment's notice if we were let down by anyone on a chat show.
0:35:13 > 0:35:15You'd just ring him up and he'd be there.
0:35:15 > 0:35:20And he came in when Loretta Swit from the television series MASH was on.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23- Dennis Taylor was on there as well. - The snooker player.
0:35:23 > 0:35:27He was... She was enchanted by him. He was obviously a little elf
0:35:27 > 0:35:29of a person and she gathered him in her arms
0:35:29 > 0:35:32and she didn't realise he didn't like that kind of thing
0:35:32 > 0:35:35and he wriggled free and the whole place went very cold and quiet.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39- He didn't like being touched, he was a very private and introverted person.- Yes.
0:35:39 > 0:35:42In his diaries, he doesn't like people using his toilet.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46- Yes.- He used to have clingfilm on his oven.
0:35:46 > 0:35:51And he used to make people go down to the local train station to use their loo instead of his.
0:35:51 > 0:35:56Yes, you are right, because what he was most obsessed by was his bowels.
0:35:56 > 0:36:01And if you'd say, "Hello, Kenneth, how are you, are you well?" He'd say, "I'm not well."
0:36:01 > 0:36:05And then he'd go on for the next 20 minutes about his insides.
0:36:05 > 0:36:12He had a spastic colon. He was in pain for most of his life, which was very, very sad.
0:36:12 > 0:36:14It never stopped him performing. He'd never stop.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17- So gifted. You never met him? - I'd have loved to.
0:36:17 > 0:36:21- Shake the hand that's shaken the hand of Kenneth Williams. - Nice to meet you, Michael.
0:36:24 > 0:36:28What makes somebody want to have 200 chamber pots?
0:36:28 > 0:36:35I suppose you've got to be a bit dippy first of all. I don't know,
0:36:35 > 0:36:41the first one I got I saw it on a shelf in a restaurant and I thought,
0:36:41 > 0:36:45"I could fancy one of those" and it sort of just mushroomed from there.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48- And that was how long ago? - Oh, about 35 years.
0:36:48 > 0:36:52And you've been screwing hooks into your kitchen ceiling ever since?
0:36:52 > 0:36:56- I have, you're right.- Well, thank you for only bringing in three.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01This one, "Oh! Deary me, what do I see?"
0:37:01 > 0:37:06We won't go into all of the rhyme, but this one's actually got a frog inside as well.
0:37:06 > 0:37:07Fantastic.
0:37:07 > 0:37:12Usually see frogs in mugs rather than chamber pots.
0:37:12 > 0:37:16What's the earliest one you've got? Because they have quite a history.
0:37:16 > 0:37:20I suppose about 1830, 1835, something like that.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24- They were all about that age. - Yeah. Which is your favourite?
0:37:24 > 0:37:30I quite like this one because it's got the frog, so it's a little bit rude
0:37:30 > 0:37:36cos when you pass water and it gets above the frog's mouth
0:37:36 > 0:37:39- it makes a gurgling noise. Supposedly.- Is that so?
0:37:39 > 0:37:42Supposedly. I don't know if that's true.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45And that's, that one's the prettiest one.
0:37:45 > 0:37:49It is, it is, it's nice, it's a nice transfer printed one,
0:37:49 > 0:37:51and you can see the outline of the print.
0:37:51 > 0:37:55I mean, where part of the print ends and, um...
0:37:55 > 0:37:57the next part of it is wrapped around.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01And it's got a nice printed mark on the bottom.
0:38:01 > 0:38:06Somebody's clearly looked it up, it says 1838 and that seems to be,
0:38:06 > 0:38:07- looks as if it's about right.- OK.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10These three here are all about the same sort of date,
0:38:10 > 0:38:13they're all the first half of the 19th century.
0:38:13 > 0:38:18This one would have been made in Staffordshire, this one's a Sunderland piece. Has it got...
0:38:18 > 0:38:22Yes, it's got a bit of lustre decoration which is so typical.
0:38:22 > 0:38:25This little one, this is sweet.
0:38:25 > 0:38:28"Hand it over to me, my dear." That's dedication, isn't it?
0:38:28 > 0:38:30LAUGHTER
0:38:30 > 0:38:34And what's the most you've had to pay for one?
0:38:34 > 0:38:40Oh, gosh. Well, I don't really want to tell you because my husband's here, but round about 200.
0:38:40 > 0:38:41- 200 each?- Yeah.
0:38:41 > 0:38:45Yeah, and the cheapest ones, or the least?
0:38:45 > 0:38:47Oh, God, about 50 pence.
0:38:47 > 0:38:51Fantastic, great. This is a lovely transfer printed piece,
0:38:51 > 0:38:53we've already said round about 1830.
0:38:53 > 0:39:00Yeah, I'd expect in the auctions that to be anywhere between £150, £250.
0:39:00 > 0:39:04The trade would ask more than that. This larger one is much more fun.
0:39:04 > 0:39:09- It has got some damage on it, don't know if you knew that?- I do.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12Yeah. It's got some restoration round the rim here.
