0:00:06 > 0:00:10They say an Englishman's home is his castle and that's certainly true
0:00:10 > 0:00:13of Scotland's most famous writer, Sir Walter Scott.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16His magical powers of invention earned him the title
0:00:16 > 0:00:17the Wizard Of The North
0:00:17 > 0:00:20and enabled him to build his very own citadel.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Welcome to the Antiques Roadshow
0:00:22 > 0:00:25from Abbotsford, near Melrose in Border country.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16We always like a good yarn here on the Roadshow
0:01:16 > 0:01:18and, if these hills could speak,
0:01:18 > 0:01:21imagine what stories they would tell.
0:01:21 > 0:01:26Tales of bloody battles, border wars, courageous clansmen.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30Legends of wizards, witches and warriors.
0:01:30 > 0:01:37From an early age, Sir Walter Scott was immersed in the romance and myth of Scotland's heroic past.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42As a young boy he suffered a debilitating attack of polio
0:01:42 > 0:01:47and to help his recovery, he was sent here, to his grandfather's farm, near Kelso.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Beyond the farmhouse stands the ruin of Smailholm Tower,
0:01:52 > 0:01:54built in the 16th century
0:01:54 > 0:01:57to defend the Border country from English attack.
0:01:57 > 0:02:04Here, the young Walter would sit and listen to his grandfather telling tales passed down from long ago.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08With such a dramatic setting, no wonder they fired his imagination.
0:02:11 > 0:02:17The young boy grew up to be a prolific writer, whose heroic stories took the world by storm.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20His writing financed an even greater obsession,
0:02:20 > 0:02:24a place he called the Delilah of his imagination,
0:02:24 > 0:02:25his home...Abbotsford.
0:02:29 > 0:02:34Sir Walter was quite the collector, hoarding precious objects that spoke to him of the past.
0:02:34 > 0:02:36He strove to give back to Scotland
0:02:36 > 0:02:38a sense of its own culture and history,
0:02:38 > 0:02:41things he felt were being lost under British rule.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48But his home was to be his undoing.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51After the stock market crash of 1825,
0:02:51 > 0:02:55Sir Walter was bankrupted and almost lost Abbotsford.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58"My own right hand shall pay the debt," he said,
0:02:58 > 0:03:05and he spent the last six years of his life locked away here in his study, to pay back £130,000.
0:03:05 > 0:03:10That's the equivalent of £11 million today.
0:03:11 > 0:03:18He almost did it, but the effort destroyed him and Sir Walter died here at Abbotsford in 1832.
0:03:21 > 0:03:23The Border people have arrived in their thousands.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26Here's hoping for a magical day ahead.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28Over to our experts...
0:03:28 > 0:03:30The thing I love about Freddie Fox here
0:03:30 > 0:03:32is that you can just imagine him
0:03:32 > 0:03:34running across the lawns of Abbotsford
0:03:34 > 0:03:37and, of course, once upon a time this was a great hunting area.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40- That's right. - How did it end up with you?
0:03:40 > 0:03:42Well, it was my former boss.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44She gave it to me - well, she died
0:03:44 > 0:03:47and it was left to me and my husband.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49That's not a bad present, I must say,
0:03:49 > 0:03:53and have you any idea whether it's silver or metal or plated?
0:03:53 > 0:03:56No, we just always called him "The Silver Fox".
0:03:56 > 0:04:01Well, he is double the size of most other foxes I've ever seen,
0:04:01 > 0:04:05- that's the first good point.- Uh-huh.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09But perhaps the best news for you is it is silver, it's solid silver.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11Ooh, that is a surprise.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15It's actually marked inside one of the ears here,
0:04:15 > 0:04:18which is quite an unusual place to mark it.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20It's beautifully made.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24It's got this wonderful big bushy tail down here and textured coat.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27I hope you've noticed the expression on the face,
0:04:27 > 0:04:30because it looks like the hunt was out
0:04:30 > 0:04:32and he's very wary about what's going on,
0:04:32 > 0:04:37so I love the pose, I love the expression. It's really, really nice.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39But if we have a look at the marks...
0:04:39 > 0:04:42it's got 1926.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Couple of Ns here, and that's for the firm of Neresheimer
0:04:45 > 0:04:52from Hanau in Germany and those marks prove that it is actually silver.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56Now, a silver fox of this size...
0:04:56 > 0:05:00pretty valuable. By all accounts, you haven't any idea what it's worth.
0:05:00 > 0:05:02Not a clue.
0:05:02 > 0:05:08Well, I would think, comfortably, £5,000-£7,000.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10That is a surprise!
0:05:12 > 0:05:16- My goodness, thank you very much. - You like foxes?
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Yes. We'll have to keep him in a very safe place.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Well, Scottish sunshine and Scottish stones. Tell me about it.
0:05:25 > 0:05:27It was bought in a charity shop.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Goodness me! And how much did you pay for it?
0:05:30 > 0:05:33I think it was like a job lot.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36It was a bag with bits and pieces in and it was about £20,
0:05:36 > 0:05:37about three years ago.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41- That's a dream, isn't it?- Yes. It was, I couldn't believe it.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45Well, it's a pretty rich cocktail of Scottish nationalistic materials
0:05:45 > 0:05:49from the mid-Victorian period, maybe 1860-1880.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Don't forget Queen Victoria was very keen on Scotland
0:05:52 > 0:05:55and Prince Albert really embraced Scotland in a very big way
0:05:55 > 0:05:57and they used to go rock hounding together.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01They'd find all kinds of natural semiprecious and precious stones here
0:06:01 > 0:06:05and the jewellers started to emulate the fashion that they had started.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08And so we have here a lovely range of them, actually.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10There's a cairngorm which is a yellow quartz
0:06:10 > 0:06:14and its brother really, the amethyst, which is a purple quartz,
0:06:14 > 0:06:18and a little sard here, an orange-coloured stone, and a jasper,
0:06:18 > 0:06:19sometimes known as bloodstone.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23All of these are native to Scotland, but possibly the most interesting
0:06:23 > 0:06:26of all are these little sort of white headlamps -
0:06:26 > 0:06:28what do you think those are?
0:06:28 > 0:06:31- Pearls.- They are pearls, and I think they're a very special sort of pearl
0:06:31 > 0:06:33which couldn't be more apposite to the...to the way
0:06:33 > 0:06:37that this bracelet is constructed because they're freshwater pearls.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39They have a rather chalky texture,
0:06:39 > 0:06:42which tells you immediately what they are. I think they're Tay pearls.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45Yet again, Queen Victoria's deeply fascinated with those.
0:06:45 > 0:06:51And then the front of the decoration is arranged like a plaid brooch, a sort of Celtic form,
0:06:51 > 0:06:55overlaying a bracelet which is engraved left and right with Celtic scrolls
0:06:55 > 0:06:58and it's not only a luxurious piece of goldsmith's work
0:06:58 > 0:07:02from the mid-19th century, but the box itself is luxurious.
0:07:02 > 0:07:07It's got a wooden core, it's overlaid with the finest velvet and the finest leather and gold tooling,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10and it closes like a Rolls-Royce door
0:07:10 > 0:07:15and I think with all of those rich ingredients comes quite a rich value.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19I think somewhere in the region of, well, £2,000.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23So from £20 to £2,000.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27I think we're definitely going to follow you around the charity shops.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29- You'll be stalked.- Thank you.- Thanks.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35I love this object for a number of reasons - the first being its shape,
0:07:35 > 0:07:39but secondly it's obviously been made for carrying and throwing around
0:07:39 > 0:07:43and it's got all this strengthening all the way around it.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46Have you any idea where it originated from?
0:07:46 > 0:07:48No idea.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50It came through the family
0:07:50 > 0:07:55and it's said to be a campaign medicine chest,
0:07:55 > 0:07:58for an individual I suppose,
0:07:58 > 0:08:02and I've always understood it was about 1680.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05It came from my father's uncle,
0:08:05 > 0:08:09who was equerry to King George V
0:08:09 > 0:08:13and a long-term friend of King George V,
0:08:13 > 0:08:19and he's inherited it and so on back down the family.
0:08:19 > 0:08:24But I can't think of anybody in the family who was stupid enough
0:08:24 > 0:08:28to go and fight for Marlborough, or whoever it was at the time,
0:08:28 > 0:08:30in the Low Countries.
0:08:30 > 0:08:35It is that, and when we open it up, we'll see the interior...
0:08:35 > 0:08:36but just before I do that,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40this extraordinary decoration on the top where it's actually...
0:08:40 > 0:08:43it almost looks sort of Middle Eastern,
0:08:43 > 0:08:46but I think it's actually made middle Europe,
0:08:46 > 0:08:50so it could be German or Poland or somewhere like that
0:08:50 > 0:08:51but it's an extraordinary
0:08:51 > 0:08:54and, I think, very beautifully decorated top.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Now, let's have a look inside.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58A substantial lock, which you'd expect,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02and lots of strengthening to stop it breaking up while travelling.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05And we open it up
0:09:05 > 0:09:09and look at that - an almost complete set of apothecary's bottles.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13Now, out on campaign,
0:09:13 > 0:09:16it was hugely important that you could dose yourself up,
0:09:16 > 0:09:20because they really didn't have many people there
0:09:20 > 0:09:22to actually help you if you were ill.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25If you wanted your arm amputated or something like that,
0:09:25 > 0:09:26they could do that in a hurry.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29But if you were feeling under the weather,
0:09:29 > 0:09:31you had to really dose yourself up
0:09:31 > 0:09:35and these are the actual original bottles,
0:09:35 > 0:09:39which I think is incredible, because, as you say,
0:09:39 > 0:09:43we're talking about something that is up to 400 years old.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45- That's remarkable.- Yes, indeed.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Any idea what's in the bottles?
0:09:48 > 0:09:53There are legends on the top, but I've never been able to read them.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57I think these are 400-year-old senna pods.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00So if you had that sort of problem in the field...
0:10:00 > 0:10:02Maybe I won't take it out!
0:10:04 > 0:10:06But they are, look!
0:10:06 > 0:10:09There they are...extraordinary.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12It could be a military family, one assumes...
0:10:12 > 0:10:18Well, I think not, I think before him largely sitting on land
0:10:18 > 0:10:22and spending their money unwisely.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24Well, we see lots of 19th-century ones.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28One this old is as rare as hen's teeth, so an exceptional piece.
0:10:28 > 0:10:33I really can't recollect anything of this age and this completeness that has come at auction.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36I would think, to a collector,
0:10:36 > 0:10:41we're talking about a figure certainly in excess of £10,000.
0:10:47 > 0:10:48Wow!
0:10:50 > 0:10:54- Thank you so much. It's really made my day.- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01Well, I've seen hundreds of battlefield dioramas,
0:11:01 > 0:11:04indeed I've made quite a few of them myself,
0:11:04 > 0:11:08but I've never seen one quite as amazing as this.
0:11:08 > 0:11:14The detail is just staggering for its size.
0:11:14 > 0:11:15Where did you get it from?
0:11:15 > 0:11:22Well, my grandfather obtained it from a sale in a guest house...
0:11:22 > 0:11:231930s, 1940s.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27He bought that along with some wood carvings for half a crown.
0:11:27 > 0:11:28- Half a crown? - Half a crown he paid for it.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32My grandmother didn't like the wood carvings, so they went on the fire.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34This was always in your grandfather's house, was it?
0:11:34 > 0:11:37Yeah. I can first remember this when I was about three years old.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41We used to go and visit him, and the first thing I wanted to look at was the battle.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43I'm not surprised. And what we've got is,
0:11:43 > 0:11:46we've got a First World War battle at a crossroads,
0:11:46 > 0:11:50you can see the buildings forming a crossroads of the streets...
0:11:50 > 0:11:54and you've got Allied soldiers and German soldiers.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58You know, I've got to take my glasses off, because I can't see it otherwise.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01In fact, we've got lancers charging at the Germans
0:12:01 > 0:12:05and you can see the German soldiers there with their Pickelhaube helmets
0:12:05 > 0:12:08with the spike on top, you can actually see the spike.
0:12:08 > 0:12:13And if we turn it around... you can see the guns
0:12:13 > 0:12:19and look at the wheels on the guns, their individual spokes.
0:12:19 > 0:12:21- What do you know about it? - All I know is
0:12:21 > 0:12:24it was made by a prisoner of war from the First World War.
0:12:24 > 0:12:29The tile came from the wall of a wash house and the globe came off of one of the light covers
0:12:29 > 0:12:34and the figures are made out of the foil that was inside the Red Cross parcels.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36Red Cross parcel.
0:12:36 > 0:12:42It's incredible! I suppose we have to remember that during the First World War,
0:12:42 > 0:12:47- most of the soldiers called up were conscripts, they weren't professional soldiers.- That's right.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50And so they came from trades, you know -
0:12:50 > 0:12:52in their civilian lives they had trades of their own
0:12:52 > 0:12:56and I have no idea what the man who made this must have done as a civilian.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00- He may have been, for example, a silhouette cutter - you know... - He could've been.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03..tiny little scissors, you cut the very fine silhouettes out.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07Who knows? He might have done something like that.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10But you know, to have made this, he had a lot of spare time.
0:13:10 > 0:13:12It was that or twiddle your thumbs.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14But, you know, I think the most incredible thing to me
0:13:14 > 0:13:17is that every time I look at it, I see something different.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21So do I, after looking at it for 30-odd years since I've had it.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Absolutely astonishing.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27- Well...it means a lot to you, I guess.- Oh, yes.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30And to be honest, it means an awful lot to me to see it,
0:13:30 > 0:13:34because I've never seen anything quite so detailed before and...
0:13:36 > 0:13:42..I would guess we're looking in terms of £1,000 to £1,500.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45- It's a really special thing.- Oh, it's going to stay in the family.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51So did you ever play with this doll?
0:13:51 > 0:13:56No, I didn't really know anything about it until after Mum had died
0:13:56 > 0:13:58and we found all her dolls in a box,
0:13:58 > 0:14:02with a little letter about them written when she was 14,
0:14:02 > 0:14:06which said it's a Japanese doll given to her by her grandmother
0:14:06 > 0:14:09and she called her Butterfly.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12- Mm, well, she's not a Japanese doll. - OK.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16Um, she's a German doll by the firm of Simon and Halbig,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20which started in what is now the middle of Germany,
0:14:20 > 0:14:23used to be in the East, Thuringia.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25They started the factory in 1860
0:14:25 > 0:14:27and they started making all sorts of dolls.
0:14:27 > 0:14:31She's made of bisque and she's made to look Burmese.
0:14:31 > 0:14:35She's meant to be a Burmese mould, character mould.
0:14:35 > 0:14:40Now what fascinates me is that is meant to be rounded.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42It's known as a pate.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46Should be a pate, cardboard pate supporting the wig inside to make it
0:14:46 > 0:14:50look like a proper head and you see she's got a sort of hole in the head.
0:14:50 > 0:14:55- Oh, right.- And it's glued far too much with modern glue for some reason or other,
0:14:55 > 0:15:00because it did come off, obviously, and someone glued it on - maybe your mother did.
0:15:00 > 0:15:05We would have here "S&H" - which is Simon and Halbig, 1199,
0:15:05 > 0:15:09which is the mould number, engraved, if you like,
0:15:09 > 0:15:11incised, into the bisque and fired.
0:15:11 > 0:15:17And she was registered in 1898.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19She's got porcelain teeth.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21- Yeah, they're a bit scary. - Do you think?
0:15:21 > 0:15:23I think they're a bit... little sharp teeth...
0:15:23 > 0:15:29Ah, yes! Do you know, that actually tells me why closed-mouth dolls are more valuable,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32because people prefer them with closed mouths.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36She's got the most lovely silk satin dress on, isn't it wonderful?
0:15:36 > 0:15:38What I call eau de nil colour.
0:15:38 > 0:15:42- Yeah. - And guess how much she's worth.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46- I don't know.- 3,000 plus.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50- Is that being serious?- Yeah.- Wow.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53Do you think you'd like her a bit more now?
0:15:53 > 0:15:55I'm not sure about the teeth still.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57- So back in the box?- I think so.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59Oh, poor girl!
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Poor Madam Butterfly!
0:16:01 > 0:16:03Madam Butterfly, yes.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08If we open this vast book, what have we got?
0:16:08 > 0:16:14We've got hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of samples for blazers.
0:16:14 > 0:16:22It's actually part of the specialist fabrics that we indulge in, in our mill in Selkirk.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24- So, you're still in business in Selkirk?- Yes.
0:16:24 > 0:16:30Because obviously here is a town that was devoted to the textile business and what are you making?
0:16:30 > 0:16:33- Things like this?- We are, but not as many as we used to.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35Obviously the fashions have changed,
0:16:35 > 0:16:39and now we tend to make a lot more of what you're actually wearing today.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42- The tartan.- Tartan. - I mean, it's the great irony.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46You know, for years now I've been wearing blazers. The one day I don't,
0:16:46 > 0:16:48and you bring this book in.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50I had you in mind when I brought this book along.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Well, I'm very, very grateful. What date is it? What's the history?
0:16:54 > 0:16:58Well, this one is actually 1940, through the 1940s,
0:16:58 > 0:17:01but it's one of about eight books that we have like this,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04- and it started around about the mid-1920s.- Right.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08And they were made for the various sports clubs...schools.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12And these are all woven? There's no printing or anything like that?
0:17:12 > 0:17:14- No, they're all woven. - Some of them, to me, are just...
0:17:14 > 0:17:17- they're so tasteless they're wonderful, aren't they?- Exactly.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Do you know what I mean? Who'd dare to put those colours together?
0:17:20 > 0:17:23I think only in the theatre, nowadays.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Yeah, I mean, the trouble is, you've set me a terrible task now.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28I've got to find that blazer.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32In fact, books like this do turn up at auction
0:17:32 > 0:17:34from mills that have closed.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37I think one like this would be several hundred pounds
0:17:37 > 0:17:40because it is such a vision of a particular slice of British life.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43I thought I'd got enough blazers with 11.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46Well, this is one of seven books like this.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48Oh, don't. I think I need to go home. Thank you.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51The Scots love wonderful turrets,
0:17:51 > 0:17:56wonderful battlements and here we are, I think, in the perfect setting,
0:17:56 > 0:17:59reflected here in this picture of Edinburgh
0:17:59 > 0:18:03and this incredible building, the Donaldson Hospital.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05Tell me a little bit about it.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08Well, it was built by James Donaldson
0:18:08 > 0:18:11and designed by William Playfair,
0:18:11 > 0:18:16and it opened in 1850 or 1851, depending on which article you read,
0:18:16 > 0:18:21as a hospital for destitute and vulnerable children.
0:18:21 > 0:18:23And six years later it was agreed
0:18:23 > 0:18:26that they would not exclude deaf children from it,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29and therefore it evolved into Donaldson's School for the Deaf.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Extraordinary building. I mean, amazing.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34- It's a palace, isn't it?- It is.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38- It is, it was gorgeous. - Lovely view of Edinburgh, isn't it?
0:18:38 > 0:18:40It is, it shows in the background
0:18:40 > 0:18:43the Salisbury Crags with Arthur's Seat and, of course, the castle.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46- This is Arthur's Seat here, isn't it?- Yes, it is.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48And then this is the castle.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52- That's the castle.- And then we're looking down. Are we looking west?
0:18:52 > 0:18:56- West.- West. Scott's memorial? - Yes.- This one here? Fantastic.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59And this wonderful sort of Greek Parthenon-type thing.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04- It's the National Monument. - National Monument, in fact, isn't it wonderful? It's beautiful.
0:19:04 > 0:19:10I mean, it's one of the great panoramic views by one of the great Scottish artists, David Roberts,
0:19:10 > 0:19:12and here it is signed large as life,
0:19:12 > 0:19:14"David Roberts RA", Royal Academician.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17So, I mean, look at the size of this picture.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20I mean, we have to step back. It is fantastic.
0:19:20 > 0:19:27And what a beautiful painting by one of the great artists of the mid-19th century.
0:19:28 > 0:19:34I suppose he's best known for his great paintings of Europe and the Middle East
0:19:34 > 0:19:37and he really travelled consistently from the 1830s,
0:19:37 > 0:19:42really probably till about the 1850s and he went everywhere,
0:19:42 > 0:19:47I mean, virtually all of Europe and, most excitingly for us, to the Middle East.
0:19:47 > 0:19:53And so it's really his Middle East works that people absolutely kill for, almost,
0:19:53 > 0:19:55in terms of price, I hope not in any other way.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59And I love the fact that we have these ladies here washing their clothes.
0:19:59 > 0:20:01They don't look very Scottish, do they?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04I don't know what that means, but they look more Italianate.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08- Do you think?- Yes.- They could be somewhere in Rome or something,
0:20:08 > 0:20:10but that wouldn't surprise me because, in a way,
0:20:10 > 0:20:12he was such a man of the world.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15He travelled everywhere and he incorporated it in these pictures.
0:20:15 > 0:20:21- He's actually called "the Scottish Canaletto", and you can see perhaps why.- Yes.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23Not so much water, but there is a bit.
0:20:23 > 0:20:27- Yeah, it's the Water of Leith, that. - It's the Water of Leith, is it?
0:20:27 > 0:20:30- Water of Leith.- Good water? - Depends what whisky you put in it.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33Ah, very important, very important, I like that.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35Janice mentioned the provenance.
0:20:35 > 0:20:40The painting was done in 1851 and it changed hands a number of times
0:20:40 > 0:20:45and in 1896, an art dealer in London offered it back to the school
0:20:45 > 0:20:48- at the original price.- Which was?
0:20:48 > 0:20:51- £200.- That's a lot of money, £200.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54£200. But with the help of a public subscription,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57- they managed to buy the picture back...- Really?
0:20:57 > 0:21:01..on the proviso that it remained within the ownership of the trust
0:21:01 > 0:21:03and that's where it is today.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05- And it's still with the trust today? - Yes.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08Now, can I ask you the important question?
0:21:08 > 0:21:11- Has the trust got it insured? - We do have it insured.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14- For a good sum of money?- £150,000.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18I would put it up a little bit. I would insure it for £200,000.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22Because we don't see these sort of majestic pictures
0:21:22 > 0:21:25by the great David Roberts coming up on the market.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30If it was of Jerusalem, we'd probably be looking at a million pounds now.
0:21:30 > 0:21:35- Really?!- So, to put it context, I'm not saying that Edinburgh is not as good as Jerusalem.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41- But it's purely a market factor. Thank you.- Thank you very much.
0:21:41 > 0:21:42Thank you. Thank you very much.
0:21:48 > 0:21:55This bottle has been handed down through my father's family and his family came from Fife.
0:21:55 > 0:22:01And it's always been told to me that it was a signal bottle for the smugglers in the family.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05- So...- Which is not a good thing, really.- So, you're boasting.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09You come here and boast to me that you're from a long line of smugglers.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11- On telly, really!- Well, there we are.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14And isn't it a dreadful thing to have to admit to?
0:22:14 > 0:22:21But the signal, the way they used it was that, um, if it was full of red wine or red liquor of some sort,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24they would put a light behind it, in the cottage window.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27And it would shine very brightly and that would be a signal
0:22:27 > 0:22:31to say that the customs men were around and not to come ashore.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35And if it was empty and it was just a yellow light, then it was OK.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38The coast is clear, literally.
0:22:38 > 0:22:39To land the contraband.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43I've always been intrigued because it's a very, very old bottle
0:22:43 > 0:22:47and I just wanted to have some advice as to how old it was.
0:22:47 > 0:22:53This dates from 1760-1790, thereabouts.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55The end of the 18th century.
0:22:55 > 0:23:01So, it has a particularly idiosyncratic method of manufacture which is the half-post method,
0:23:01 > 0:23:04which means that the glass is blown into a mould first
0:23:04 > 0:23:08and then the glass is dipped into another layer of glass to double,
0:23:08 > 0:23:10so it's double thickness.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13- And the second layer comes up to here.- Yes.
0:23:13 > 0:23:18And that is characteristic of Continental manufacture and I think it's Dutch. It's a spirit decanter.
0:23:18 > 0:23:24It probably had a cork, because I don't see any sign of there having been a glass one.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26And it's quite well engraved.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30If we have a look at that, it's got a rose on one side,
0:23:30 > 0:23:35thistles coming round here, a kind of tulip on this side,
0:23:35 > 0:23:38and back to another floral motif here.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42And funnily enough, when I was last here doing a Roadshow up in Scotland,
0:23:42 > 0:23:49in Dundee, I went into an antiques centre and there was a sarcophagus wine cellar with six decanters,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52almost identical to this and I've never seen them anywhere else,
0:23:52 > 0:23:54so I think the decoration is Scottish.
0:23:54 > 0:23:59- Oh, I see.- I've never seen them anywhere else, other than Scotland.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01- Good Lord.- So this one, 1770, 1780.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04The story is priceless.
0:24:04 > 0:24:05The value of the decanter...
0:24:05 > 0:24:09- What? £200 or £300.- Yes, yes. - But give me the story any day.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Thank you very much indeed. That's wonderful.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15You've got some Scottish pottery.
0:24:15 > 0:24:16- Yeah.- So what's your connection?
0:24:16 > 0:24:21- I mean, it's called Mak'Merry.- Yeah. - What do you know about it?
0:24:21 > 0:24:26I only know a little about where it was made - in East Lothian,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30about... I'm not sure exactly, about...maybe about 1920.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33I only started collecting a couple of years ago
0:24:33 > 0:24:36with the interest of having something Scottish to collect.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39So, which one started you on this little journey?
0:24:39 > 0:24:41- This one here.- This one here.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43We'll look at the mark on this one as this is easier.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45It's Mak'Merry, M-A-K Merry
0:24:45 > 0:24:47and that was from the village of Macmerry with a C.
0:24:47 > 0:24:51And, of course, it was a little bit of a pun, Mak'Merry, Make Merry.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54And it was also by somebody called Catherine Blair.
0:24:54 > 0:24:59And she married a local farmer just outside Macmerry and she was quite an interesting lady.
0:24:59 > 0:25:05She was a suffragette but she wasn't the sort of suffragette that threw bricks and things through windows.
0:25:05 > 0:25:10She supported the movement by writing letters and she was very interested in women's suffrage
0:25:10 > 0:25:14and women's issues in general and she started off a branch of...
0:25:14 > 0:25:17the first Scottish branch of the Women's Rural Institute.
0:25:17 > 0:25:21And it started off a bit like the WI, they made jams and cakes.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25And one of the early demonstrations they had was pottery making.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27And she thought, "Ah, pottery making."
0:25:27 > 0:25:30So, she literally took over a shed on her farm and started doing pottery.
0:25:30 > 0:25:35- They bought in pieces, so this would have been bought in, white, from another factory.- Oh, right.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38And she called herself the "heid painter".
0:25:38 > 0:25:39And she would help...
0:25:39 > 0:25:42She didn't really teach, but she would help with the designs.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46She would do designs and women could come in and paint the pieces
0:25:46 > 0:25:49and then they could sell them and they kept the money.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52So it really was a women's business to emancipate women
0:25:52 > 0:25:55and to give women somewhere to go socially,
0:25:55 > 0:25:58and also to make a bit of money, because these were poor people.
0:25:58 > 0:26:00And this one here, I've noticed...
0:26:02 > 0:26:06..it says "Mecca" on the bottom, "XXII" which is probably 1922.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09- Right.- Because they started the institute in 1917.
0:26:09 > 0:26:12It was about 1918, 1919 when they started making pottery.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16By the 1930s they'd moved to North Berwick because it was so successful,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19and the Queen Mother bought a set, so there's royal approval as well.
0:26:19 > 0:26:26- Right.- I think this probably is Mak'Merry but it's been signed Mecca, maybe somebody's nickname.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30- Right.- So, although it's not marked, the body is right, the pattern is right as well.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32So, I think it's great stuff.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34You can pick it up quite reasonably.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37- A pie dish like this, which has so obviously been used...- Yes.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39..you probably wouldn't pay a lot of money for.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42- No.- You've bought them more recently. How much did you pay?
0:26:42 > 0:26:46- For this one?- Yes.- Er, I think it was about £15, £16 for that one.
0:26:46 > 0:26:51- I think that was a bargain because that's probably worth about £40 or £50.- Right.
0:26:51 > 0:26:56- And what about these two here?- This one, the first one I bought, 47.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00Right, well, again that's fine because it's worth £60, £80.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02I think this one was the mid-20s, something like that.
0:27:02 > 0:27:06Presumably because they didn't know the mark. Well, that was a bargain.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09- When I got it, I wasn't sure.- Not worth as much as this, £40 or so.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12- And this one?- Right, that one I paid quite a bit for.
0:27:12 > 0:27:14Right, come on.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16Er, 240.
0:27:18 > 0:27:20Mm. Well, um, it wasn't a bargain.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24- Right.- But you weren't ripped off either. It's worth about £300 or so.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27- Oh, good.- Pleasant surprise. - Perfect.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29But I think it's a great collection
0:27:29 > 0:27:32and it says something about the Scottish people
0:27:32 > 0:27:33and the rural way of life,
0:27:33 > 0:27:35so keep on collecting and wave the flag for Mak'Merry.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38- Yes, I will, thank you. - Thank you very much.
0:27:44 > 0:27:49Our experts here on the Roadshow have pretty much an encyclopaedic knowledge of their subject
0:27:49 > 0:27:53but I've been asking them to select just one special item from their own collection
0:27:53 > 0:27:56and something which has been their biggest disappointment.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58Now, Mark Poltimore, or Lord Poltimore,
0:27:58 > 0:28:01as I should call you, because you're from a rather illustrious family.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05Now, biggest disappointment, most wonderful item in your collection.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07- Shall we start with disappointment? - Why not?
0:28:07 > 0:28:09- Bad news first. - Let's get it over and done with.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13Exactly. Well, in the 1870s my family went completely bonkers and decided
0:28:13 > 0:28:19to invest in one of the swankiest, biggest tiaras ever made by Garrard.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23And then times got tough and in 1959 they sold it,
0:28:23 > 0:28:28and it made an extraordinary price of £5,500.
0:28:28 > 0:28:31And I suppose it kept them in, you know,
0:28:31 > 0:28:34port or wine or whatever it was.
0:28:34 > 0:28:39- The Queen Mother bought it and gave it as a present to Princess Margaret on her wedding day.- Really?
0:28:39 > 0:28:45And here we have a wonderful photograph of Princess Margaret in 1960 with the Poltimore tiara.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49- With the Poltimore tiara? - I know.- Because that's such a famous photograph.- It is.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52- And that's your tiara? - It's mine, exactly.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54So that's a big disappointment, my family sold it.
0:28:54 > 0:28:56But needs must.
0:28:56 > 0:28:58Do you know, I'm not sure it would be you really.
0:28:58 > 0:29:00Don't you? Are you sure?
0:29:00 > 0:29:03But it was sold when Princess Margaret died.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05Do you know what it made?
0:29:05 > 0:29:08A million quid. And I could do with a million pounds.
0:29:08 > 0:29:11But I do have a postcard on top of my loo.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16I don't know what to say to that.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20Oh, well, I can see why that is such a disappointment.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24Oh, it's so beautiful. Now, your most prized part of your collection.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27Well, you may have thought I would have brought a picture in.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31- Sure.- And I love my pictures, but actually this is very personal to me.
0:29:31 > 0:29:36This is an album of letters that my father sent from a prisoner-of-war camp.
0:29:36 > 0:29:40And here's a photograph of my father, aged 20,
0:29:40 > 0:29:44and these are all the camps he went to between 1940 and 1945.
0:29:44 > 0:29:48- Gosh, so he was a POW all that time. - Yeah, all that time.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50- Wow.- And he was caught at Calais.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53Calais was the sort of place where they stood firm
0:29:53 > 0:29:55to let the rest of the troops leave Dunkirk.
0:29:55 > 0:29:59- Of course, yes.- They were meant to hold off for about four hours.
0:29:59 > 0:30:03- The British Expeditionary Forces. - Exactly, and they lasted for four days.
0:30:03 > 0:30:07And quite a few were made prisoner of war, and one was my father.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09Goodness me, so what is all this in here?
0:30:09 > 0:30:14Well, this was the first letter his mother got, my grandparents got,
0:30:14 > 0:30:18from my father and it's a standard card from the Germans
0:30:18 > 0:30:21and you just cross out "I am in German captivity"
0:30:21 > 0:30:24- or "I am slightly wounded". - Oh, I see.
0:30:24 > 0:30:27And he was called Anthony Bampfylde, that was my family name.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29- So hang on, "I am slightly wounded" crossed out.- Yeah.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32"I am in German captivity and quite all right. I shall be transferred
0:30:32 > 0:30:36"from here to a permanent camp and will send you a new address later."
0:30:36 > 0:30:39- So this was something that, what, the Germans organised?- I guess so.
0:30:39 > 0:30:43My father never talked about it and he died when I was 12,
0:30:43 > 0:30:45so he was one of these people
0:30:45 > 0:30:47that just never, never talked about the war.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50And I discovered he wasn't a great tunneller,
0:30:50 > 0:30:54but what he really loved doing or enjoyed doing was embroidery, can you believe it?
0:30:54 > 0:30:57And he made this as part of an escape uniform. This is a German eagle.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00He made that? That's incredible. What did he do with it?
0:31:00 > 0:31:01Well, I can tell you.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04And I only found this out because of this album.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07I didn't know about this album until my grandmother died.
0:31:07 > 0:31:11There was this man called Broomhall here who, in 1957,
0:31:11 > 0:31:14decided to tell the Express about this escape story
0:31:14 > 0:31:18and what happened was that these guys, five of them,
0:31:18 > 0:31:21one of them being my father, dressed up as Germans,
0:31:21 > 0:31:25they made the uniform and they bluffed their way out of the gates.
0:31:25 > 0:31:29And Broomhall only had one sentence of German, which he practised
0:31:29 > 0:31:32all the time, which was, "Open the door, you fool, let me out of here,"
0:31:32 > 0:31:36which worked very well. But he said it so loudly and so aggressively,
0:31:36 > 0:31:39the guard then reported back to the main base and said,
0:31:39 > 0:31:44"I just want to warn you, there's this incredibly batey general around, you know, beware."
0:31:44 > 0:31:47And the other guard said, "I don't think that is true."
0:31:47 > 0:31:50And they found them walking down the road
0:31:50 > 0:31:53dressed as Germans, and they were incredibly lucky not to be shot,
0:31:53 > 0:31:56because of course they were spies. Here they are -
0:31:56 > 0:31:58this is a photograph taken by the Germans,
0:31:58 > 0:32:00and this is my father here looking rather fed up.
0:32:00 > 0:32:04In his uniform, look at this. Yes, he doesn't look chuffed, does he?
0:32:04 > 0:32:05All made by blankets, by inmates.
0:32:05 > 0:32:09- That's incredible. - And they all got sent to Colditz,
0:32:09 > 0:32:11and it's lovely to see these letters
0:32:11 > 0:32:13because it gives me a record of what he was like,
0:32:13 > 0:32:16and to think that at 20 he was in a prisoner-of-war camp.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19He'd be horrified that I was talking to you
0:32:19 > 0:32:21and telling the nation about his exploits.
0:32:21 > 0:32:24Well, I'm very glad you are. Thank you, Mark.
0:32:34 > 0:32:36This takes me back to when I was a teenager.
0:32:36 > 0:32:431st June 1967, queuing up for hours and hours to get that fantastic Beatles album, Sergeant Pepper's.
0:32:43 > 0:32:48And this is decorated in the Sergeant Pepper style. How did you come by it?
0:32:48 > 0:32:51Well, we got married in August 1967.
0:32:51 > 0:32:53We didn't have a fridge and the lady I worked with
0:32:53 > 0:32:56said her daughter worked at Philips factory
0:32:56 > 0:32:57and she could get me a fridge,
0:32:57 > 0:33:00but you had to take what came out of the box,
0:33:00 > 0:33:02and this is what came out of the box.
0:33:02 > 0:33:04- So you were expecting just a plain white fridge?- Yes.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07And you got it out and you thought they'd made a mistake.
0:33:07 > 0:33:09We thought it was a poster.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12- Do you know how many they made? - We were told they made eight.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15So a great rarity. And although it's quite loosely based
0:33:15 > 0:33:17on that famous design by Sir Peter Blake
0:33:17 > 0:33:19of the four members of the Beatles,
0:33:19 > 0:33:22standing there with the Madame Tussauds waxworks,
0:33:22 > 0:33:26they were certainly wearing this type of uniform.
0:33:26 > 0:33:27Just open it.
0:33:27 > 0:33:32Immaculately clean inside. Unfortunately, there's no cold drinks inside, on a day like that.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35Sorry about that, I could have left some beer in it for you.
0:33:35 > 0:33:37We could have done with it on a day like today.
0:33:37 > 0:33:40Anyway, for somebody who is a Beatles collector, quite important,
0:33:40 > 0:33:45but I think this is more important as a bit of 1960s decorative furniture, really, in many ways.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48Is it still working, more importantly?
0:33:48 > 0:33:53Yes, it was working until last Saturday when we defrosted it and cleaned it out to bring here.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55So for 42 years, uninterrupted use.
0:33:55 > 0:34:00- Yes.- Well, I was going to say it's a pretty cool item, but I think that's rather a bad pun.
0:34:00 > 0:34:06But certainly a collector's piece, at auction certainly £500 to £800,
0:34:06 > 0:34:08so a good investment and a good fridge.
0:34:08 > 0:34:11- Thank you very much.- Thank you.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14Standing here in the wonderful landscape of the Borders,
0:34:14 > 0:34:18I suppose the last thing I expected to think about was Australia,
0:34:18 > 0:34:22but I'm brought straight to it by this wonderful sketchbook,
0:34:22 > 0:34:28Sketches In Australia By George Whitelaw, 1857-1864. Who was he?
0:34:28 > 0:34:33George Whitelaw was an ancestor of my first wife, my late wife,
0:34:33 > 0:34:37and she inherited this from one of her aunts
0:34:37 > 0:34:40and in turn I inherited it from her.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44What I love about these is they are quite primitive little pen sketches.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47- He was no great artist, let's be honest.- No, that's true.
0:34:47 > 0:34:53But what he shows is immensely detailed. You've got what was quite a small settlement, Melbourne.
0:34:53 > 0:34:58And of course now think of what Melbourne is today, fantastic high-rise buildings.
0:34:58 > 0:35:01- Enormous.- I mean, do we know any background to some of these?
0:35:01 > 0:35:04We don't know why he came out there, but he contracted consumption
0:35:04 > 0:35:07- and he was taken into a benevolent asylum.- Oh, right.
0:35:07 > 0:35:11And he obviously managed to get out and walk about and look at things.
0:35:11 > 0:35:13- Is that him?- That's him.
0:35:13 > 0:35:15He was only a young man, obviously.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18He looks ill in that picture, doesn't he?
0:35:18 > 0:35:20Yes, he does, he looks quite gaunt and drawn.
0:35:20 > 0:35:22That must be right at the end of his life.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24- Yes.- To me this is the most interesting one,
0:35:24 > 0:35:27- because here we have an aboriginal scene.- Yes.
0:35:27 > 0:35:32This was a very, very early period for someone like him to be interested in aboriginal life.
0:35:32 > 0:35:37This was something that you just didn't go near, it was nothing to do with white settlers.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39And again, looking at the caption on the back,
0:35:39 > 0:35:42"The native's home, his house,
0:35:42 > 0:35:45"a few sheaves of bark and twigs is all they have.
0:35:45 > 0:35:47"They erect a fresh one every night
0:35:47 > 0:35:51"and they will not live as the settler, either in town or country.
0:35:51 > 0:35:56"..All their clothes consist of a blanket and native rings."
0:35:56 > 0:35:59- And he's very observant, isn't he? - Very observant.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02This is, to me, astonishing bits of history of that period.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05The other one that attracted me was the reference to gold.
0:36:05 > 0:36:09- Yes.- Here are all these people setting off on the great gold rush.
0:36:09 > 0:36:11- The gold rush. - To try to make their fortune.
0:36:11 > 0:36:15There are lots of letters as well. I haven't read them, but the one I did,
0:36:15 > 0:36:17that did jump out and I did read -
0:36:17 > 0:36:21"My dear Mother, you must make the most of this letter
0:36:21 > 0:36:25"and keep it in memory of your dear boy, who I believe
0:36:25 > 0:36:30"will be at rest in the arms of the Lord long ere you receive this."
0:36:30 > 0:36:31A beautiful letter.
0:36:31 > 0:36:35And there he is, saying goodbye to his mother, who is back in Britain,
0:36:35 > 0:36:41and imagine sitting there, writing your last letter, knowing you'd be dead before she got it.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43Quite a remarkable man when you read these letters.
0:36:43 > 0:36:46Yes, and obviously you've read them all.
0:36:46 > 0:36:50And for someone of his generation to be interested in aboriginal life is extraordinary.
0:36:51 > 0:36:55It's a very rare document and to the right sort of person,
0:36:55 > 0:36:57in the right sort of market,
0:36:57 > 0:36:59particularly in the Australian market,
0:36:59 > 0:37:01I think we're looking at at least £2,000.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04That's very interesting, but it's an heirloom.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07Yes, and I'm sure that's academic, but thank you very much.
0:37:07 > 0:37:09Thank you, thank you very much indeed.
0:37:11 > 0:37:16The earliest card cases I've ever seen date from the 1820s
0:37:16 > 0:37:22and throughout the 19th century they became really, really popular and highly collected today
0:37:22 > 0:37:26and the best ones are what are called castle-top card cases,
0:37:26 > 0:37:31and the one you've brought along here has a nice view on the front here
0:37:31 > 0:37:34of Newstead Abbey, which is Lord Byron's house.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37But on the other side, do you recognise this view?
0:37:37 > 0:37:39Yes, probably, yes.
0:37:39 > 0:37:42- Where do you think it is? - We're not far from it now.
0:37:42 > 0:37:47It's precisely the view behind me of Sir Walter Scott's house, Abbotsford.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51It shows how popular Sir Walter Scott was.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56This was made six years after his death, so it was made in 1838
0:37:56 > 0:38:01by the best Birmingham box maker, Nathaniel Mills,
0:38:01 > 0:38:04and it's one of the most common scenes
0:38:04 > 0:38:07that you'll see on an embossed card case,
0:38:07 > 0:38:10the most common being Windsor Castle.
0:38:10 > 0:38:14So how did it come to you?
0:38:14 > 0:38:17Well, my dad used to go round the London markets.
0:38:17 > 0:38:20He was a butcher and he had a van and this was between the wars
0:38:20 > 0:38:23and he went to places like the Old Caledonian Market
0:38:23 > 0:38:26and he just had an eye for finely-worked goods,
0:38:26 > 0:38:29not very expensive in those days.
0:38:29 > 0:38:31So he paid probably only a few pounds.
0:38:31 > 0:38:33Oh, I would doubt even that, yes.
0:38:33 > 0:38:38Well, sadly this has become damaged here where it's just come unsoldered.
0:38:38 > 0:38:44- So it's an easy job to solder that back, and it's marked along here. - Yes.
0:38:44 > 0:38:48But even something in this condition, damaged like this,
0:38:48 > 0:38:54- still quite valuable, and I would say £600 to £800.- As much as that?
0:38:54 > 0:38:58- Even in this condition.- My dad would have been very surprised,
0:38:58 > 0:39:00having paid probably a pound or two for it.
0:39:00 > 0:39:03- Well, he had a very good eye. - He did indeed, yes.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06In France in the 18th century
0:39:06 > 0:39:09there was huge rivalry between kings and princes
0:39:09 > 0:39:11to commission the most sumptuous dinner services
0:39:11 > 0:39:14and you certainly can't get much more sumptuous than this.
0:39:14 > 0:39:17What do you know about its history?
0:39:17 > 0:39:18Really, nothing at all.
0:39:18 > 0:39:22It came through my father's side of the family, his mother inherited it,
0:39:22 > 0:39:26but he died when I was very young and I've never learned anything about it.
0:39:26 > 0:39:30Right, originally it would have been, of course, a very large set indeed.
0:39:30 > 0:39:32Do you have quite a bit of this set?
0:39:32 > 0:39:34Quite a few more pieces, yes.
0:39:34 > 0:39:41So this is part of really a wonderful service for dinner, dessert and some special pieces as well.
0:39:41 > 0:39:47Louis XVI was the owner of the Sevres factory, and so he felt he was making the very best porcelain of all.
0:39:47 > 0:39:51- Right.- But his rival, the Duke of Orleans, wanted an even better set
0:39:51 > 0:39:54and he went to the neighbouring country of Belgium
0:39:54 > 0:39:55for a set from the Tournai factory,
0:39:55 > 0:39:59and he asked them to make a service that was unbeatable in quality,
0:39:59 > 0:40:02something better than anything Sevres had made before,
0:40:02 > 0:40:04and this is what they came up with -
0:40:04 > 0:40:09a service of dinner services, plates and dishes, a fruit set,
0:40:09 > 0:40:16a shell-shaped dish here from - what an amazing richness - just notice the detail when you look at these pieces.
0:40:16 > 0:40:20- Beautiful, yeah.- Have you looked at them really closely?- No, never.
0:40:20 > 0:40:25I mean, the gilding is sumptuous, individually drawn out, the tracery there is wonderful.
0:40:25 > 0:40:27But, of course, these bird panels,
0:40:27 > 0:40:30the bird painting is really quite stunning.
0:40:30 > 0:40:32There's great detail in that painting.
0:40:32 > 0:40:36The painter was JG Mayer, he really excelled at painting birds,
0:40:36 > 0:40:41and the colours just sit on the surface and they look really rich there and lavish.
0:40:41 > 0:40:45You've got plates from the dinner set.
0:40:45 > 0:40:48That's an interesting shape,
0:40:48 > 0:40:50a shape exactly copied from Sevres.
0:40:50 > 0:40:54That shape had been made at the French king's factory since the 1750s,
0:40:54 > 0:40:58and here Tournai, especially for this service, copied it exactly,
0:40:58 > 0:41:02but they wanted to do better, and better gilding and better painting.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04Do you have a stand for that?
0:41:04 > 0:41:06Do you at all? Is there other bits?
0:41:06 > 0:41:11I'm not sure, because we have a lot of other pieces, but I'm not sure whether there's a stand.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14Because here one's got, this is basically a soup bowl,
0:41:14 > 0:41:18known as an ecuelle, and would have had a circular dish on which it sits,
0:41:18 > 0:41:23painted with the birds and then all little insects all around in the panels.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26That's an interesting shape.
0:41:26 > 0:41:28Unusual, isn't it?
0:41:28 > 0:41:31Isn't it? Yes. Actually holding it there, it's perfectly designed
0:41:31 > 0:41:34for someone who shakes because there you are, it's a trembleuse.
0:41:34 > 0:41:36That's why I'm not holding it.
0:41:36 > 0:41:41That's right, so you can't... you can't spill the soup or spill the drink from it.
0:41:41 > 0:41:44- Would have had a little lid on the top of that one.- Yes.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47- So this one's lost its lid, but again...- Or maybe not,
0:41:47 > 0:41:50- maybe it's still wrapped up. - It's partly wrapped up, is it?
0:41:50 > 0:41:52Yes, so you've got... Well, do have a look for the lid,
0:41:52 > 0:41:54that would really finish this off.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57It'll just give it a little bit of extra design on the top,
0:41:57 > 0:42:00a slightly different design of gilding on this one.
0:42:00 > 0:42:02The service was made in 1787
0:42:02 > 0:42:06which of course is only a couple of years before the Revolution,
0:42:06 > 0:42:09but of course in France in those days, money really was no object
0:42:09 > 0:42:12and so much money and wealth was spent on
0:42:12 > 0:42:17what might seem a trivial matter of a dinner service to eat off every day.
0:42:17 > 0:42:21I mean, it was a huge set, there were well over 2,000 pieces in all.
0:42:21 > 0:42:24But the very large part of it is in the possession of the Queen,
0:42:24 > 0:42:26a lot of it in the royal collection.
0:42:26 > 0:42:30It was bought in the 19th century and the Queen has really quite a large part of it.
0:42:30 > 0:42:34- Really?- But there are bits scattered amongst collections all over.- Mm.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37And, as you can imagine, this is clearly expensive stuff.
0:42:37 > 0:42:42Have you much idea of what it's worth, have you followed the values of these pieces?
0:42:42 > 0:42:45No, no, no knowledge at all.
0:42:45 > 0:42:48Well, we've got plates like these,
0:42:48 > 0:42:50which are the standard form of the service,
0:42:50 > 0:42:57and these were worth between £8,000 and £12,000 each.
0:42:57 > 0:42:58Really?
0:42:58 > 0:43:02Then a fruit dish like this from the service is going to be even more.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04- What are we saying? £15,000?- Right.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08- Just for a dish.- Excellent.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10Really, it's not bad!
0:43:10 > 0:43:13I mean, this is porcelain fit for a duke,
0:43:13 > 0:43:15porcelain fit for the Queen, the best you can get.
0:43:15 > 0:43:17Yeah, glad I never used it.
0:43:17 > 0:43:19That's right, but the condition is so good!
0:43:19 > 0:43:22- Um, do try and find the stand for this.- OK.
0:43:22 > 0:43:24Because then, with its stand,
0:43:24 > 0:43:29- an ecuelle is going to be at least £20,000.- Really? Gosh.
0:43:29 > 0:43:33And put a lid on that, that's another 12,000, 15,000.
0:43:33 > 0:43:35Wow!
0:43:35 > 0:43:39So it's all adding up, isn't it? What are we looking here, sort of...
0:43:39 > 0:43:43- Amazing.- ..£70,000, £80,000 here?
0:43:43 > 0:43:46Gosh, get home and find the rest.
0:43:46 > 0:43:48- It couldn't get better.- Wonderful.
0:43:48 > 0:43:52A real treat for me to see it, so thank you very much for bringing it.
0:43:52 > 0:43:53It's been very interesting.
0:43:53 > 0:43:57After Sir Walter's death in 1832,
0:43:57 > 0:44:00his funeral cortege passed by here on the way to his burial
0:44:00 > 0:44:03and apparently his horses stopped for one last time
0:44:03 > 0:44:06so their master could admire the view.
0:44:06 > 0:44:08And what a sight.
0:44:08 > 0:44:12From the Antiques Roadshow in the Border country, bye-bye.