0:39:12 > 0:39:14And maybe a little bit more on the side.
0:39:14 > 0:39:18But still, it's got to be £200, £250 again.
0:39:18 > 0:39:22This little one shouldn't be anywhere near as much.
0:39:23 > 0:39:31It's very sweet, but I would hope you'd be able to pick it up for £80, £100, something like that.
0:39:37 > 0:39:40This is such a beautiful box.
0:39:40 > 0:39:45It really is quite staggeringly good quality and if we just look across the surface
0:39:45 > 0:39:50there are so many things we need to look at.
0:39:50 > 0:39:55The first thing that catches my eye are these ovals in the corner.
0:39:55 > 0:40:01This, which means "remembrance" or "memory", in German.
0:40:01 > 0:40:06Then you've got this fantastic border of scrolling flowers,
0:40:06 > 0:40:13all made out of this cut steelwork, individually set onto the box lid.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17Each little bit is set in with a tiny little pin,
0:40:17 > 0:40:19making this beautiful decoration,
0:40:19 > 0:40:23- which would shine almost like diamonds if the sun was on it.- Yes.
0:40:23 > 0:40:28Then, interspersed here we've got these very, very beautiful
0:40:28 > 0:40:32oval watercolour portraits and in the centre these two
0:40:32 > 0:40:37rectangular panels, one that shows almost like a pyramid
0:40:37 > 0:40:41and here a town square, somewhere like Vienna,
0:40:41 > 0:40:46that are set onto this very well-figured ash,
0:40:46 > 0:40:48which you find on the Continent.
0:40:51 > 0:40:56That's really interesting, this lovely portrait of this young gentleman looking out.
0:40:56 > 0:41:01He's not very old, he's probably only in his early 30s.
0:41:01 > 0:41:03Yes, I would say something like that.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06And then this tray that lifts out.
0:41:09 > 0:41:14Ah, now that's interesting. Does this name mean anything to you?
0:41:14 > 0:41:17Yes, I got this from an old aunt when she died.
0:41:17 > 0:41:20What does, just tell me what the name is.
0:41:20 > 0:41:22The name is Blagrave.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24- Blagrave.- Yes.
0:41:24 > 0:41:26And what does that mean to you?
0:41:26 > 0:41:30Well, my uncle was a land agent and this gentleman
0:41:30 > 0:41:34was a land owner, Mr Blagrave,
0:41:34 > 0:41:38and he must have given this box to my uncle.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41How long ago would that have been?
0:41:41 > 0:41:47Oh, it could have been 40 years ago because they had it quite some time before I got it.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51- And do you know anything about the box at all?- Not really, no.
0:41:51 > 0:41:55Very significantly here, which tells us even more that this is
0:41:55 > 0:42:00a memorial, is this tomb in the shape of a pyramid.
0:42:00 > 0:42:05And this is a tomb by a very famous sculptor called Canova,
0:42:05 > 0:42:09who was working in Europe, in Venice, in Rome
0:42:09 > 0:42:14and in this particular instance, working in Vienna.
0:42:14 > 0:42:16Because I think this box is Viennese.
0:42:16 > 0:42:19Oh, yes? I was wondering about that.
0:42:19 > 0:42:25All we know is that the portrait in here, we think, might be...
0:42:25 > 0:42:28One of the family.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31- Well, I think this is the portrait of the man who died.- I see.
0:42:31 > 0:42:36And on his death, this box would have been made in his memory.
0:42:36 > 0:42:41Probably for his wife or his sweetheart to keep all those things
0:42:41 > 0:42:46that were treasured by her safely in this box.
0:42:46 > 0:42:49- Here we have the date, 1810.- Yes.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52Well, that's most interesting.
0:42:52 > 0:42:54So the workmanship is quite extraordinary.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57It is absolutely first-class.
0:42:57 > 0:43:03Yes, there are tiny little bits of damage but nothing significant.
0:43:03 > 0:43:07It is, it's good-looking, it's beautifully executed,
0:43:07 > 0:43:10nothing, no detail has been spared.
0:43:10 > 0:43:14So perhaps it's not going to surprise you,
0:43:14 > 0:43:20if by all that I'm saying that I like this box very much.
0:43:20 > 0:43:22Yes, well, I've grown to love it.
0:43:22 > 0:43:25- So you have it on your dressing table?- Yes, yes.
0:43:25 > 0:43:31And if I tell you that it's worth somewhere between £8,000-£12,000.
0:43:31 > 0:43:33Dear me!
0:43:33 > 0:43:36Oh!
0:43:36 > 0:43:38I'm flabbergasted.
0:43:39 > 0:43:41I really am.
0:43:41 > 0:43:44Flabbergasted - that's a word you don't hear much,
0:43:44 > 0:43:48but then you don't see treasures like that too often.
0:43:48 > 0:43:51Here's to the next time. Until then, goodbye.
0:44:09 > 0:44:12Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd