0:00:02 > 0:00:05I ask you - what is it about this programme and tall buildings?
0:00:05 > 0:00:08So far, I've been up to the top of the Blackpool Tower,
0:00:08 > 0:00:10I've been sent up to the pinnacle of Beverley Minster,
0:00:10 > 0:00:15and to a very windy gantry at the top of the Forth Rail Bridge.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18Now they're saying, "You'll get the best view of Birmingham from there"
0:00:18 > 0:00:20It's 300 feet tall!
0:00:20 > 0:00:23Well, here goes - anything for the Roadshow.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11Do you know what?
0:01:11 > 0:01:14They were right. The view is stupendous!
0:01:18 > 0:01:20We're back for a second visit to Birmingham,
0:01:20 > 0:01:22once known as the city of a thousand trades,
0:01:22 > 0:01:24and from the university clock tower,
0:01:24 > 0:01:29the whole of the city is laid out before you.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35The list of industries synonymous with the city
0:01:35 > 0:01:38and beyond is impressive. But, of course, the West Midlands
0:01:38 > 0:01:40is best known as the home of the motor car.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46In 1906, Herbert Austin is said to have cycled around Birmingham
0:01:46 > 0:01:48looking for a factory where he could start his business,
0:01:48 > 0:01:52and the building he found was an old tin-printing works at Longbridge,
0:01:52 > 0:01:55and the rest, as they say, is history.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58And if you look just through here, you can see his car factory.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04At its peak, Austin employed 22,000 local people at Longbridge,
0:02:04 > 0:02:07making it the largest car factory in the world.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13For his services to industry,
0:02:13 > 0:02:16Herbert Austin was made Baron Austin of Longbridge.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Incidentally, this is Old Joe,
0:02:21 > 0:02:24the nickname for the university's clock tower,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27and it's called that because Joseph Chamberlain,
0:02:27 > 0:02:31father of the Prime Minister Neville was the first chancellor here back in 1909.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36Generations of students have feverishly sat their finals
0:02:36 > 0:02:40in the Great Hall. Thankfully today it's only our experts' knowledge
0:02:40 > 0:02:43that's being tested, as we launch another Antiques Roadshow.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Well, this oil painting, this portrait of a lady,
0:02:48 > 0:02:51is a rather wonderful fashion statement.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53When did you two meet?
0:02:53 > 0:02:55About a year, year and a half ago.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58And what pulled you two together?
0:02:58 > 0:03:01I just fell in love with her, just loved her so much.
0:03:01 > 0:03:03Where did you find her?
0:03:03 > 0:03:05Local auction house.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07How was it catalogued?
0:03:07 > 0:03:11Um, oil painting, possibly Russian aristocrat,
0:03:11 > 0:03:13but that was it, really.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15OK, well, I've done a little bit of my own detective work.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19There's a little inscription on the back of the picture,
0:03:19 > 0:03:22but also top left, there's a monogram
0:03:22 > 0:03:26and a date "92" so that would be 1892.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29The monogram is by an artist
0:03:29 > 0:03:33- J Champion Bradshaw from the Isle of Man.- Oh, right!
0:03:33 > 0:03:38He lived in the Isle of Man, 1891, and then moved to Manchester in the mid 1890s.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Yeah.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43It's an incredible fashion statement. Were you pulled to this picture
0:03:43 > 0:03:46because she was luxuriously dressed?
0:03:46 > 0:03:49I think so, and the jewellery as well.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53I'm interested in jewellery, but I just think she's so lovely.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56I've spoken to one of our other experts about the jewellery,
0:03:56 > 0:03:59and the jewellery dates to the same date, 1890.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02Pearls and gold.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04Again, these would have been quite luxurious items.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06- Yes, yes.- The dress is made in Italian silk.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10- It's beautiful.- So I suspect this was a commissioned portrait,
0:04:10 > 0:04:12possibly by her husband.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17What strikes me, though, is here she is beautifully dressed,
0:04:17 > 0:04:19handmade, wonderful silk dress,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22great jewellery, very expensive jewellery,
0:04:22 > 0:04:25but perhaps not the greatest artist in the world.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28- Not a great society portrait painter.- OK.
0:04:28 > 0:04:29So it looks to me like hubby
0:04:29 > 0:04:33only went half way in terms of his commissioned portrait.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37- That's interesting.- It would make about £2,000 to £3,000 at auction.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40Wow! Wow!
0:04:40 > 0:04:43That's good, that's good.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46I don't think we'd let her go, you know,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49because we just love her so much.
0:04:51 > 0:04:56- So how long have you been living with this cat?- 25 years.
0:04:56 > 0:05:0025 years, and can I ask, where does it reside in your home?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03On a board right by my bed, looking at me,
0:05:03 > 0:05:07so every morning, every evening, I see him or her.
0:05:07 > 0:05:12It's the first face you see when you open your eyes.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13It is indeed.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15And doesn't it scare the life out of you,
0:05:15 > 0:05:17because, I mean, that is one very ferocious-looking animal.
0:05:17 > 0:05:22Well, not necessarily because, to me, I look at it with different eyes.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26As a bronze, I find this incredibly powerful.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31From a sculptural point of view, the man responsible for this
0:05:31 > 0:05:35really understands the anatomy of this particular beast.
0:05:35 > 0:05:40Now, when it comes to species, to me it has all the looks
0:05:40 > 0:05:45of a lioness, but the man responsible is down here, isn't he?
0:05:45 > 0:05:49- Yes, that's right.- Merculiano.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51He was born in Naples about 1860
0:05:51 > 0:05:55but certainly he's showing it in Naples at the Art Institute
0:05:55 > 0:05:57and then he moves to France.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59No surprise there, bearing in mind your accent, I think,
0:05:59 > 0:06:03- is from the other side of the Channel.- Indeed, yes.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05And he's working in Paris
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and he's recognised for being a great sculptor,
0:06:07 > 0:06:12and just looking at the beast, I'm fascinated by the way that
0:06:12 > 0:06:15he manages to get this beast actually gripping onto this
0:06:15 > 0:06:18very naturalistic rock. I mean, it is rock.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21I mean that is just, you know, solid.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23How does it end up with you?
0:06:23 > 0:06:26It used to be at one of my auntie's, in Paris,
0:06:26 > 0:06:31and when she died, my mother offered it to me,
0:06:31 > 0:06:36so I brought it back to England and it has been with me ever since.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39- Fantastic.- 25 years.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42Merculiano is not the sort of artist
0:06:42 > 0:06:46that turns up in any great, you know, sort of quantity
0:06:46 > 0:06:50- in this part of the world.- I see.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52But I would suggest that if I wanted to go out
0:06:52 > 0:06:55and buy this rather ferocious-looking beast,
0:06:55 > 0:06:59I would probably have to pay somewhere in the region of
0:06:59 > 0:07:03between £2,000 to possibly £3,000.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05Oh, good, very interesting.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07I never thought of the price, but it's good to know.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Thank you very much.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20I had the privilege of going to the Princess Margaret sale
0:07:20 > 0:07:24with my sons
0:07:24 > 0:07:27and I found her a fascinating woman,
0:07:27 > 0:07:32and I wanted maybe a little bit of the royal collection.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36Fantastic, a little bit in love with her in a way.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38Oh, yes, I'm fascinated by her.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40Well, the point about royal jewels from the past,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43and indeed any age but our own, is establishing what is the provenance,
0:07:43 > 0:07:46because the provenance is really an enormous part of the value.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48In this case, it's absolutely incontestable
0:07:48 > 0:07:53- because it's in the sale room catalogue here, isn't it?- Yes.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56And they are photographed not only in their own right here,
0:07:56 > 0:07:59but also with the Princess in wear,
0:07:59 > 0:08:04- and so I think one really can't ask for any better proof than that.- No.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08I mean, the colour and the drama of the hat and this, that and the other.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11- And Margaret looking at her best. - Yeah, no, absolutely.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15In my view she always looked wonderful actually, but I think
0:08:15 > 0:08:17that was an extraordinary phenomenon in that she was
0:08:17 > 0:08:20not only born to high rank, but also an extraordinarily beautiful woman.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24- And here we see...- A bit naughty because there's smoke in the air.
0:08:24 > 0:08:25Oh, smoke in the air.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28Smoke in the air and she's smoking a cigarette,
0:08:28 > 0:08:32but lovely with the hair a little bit unkempt.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34Yes, I mean a sort of puckish look, I mean,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38I think there was something about her that was unconventional
0:08:38 > 0:08:41and very charming and a very easy smile actually,
0:08:41 > 0:08:43- as far as I remember.- So do I.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46Yeah, brilliant, isn't that wonderful? And there is the brooch
0:08:46 > 0:08:48to the centre, incontestable provenance,
0:08:48 > 0:08:50- it was there at that moment and it's here with us now.- Yes.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Utter magic, wonderful.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55Those earrings, particularly, I was attracted to
0:08:55 > 0:08:59because of the fabulous picture with her wearing them.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02- Well, they do look rather like hats in a funny way, don't they?- Yes.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05Of course, coral is a very daring colour, actually.
0:09:05 > 0:09:08I mean, it's a good colour but it's strong and shows
0:09:08 > 0:09:11an independent spirit which she certainly had. And they are...
0:09:11 > 0:09:14- they're sort of Sputniks, they're exploding stars of coral.- Yes.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17Heightened with brilliant diamonds in gold.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19And I like this one too very much, John Donald,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23and he is a most important 20th-century jeweller
0:09:23 > 0:09:26and these are baroque pearls, they're misshapen pearls,
0:09:26 > 0:09:30it's almost a reminder of the fact that these are organic materials.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33- Yes.- That they're not those terrible ball bearing pearls
0:09:33 > 0:09:36- that you see all the time. - Yes, not perfection.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Not perfection, but in a way, more than that, they're just
0:09:38 > 0:09:43a reminder that they are natural, and just to draw the eye
0:09:43 > 0:09:47into their lustre, their orient, this strange sleepy silky texture
0:09:47 > 0:09:50that pearls have, they've put some diamonds in there too.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54Just a little flash and then it takes your eye immediately to the jewel.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Might be quite tricky in this instance
0:09:56 > 0:09:59because she'd be wearing it, and one would be concentrating on her,
0:09:59 > 0:10:02so have to be strong statements for royal jewellery.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04Really, really marvellous stuff and stuff with a royal touch,
0:10:04 > 0:10:06the magic royal touch.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09And you went to the sale, and you chose the ones you wanted.
0:10:09 > 0:10:10Yes.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14And you got your bidding form and the tension's mounting
0:10:14 > 0:10:17- and what happened?- My heart was beating when the hammer went down
0:10:17 > 0:10:21and we bought, I think, the first lot we bought were the coral earrings.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23Fantastic.
0:10:23 > 0:10:25And to just have, you know, something that belonged to
0:10:25 > 0:10:29a member of the royal family, particularly Princess Margaret, was...
0:10:29 > 0:10:33Well, exactly. Can you remember how much they were?
0:10:33 > 0:10:38Yes, the coral earrings were £8,000
0:10:38 > 0:10:46- and the John Donald brooch was £11,000.- Marvellous.
0:10:46 > 0:10:51Well, in a funny way, I don't know how one can tell you that
0:10:51 > 0:10:52that's a good price, or a bad price,
0:10:52 > 0:10:55quite simply because it is the only price.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58- Yes, exactly.- This was your only chance to buy these things.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01- Exactly.- And you got them, and they are at a premium,
0:11:01 > 0:11:04definitely the price paid, but the premium is that they are
0:11:04 > 0:11:08incontestable souvenirs of a great lady, now gone.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10Marvellous, thank you.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15I'm of a generation that was brought up
0:11:15 > 0:11:18watching a film called Genevieve and I think like most small boys
0:11:18 > 0:11:21I was fascinated by veteran cars.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24And I remember being taken to the veteran car run in November
0:11:24 > 0:11:26and seeing all that, and I thought,
0:11:26 > 0:11:29"When I grow up I'm going to have one of those", but I never have.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31And so, in a sense, these bring it all back,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34because, OK, you haven't got the car,
0:11:34 > 0:11:38but you've got some amazing lamps. They're yours, are they?
0:11:38 > 0:11:41They are, yes, yes. Well, sorry, they're my father's.
0:11:41 > 0:11:42Well, how are they yours?
0:11:42 > 0:11:45They were originally my grandfather's
0:11:45 > 0:11:49and they were passed on to my father and my father had them restored.
0:11:49 > 0:11:50He didn't have the car?
0:11:50 > 0:11:53He didn't have the car, unfortunately. I wish he did.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55- He was bit of a hoarder and a collector.- OK.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57- But he never had the total vehicle. - Never had the total vehicle.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00He always liked the sort of... almost need to call it the jewellery,
0:12:00 > 0:12:02the aspects that went with the car.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05- Yes. So you grew up surrounded by all this junk, in a way?- Yes.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07I mean, the astonishing thing about these
0:12:07 > 0:12:10is they are looking in such amazing condition.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12Now, I'm sure they weren't like that.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15No, no, they were in very, very poor condition.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17- Is this where you come in? - That's right.
0:12:17 > 0:12:22We're a restoration company based in the jewellery quarter in Birmingham.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27Simon's father, and Simon, visited our workshops,
0:12:27 > 0:12:31showed us these lamps, thought that they were beyond economical repair.
0:12:31 > 0:12:32They were a wreck, were they?
0:12:32 > 0:12:36They were, they were quite bad, and we decided to restore them
0:12:36 > 0:12:41which took in the region of about 200 hours,
0:12:41 > 0:12:46but now they're a fully restored pair of BRC headlamps.
0:12:46 > 0:12:51- What's that?- This is a book for these particular headlights.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55They're a French set of headlights
0:12:55 > 0:13:02and the book explains how the lamps were produced
0:13:02 > 0:13:06and also how they function, and also the cost in 1905.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10- Which is 225 Francs.- Correct.
0:13:10 > 0:13:15Now these are fantastic typical BRC products.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18They've got parabolic lenses, which is very, very high quality,
0:13:18 > 0:13:19they're sort of top of the range.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23They're the 130 model which seemed to be quite common,
0:13:23 > 0:13:28and they would have been put onto a quite substantial grand car.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31What did the restoration cost?
0:13:31 > 0:13:33In the region of about £10,000.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36So that's 200 hours all round.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39I mean, the these is actually down
0:13:39 > 0:13:41to the quality of the restoration.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45It is very easy to badly restore lamps, or car parts,
0:13:45 > 0:13:48and you could have halved the value, or less,
0:13:48 > 0:13:50by having them badly restored.
0:13:50 > 0:13:55They've been done so well that in fact, as it happens,
0:13:55 > 0:13:59the value is about what the restoration cost.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02Which is fine, because they didn't cost you anything.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06Exactly, yes, they were passed down and they're part of our family still.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08Yes, but of course, the you've got to do now is,
0:14:08 > 0:14:11- where's the car? - That's what I need to work out.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14And I'm afraid the car will cost you rather more than £10,000
0:14:14 > 0:14:16but you'll find one and then of course you can restore it.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18Of course. We'll try.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20- Thank you very much. - Thank you very much.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Something rather interesting has happened.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37These two vases have been brought along today for David Battie to see.
0:14:37 > 0:14:42What he doesn't realise is that he did see them about 20, 25 years ago.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45And he valued them at £10,000.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48They've been brought along again today
0:14:48 > 0:14:52and we'll see if he realises that he did actually see them before,
0:14:52 > 0:14:54and see what he values them for today.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57You know what?
0:14:57 > 0:15:00These make the most fantastic ashtrays!
0:15:00 > 0:15:04Because you could smoke as much as you like, put it in that
0:15:04 > 0:15:07and you never need to empty them.
0:15:07 > 0:15:08OK.
0:15:08 > 0:15:12And I once went on a visit to a Maharajah in India
0:15:12 > 0:15:15and somebody had done exactly that.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19It was full up to here with dog ends!
0:15:19 > 0:15:22I think there's a few old comics in there from when I was a child.
0:15:22 > 0:15:23Yes, there are.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26Really? You didn't go in after them?
0:15:26 > 0:15:29No, there's probably some collectors items in there as well.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32These are Chinese, as I am sure you knew.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Made in Jingdezhen, which is the main porcelain centre.
0:15:36 > 0:15:41Brought down in the white that is undecorated but glazed,
0:15:41 > 0:15:44and then painted in Canton.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48And we call this class Canton porcelain.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53The subject matter is more or less
0:15:53 > 0:15:55what you would expect to find
0:15:55 > 0:15:57on these vases.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00We've got panels of audience subjects
0:16:00 > 0:16:03and more on here.
0:16:03 > 0:16:05We've got battle scenes over there.
0:16:07 > 0:16:08Do you know what this is?
0:16:08 > 0:16:09I've no idea.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13- It's a musical stone.- OK.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15If you take a boulder of Jade
0:16:15 > 0:16:18and slice it,
0:16:18 > 0:16:21drill a hole in it and hang it up,
0:16:21 > 0:16:25- and hit it with a hammer, you get a musical note.- Oh, really?
0:16:25 > 0:16:28And they became so skilled, the Chinese,
0:16:28 > 0:16:30that they could tune them,
0:16:30 > 0:16:36and they had what was effectively a xylophone but in stone, in jade.
0:16:37 > 0:16:42It is also one of the eight Buddhistic emblems.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45Round the bottom we've got dragons
0:16:45 > 0:16:50and this gilt so-called flaming pearl,
0:16:50 > 0:16:53which is, again, a Buddhistic emblem.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55Pearl of wisdom.
0:16:55 > 0:16:56How do we date them?
0:16:56 > 0:17:02Well, up here on the neck we've got flat dragon handles.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06And if you see flat dragon handles,
0:17:06 > 0:17:11you're probably looking prior to 1850.
0:17:11 > 0:17:16And I would put these probably 1840, 1850, some time around there.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20- The one thing I haven't mentioned is, of course, their size.- Yes.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24- Where do you keep them?- They're kept either side of my mother's fireplace,
0:17:24 > 0:17:27which they've been there for a long, long time.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29It's not for me to say
0:17:29 > 0:17:34but that chip is not an expensive thing to do.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38- It may cost you 300 or £400 but it would be worth it...- OK.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42- ..and it would look so much better, I think.- I think so, too.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45I mean, apart from that they're in stonkingly good condition.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48So, we come to the price.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53I would be pretty confident that if these came up in a sale,
0:17:53 > 0:17:57- they would make somewhere around £15,000 to £20,000.- OK.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02And if they went higher than that, I would not be surprised.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08- Well, you may be surprised now. - Quite a surprise.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11- Oh, my goodness!- David, you might be wondering what I'm doing here.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13I was listening and it was absolutely fascinating.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17Did anything about these appear in any way familiar?
0:18:17 > 0:18:20Well, only in the sense that they're big Canton vases.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23- They're not come from my home, have they?- No!
0:18:23 > 0:18:27- We've played a very little trick on you...- Oh, no! I hate tricks!
0:18:27 > 0:18:30- ..because these were brought along...- I shan't sleep!
0:18:30 > 0:18:35- ..by Andrew's father, by Eileen's husband about 20 years ago.- No!
0:18:35 > 0:18:39You valued them then! What do you think you valued them for? Any idea?
0:18:39 > 0:18:43- Just to make things even harder! - I might have said 5,000 to 8,000?
0:18:43 > 0:18:46- 8,000 to 10,000. - You said 8,000 to 10,000.- Yeah.
0:18:46 > 0:18:50And so we just decided we'd see if you recognise...
0:18:50 > 0:18:53- You see so much stuff but we thought we'd have a go.- Yeah.
0:18:53 > 0:18:57We do see too much and often they just sort of clock up in your mind
0:18:57 > 0:19:00and your mind doesn't access it, and didn't in these cases.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03- The good thing...- I would've thought I'd have remembered the chip.
0:19:03 > 0:19:05Given you valued them 20 years ago,
0:19:05 > 0:19:09- thank goodness you valued them for more!- Well, exactly!
0:19:10 > 0:19:14So this really looks as though it's had a good working life, this box.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17It's in a very sort of humble condition, isn't it?
0:19:17 > 0:19:21- By humble do you mean "well used"? - Sort of, yes!- Sort of well used.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23It belonged to my mother.
0:19:23 > 0:19:27She would've been 100 or over by now, had she lived.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31I'm not sure whether she bought it or whether it belonged to HER mother.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35As far as I know, it was a sewing box.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38Someone else suggested that it might have been a tea canister
0:19:38 > 0:19:41with little locks to either side
0:19:41 > 0:19:43to keep the tea under lock and key?
0:19:43 > 0:19:47- Well, I think your first guess is right.- OK.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51It's a workbox and would've been used to keep silks and threads in.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55The locks are there, yes, and that's sometimes associated with tea
0:19:55 > 0:20:01but a tea canister or a tea caddy of this date would be much smaller.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04In fact, it dates from around 1790.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08It's made out of pine and then has been veneered in various timbers.
0:20:08 > 0:20:13This section at the top here is yew wood
0:20:13 > 0:20:16and most of what you see is sycamore.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20Just looking inside, the state on the inside,
0:20:20 > 0:20:25it is pretty much similar to that on the outside and it would've had
0:20:25 > 0:20:28this lovely sort of sugar pink coloured paper lining it.
0:20:28 > 0:20:32And over the years, that's simply rubbed away.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35But what I love about this box is that it doesn't look as though
0:20:35 > 0:20:38it's ever been restored, hardly polished,
0:20:38 > 0:20:41- if you don't mind me saying that! - True!
0:20:41 > 0:20:45And it's really nice to think that something of that age
0:20:45 > 0:20:48has actually had a good working life,
0:20:48 > 0:20:51and it's been used and enjoyed and appreciated.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54- Did your mother use it to keep her silks in it?- She did, she did.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56And what I use it for is pens,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00crayons, pencils, charcoal.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03It's absolutely crammed full. I emptied it yesterday
0:21:03 > 0:21:08and the contents cover a huge tray, so it really has worked hard.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11So, really, it's something that's been inherited
0:21:11 > 0:21:14- and been used ever since you've known it...- Yes.
0:21:14 > 0:21:19..and if it was to appear at auction now it would fetch...£600.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22Would it, indeed? Yes, well, it'll never go to auction.
0:21:22 > 0:21:23Thank you.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29Tell me, why have you brought this along?
0:21:29 > 0:21:32I brought the table along initially to have it valued
0:21:32 > 0:21:38but also because the dogs really took to this table
0:21:38 > 0:21:40and chewed the table.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43- The dogs? How many dogs do you have? - I've got four dogs.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45The eldest two are eight years of age
0:21:45 > 0:21:48and when they came together as a couple of puppies
0:21:48 > 0:21:52they chewed the table. And then Ben, he was four-and-a-half,
0:21:52 > 0:21:56he also chewed the table and my puppy at home chewed the table as well!
0:21:56 > 0:21:57You don't tell them off?
0:21:57 > 0:22:01I do but it's more often than not when I'm out that they did it,
0:22:01 > 0:22:03so it's hard to tell a dog off
0:22:03 > 0:22:06- when you're not there to see what they did at the time...- Right.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10..cos they don't understand. But I have moved this out of the way
0:22:10 > 0:22:13so the dogs don't have access to it, with a view to getting it repaired.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16- So now you've upset the dogs? - Possibly!
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Do you know what this table is?
0:22:18 > 0:22:22- I don't, actually, no.- It's called a breakfast table.- Right.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26It's made of rosewood and it's late Regency.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29It's about 1830 in date
0:22:29 > 0:22:32and it's veneered in rosewood,
0:22:32 > 0:22:35so it's quite a good piece of furniture.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39I'm going to tip it down like this.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42The top is in lovely condition
0:22:42 > 0:22:46cos these type of tables, often they split.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49Central heating or being placed in front of a window,
0:22:49 > 0:22:54things like that. But as it happens, this is in very good order.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57It's just down here where the dogs have been nibbling it.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00It can be restored. It would cost quite a lot to do.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03It would cost, I think, as much as the table's worth -
0:23:03 > 0:23:06around £1,500.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08And the other thing I'd recommend is this...
0:23:11 > 0:23:13Give your doggies one of these!
0:23:13 > 0:23:15THEY LAUGH
0:23:18 > 0:23:23What we're looking at is what I think is a real icon of 1970s design
0:23:23 > 0:23:25but to you it's a T-shirt.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28It was my dad's originally, in the 1970s.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30He got it mail-order from the shop
0:23:30 > 0:23:33Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35And it's kind of been passed down to me
0:23:35 > 0:23:38but I'm really interested in that kind of era, that kind of music
0:23:38 > 0:23:41and the fashion, too, so it's a bit more than just a T-shirt.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45Great! Well, let's just talk about the Sex Pistols for a moment
0:23:45 > 0:23:48because you and I know about them but perhaps not everybody does.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51Formed in 1975, they had a very short first career,
0:23:51 > 0:23:53just two and a half years.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56But I suppose what brought them huge notoriety
0:23:56 > 0:24:00- was this single, God Save The Queen. - Yeah.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02Released in May 1977
0:24:02 > 0:24:06to coincide with all the wonderful, happy celebrations
0:24:06 > 0:24:10for Queen Elizabeth II's Jubilee, her Silver Jubilee,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14and they brought this out, a piece of complete anarchy.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18- And here is the Queen with the safety pin through her lip.- Yes!
0:24:18 > 0:24:22- I mean, designed to shock and shock it did.- Yeah, I think so.
0:24:22 > 0:24:23Do you like the song?
0:24:23 > 0:24:26I do, actually. I mean, as you said,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30they don't have a wide kind of repertoire of songs
0:24:30 > 0:24:33but this is definitely one of my favourites.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35It's really powerful in what they're trying to say and do.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38It worked well. Whether you like it or not, it worked well.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42- Exactly. It was a really powerful message that came across.- Yeah.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45And of course, because of its lyrics
0:24:45 > 0:24:51and maybe even because of the design of the sleeve, it was banned.
0:24:51 > 0:24:52It was banned by the BBC,
0:24:52 > 0:24:56it was banned by every independent radio station.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59- It was THE most banned record of all time.- I didn't know that.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01Yeah! Absolutely!
0:25:01 > 0:25:05What relationship do you have personally with this T-shirt?
0:25:05 > 0:25:08Well, as I said, it was my dad's in the '70s
0:25:08 > 0:25:12and he obviously was a lot smaller then
0:25:12 > 0:25:14and I was put in it as a child.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17In fact, my parents put me in it to sleep in it as a baby
0:25:17 > 0:25:20and I have worn it a few times since as well,
0:25:20 > 0:25:23so I think it's too nice to just be kept in a wardrobe,
0:25:23 > 0:25:25I do like wearing it.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27These T-shirts are sought-after now
0:25:27 > 0:25:30- and even though we can see your dad wore it.- Yes!
0:25:30 > 0:25:32And he got hot and sticky in it too,
0:25:32 > 0:25:35but even so, I think we should expect it to fetch
0:25:35 > 0:25:38- something over £200.- Really? - If it ever came up for sale.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42Well, it is a real icon from the 1970s. Lucky you to have it.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44Thank you very much, thank you.
0:25:47 > 0:25:52So, with that terrific cloche hat, it's got to be 1920s, do you think?
0:25:52 > 0:25:56Yes. My aunt was a student at Glasgow School of Art in the '20s.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58- I see.- And the hat wasn't hers.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01- Oh, wasn't it?- No. Hunter came in and she was sitting
0:26:01 > 0:26:04and he said, "Just sit there, I'm going to paint you.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06"Borrow her hat."
0:26:06 > 0:26:09- I see, obeying commands.- Yes, and...
0:26:09 > 0:26:12And she was obviously terrifically good fun, look at her.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14- Oh yes, she was.- She's all teeth and smiles and fun
0:26:14 > 0:26:16and what a lovely dress she's wearing as well,
0:26:16 > 0:26:18with that multi-coloured patchwork.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21- So, George Leslie Hunter.- Yes.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23- he's quite a good artist, isn't he?- Yes.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25- One of the Scottish colourists.- Yes.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29He spent most of his early life in California. Did you know that?
0:26:29 > 0:26:31I had read that somewhere, yes.
0:26:31 > 0:26:32And he didn't really take up oils,
0:26:32 > 0:26:36because he was working there as an illustrator, until a lot later,
0:26:36 > 0:26:39after he came back to Europe, went to Paris. Do you like it?
0:26:39 > 0:26:40Yes, I do, it's very much my aunt.
0:26:40 > 0:26:42She lived until she was over 90,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45but she stayed young. I can remember going up one time
0:26:45 > 0:26:49and there was a new Gauguin print over the mantelpiece,
0:26:49 > 0:26:53and I said, "Oh, that's nice". She said, "Yes, I've got a set of them,
0:26:53 > 0:26:56"but there was a nude so I've put that in the bathroom".
0:26:56 > 0:26:59How many of my 70-year-old aunts would have done that?
0:26:59 > 0:27:02- I thought that was terrific. - She sounds like great fun
0:27:02 > 0:27:04and I can see why Hunter would pick her out from a crowd
0:27:04 > 0:27:07and say "Right, stay there, I'm going to paint you."
0:27:07 > 0:27:10And there's something really quick about this picture, isn't there?
0:27:10 > 0:27:14- Yes.- His other paintings are quite studied and careful, perhaps,
0:27:14 > 0:27:16but this is almost an oil sketch
0:27:16 > 0:27:22and it's got these very bold black lines separating the shapes up
0:27:22 > 0:27:25and then in the middle, this patchwork of pretty colours
0:27:25 > 0:27:26done with a flat brush,
0:27:26 > 0:27:31and then this wonderful wide smiley face.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34It's full of joy, this picture,
0:27:34 > 0:27:35and I think it's just great fun.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39So you've no idea - you've never shown it to anyone or anything?
0:27:39 > 0:27:42No, no. It's Auntie Nancy.
0:27:42 > 0:27:46- My daughter tells me she's having it when I finish with it.- Quite right!
0:27:46 > 0:27:48Would you want to insure it?
0:27:48 > 0:27:52I don't know, I didn't think of it being that valuable.
0:27:52 > 0:27:54- Well, it might cost you a bit. - Might it? Right.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57Well, you'd have to pay premiums on £30,000, I think.
0:27:57 > 0:27:59Really? Oh.
0:27:59 > 0:28:01- Yeah.- Ah, right.
0:28:02 > 0:28:05- It's a bit different, isn't it? - It is, isn't it? Yes.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13Our team of specialists never know what's going to turn up on a Roadshow day,
0:28:13 > 0:28:17but I can tell you that they're all hoping today will be the moment
0:28:17 > 0:28:19when their dream find comes in.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21But for our ceramics specialist John Sandon,
0:28:21 > 0:28:25that did happen some years ago in this Great Hall in Birmingham.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29A little pottery bust. I wonder who he's meant to be.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32- Yes.- Sort of, he's wearing...
0:28:32 > 0:28:34well, I suppose that's a turban of some sort
0:28:34 > 0:28:37with a jewel on his head,
0:28:37 > 0:28:38so a Turk of some kind.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41Well, my aunt had it on her mantelpiece all her life,
0:28:41 > 0:28:44she lived in the same house from the 1920s
0:28:44 > 0:28:47until she died at the age of 94 about four years ago.
0:28:47 > 0:28:49Right, so that's been sitting on the mantelpiece
0:28:49 > 0:28:51- and now come down to you. - That's right, yes.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54What we've got here is a piece of pottery,
0:28:54 > 0:28:57which is clearly shown by his nose being missing.
0:28:57 > 0:28:59And I can see inside the colour of the clay
0:28:59 > 0:29:01- and it chips very easily.- Yes.
0:29:01 > 0:29:03We've got a material called Delft.
0:29:03 > 0:29:07To look like Chinese porcelain, they took a pottery clay
0:29:07 > 0:29:09and covered it in a thick white glaze
0:29:09 > 0:29:12and it looks like a nice white china body.
0:29:12 > 0:29:13It started perhaps in Italy.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17It's best known in Holland, where the name Delft applied,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20and you also get it made in France, and in England.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22And placing where it's made
0:29:22 > 0:29:25- is going to be a very crucial thing to this little object.- Yes.
0:29:25 > 0:29:28Because we go back to quite an early age for Delft.
0:29:28 > 0:29:30Looking at his face there,
0:29:30 > 0:29:35he's wearing, I guess, a moustache and a little goatee beard
0:29:35 > 0:29:42which sort of comes to mind images of Charles I, or indeed Charles II,
0:29:42 > 0:29:44and that's really the period we're looking at.
0:29:44 > 0:29:46We've got a piece here from the 17th century,
0:29:46 > 0:29:49- goes back to, I suppose, the 1670s. - Gosh.
0:29:49 > 0:29:52Anything from that age, we're talking quite a rare piece.
0:29:52 > 0:29:54- Really?- Indeed.
0:29:54 > 0:29:56- Even though it's so battered? - Well, that's...
0:29:56 > 0:29:58- I like to see battering on these. - Oh, right.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01That's telling me more, that it's got some age.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04If Delft has got no chips at all, then it's normally modern.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06It's a very rare survivor.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09I've never seen one like it, I've never seen this model,
0:30:09 > 0:30:12I'm sure it's totally unrecorded.
0:30:12 > 0:30:14Cautiously, one is thinking...
0:30:14 > 0:30:16perhaps £50,000.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18Really? Ooh.
0:30:18 > 0:30:23And it could, I say, some have made over £100,000...
0:30:23 > 0:30:27- Oh, dear. - ..for pieces of such importance.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29- It's a major discovery. - Is it really?
0:30:29 > 0:30:31- Gosh.- It's so exciting, I'm just...
0:30:31 > 0:30:34I'm shaking, holding it here, but I'll put it down carefully.
0:30:34 > 0:30:37- Gosh.- Because it is a wonderful thing, wonderful condition.
0:30:37 > 0:30:39What a piece!
0:30:39 > 0:30:40Well, John, I have to say
0:30:40 > 0:30:44that was a remarkably restrained reaction from that lady there.
0:30:44 > 0:30:46Was she stunned into silence?
0:30:46 > 0:30:49I think sometimes that sort of news is rather difficult to take in.
0:30:49 > 0:30:51How can something that looks so simple
0:30:51 > 0:30:53be worth such a huge amount of money?
0:30:53 > 0:30:57It was a heck of a valuation. Do you know what happened to it?
0:30:57 > 0:30:59Well, first of all, we had to get the piece checked out
0:30:59 > 0:31:02because I felt sure it was rare and early English
0:31:02 > 0:31:04but there wasn't another one known,
0:31:04 > 0:31:07so we showed it to museum experts, specialists in Delft
0:31:07 > 0:31:11who'd dug up on the site of the London Delft potteries.
0:31:11 > 0:31:12Happily, they all agreed with me
0:31:12 > 0:31:15but they all thought it was English, no doubt about it,
0:31:15 > 0:31:18- and the only one known. - How extraordinary.
0:31:18 > 0:31:21And so what did the lady do with it? Has she still got it?
0:31:21 > 0:31:23It's always a dilemma. In this case,
0:31:23 > 0:31:26much as her family loved the piece, it's always been on the mantelpiece
0:31:26 > 0:31:30but at that kind of money, it was really just a worry too much
0:31:30 > 0:31:34so they decided to sell it, through the auspices of a London dealer.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37It was sold to an American private collector of pottery
0:31:37 > 0:31:40and he paid a price just over what I had valued it at
0:31:40 > 0:31:43so it's always a relief to be assured
0:31:43 > 0:31:45- that it really was that special.- Absolutely.
0:31:45 > 0:31:48So it's been on quite a journey then, from Birmingham,
0:31:48 > 0:31:50all the way over to the States.
0:31:50 > 0:31:52Here we are in the Great Hall again, so no pressure, John.
0:31:52 > 0:31:56But who knows? Maybe something equally extraordinary will turn up.
0:31:56 > 0:31:57I'll let you get back to your table.
0:31:57 > 0:31:59Well, let's hope I'll find the pair to it now.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06You see, I started my jewellery career in Hatton Garden
0:32:06 > 0:32:09and when I was told I was going to come to Birmingham for the Roadshow,
0:32:09 > 0:32:12I was so excited as I've never been here before.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15I arrived yesterday and rushed to the jewellery quarter.
0:32:15 > 0:32:18It's a fabulous place!
0:32:18 > 0:32:19I really must go.
0:32:19 > 0:32:22Oh, it was amazing. I went and saw this...
0:32:22 > 0:32:24the Jewellery Museum there with Smith and Pepper
0:32:24 > 0:32:27and it was how the workshop was
0:32:27 > 0:32:32in their day, and it brought back so many memories for me.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35And then today,
0:32:35 > 0:32:38you've brought these most amazing jewellery designs.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41Where have these come from?
0:32:41 > 0:32:44Well, about 20 years ago,
0:32:44 > 0:32:48in one of my rash moments, I decided to build a Victorian steam launch
0:32:48 > 0:32:50but I needed a steam engine,
0:32:50 > 0:32:54so I went and saw a machinery dealer I knew, who had a steam engine.
0:32:54 > 0:32:57- Right.- And he knew we were fashion designers.
0:32:57 > 0:33:03- OK.- So he turned round and said, "I've got something you might like"
0:33:03 > 0:33:06and he said, "I think there's about 1,000 paintings here".
0:33:06 > 0:33:10And in fact, we counted them and there's over 5,000.
0:33:10 > 0:33:13- So you saw them and you fell in love with them.- We had to have them.
0:33:13 > 0:33:15You had to have them. Who owned these?
0:33:15 > 0:33:17Where did they come from originally?
0:33:17 > 0:33:19They came from a company called Bloxwich,
0:33:19 > 0:33:22and that was in Holland Road here in Birmingham.
0:33:22 > 0:33:26The company started in 1918 - very small company,
0:33:26 > 0:33:30and they finished... I think they closed in 1972
0:33:30 > 0:33:32and then the auction was in 1979.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35Right. So, I mean, these were all drawings
0:33:35 > 0:33:39for their costume, they made costume jewellery, did they?
0:33:39 > 0:33:40It was costume jewellery, yes.
0:33:40 > 0:33:43We talk about jewellery-making being a skill.
0:33:43 > 0:33:45Well, to actually paint like this
0:33:45 > 0:33:49- is a skill in itself.- And getting all the repeats, you know,
0:33:49 > 0:33:51- doing the same shape there and there.- Yes.
0:33:51 > 0:33:53And without a computer.
0:33:53 > 0:33:58- Exactly, these are all hand done, hand-painted, hand-drawn.- Amazing.
0:33:58 > 0:34:00Absolutely stunning.
0:34:00 > 0:34:03- This is following history.- Oh, yes.
0:34:03 > 0:34:07In costume jewellery, it is following history and it is amazing.
0:34:07 > 0:34:10For instance, you've got over there Egyptian style,
0:34:10 > 0:34:14and of course Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered in 1922
0:34:14 > 0:34:18and so then, that gave a lot of people the idea...
0:34:18 > 0:34:20- That that's what they'd like to wear.- Exactly.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22And this one, the detail - oh,
0:34:22 > 0:34:26I mean everything is just so, so wonderful. Now...
0:34:27 > 0:34:29..what's happened here?
0:34:29 > 0:34:32I think that was when they were allowed to smoke while they worked.
0:34:32 > 0:34:34- Oh, my goodness.- Or a...
0:34:34 > 0:34:36- These are the actual working drawings.- Yes.
0:34:36 > 0:34:39These coloured ones I think are the ideas.
0:34:39 > 0:34:41These are the working drawings they took to the workshop.
0:34:41 > 0:34:43- These are all signed.- This one too.
0:34:43 > 0:34:46- You liked this one, didn't you?- Yes I do.
0:34:46 > 0:34:48I'll tell you why I like this.
0:34:48 > 0:34:50It's because it's got here...
0:34:50 > 0:34:54other than it being, again, beautifully painted,
0:34:54 > 0:34:57but the detail - in that you could actually take it to a goldsmith
0:34:57 > 0:35:00- and say, "I want it like that". - And that's how it would be made.
0:35:00 > 0:35:05Because he's got the side elevation drawn as well, so you instantly know
0:35:05 > 0:35:07that this is not flat.
0:35:07 > 0:35:11These pieces have got movement to it, they've got the curve to it.
0:35:11 > 0:35:15You know, there's been goldsmiths and silversmiths here in Birmingham
0:35:15 > 0:35:18for over 200 years. It's an incredibly important centre for jewellery
0:35:18 > 0:35:21and it has its own assay office here as well -
0:35:21 > 0:35:23really incredibly important,
0:35:23 > 0:35:26and these pieces, the drawings here,
0:35:26 > 0:35:30which have come from 1918 to 1972.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33- Yes.- I mean, a fantastic wealth
0:35:33 > 0:35:37of all the different historical events that have gone on.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39I would say, because these drawings are so wonderful,
0:35:39 > 0:35:43and they encapsulate such an important part of jewellery history,
0:35:43 > 0:35:46I would say at least, you know, £2 each,
0:35:46 > 0:35:49and you have over 5,000 drawings.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52- Yep.- I mean, £10,000?
0:35:52 > 0:35:55- I think it's fabulous. - Thank you.- Thank you.
0:36:01 > 0:36:05"Antonio Brady with the regards of JVL Pruyn
0:36:05 > 0:36:07"and Willie Watts Sherman, 1866".
0:36:07 > 0:36:11Does that inscription have any connection with you and your family?
0:36:11 > 0:36:13Yes, it does.
0:36:13 > 0:36:19Antonio Brady was my husband's great-great-grandfather
0:36:19 > 0:36:22in the early part of the 19th century.
0:36:22 > 0:36:26He was a victualler in the Navy and this was his tankard.
0:36:26 > 0:36:30It was given to him when he was in America.
0:36:30 > 0:36:33You've hinted at something I was hoping you might say,
0:36:33 > 0:36:35and that is America.
0:36:35 > 0:36:38Because they're two very different pieces here
0:36:38 > 0:36:40and this, as you rightly say, is American.
0:36:40 > 0:36:47It's rather nicely made. It's got this fabulous cast finial here
0:36:47 > 0:36:51of a very muscular figure pulling this medallion,
0:36:51 > 0:36:54so it's got strength to it, it's a really characterful piece of silver.
0:36:54 > 0:36:57But most important of all,
0:36:57 > 0:36:59on the bottom,
0:36:59 > 0:37:01- it's got "Tiffany and Company".- Yes.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04And this is an early Tiffany mark.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07- Oh, right.- And the inscription, 1866,
0:37:07 > 0:37:11is almost certainly about the time that the tankard was made.
0:37:11 > 0:37:13So, you've got a good piece of silver
0:37:13 > 0:37:17by the best American makers of the period
0:37:17 > 0:37:20and of course, Tiffany's still going,
0:37:20 > 0:37:22- still a very big prominent name.- Yes.
0:37:22 > 0:37:27But it's not often you see a nice tankard like this from that period.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30Moving on to this vase,
0:37:30 > 0:37:32this is very English.
0:37:32 > 0:37:36- Yes.- Personally, I absolutely love it.
0:37:36 > 0:37:41If we look at the marks, it's got some marks on the front - "G of H".
0:37:41 > 0:37:44Well, originally that stood for "Guild of Handicrafts"
0:37:44 > 0:37:48- but in later years, it actually stood for George Hart.- Yes.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51And it's got a date letter for 1933.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56- Right.- This is a wonderful example of Arts and Crafts silver.
0:37:56 > 0:37:59And if I tell you that Arts and Crafts silver at the moment
0:37:59 > 0:38:02- is on an all-time high...- Oh.
0:38:02 > 0:38:07- ..hopefully that might get you a little bit excited.- Gosh, yes.
0:38:07 > 0:38:09But is there any history you know about this piece?
0:38:09 > 0:38:11It doesn't go back as far in the family.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15My mother-in-law gave it to me about 30 years ago.
0:38:15 > 0:38:17She lived in Chipping Campden,
0:38:17 > 0:38:20- so it's not far from home. - Ah, that's right.
0:38:20 > 0:38:23And an elderly lady living next door was moving house
0:38:23 > 0:38:27and asked my mother-in-law whether she would like to choose a memento,
0:38:27 > 0:38:30and my mother-in-law always said she loved that vase,
0:38:30 > 0:38:35- I think because her birth sign is Pisces.- Ah.
0:38:35 > 0:38:37And so she loved the fish
0:38:37 > 0:38:42and so she chose that. And then later on, she gave it to me.
0:38:42 > 0:38:44You mentioned Chipping Campden, which, of course,
0:38:44 > 0:38:48was really one of the birth places of the Arts and Crafts movement
0:38:48 > 0:38:52as Charles Ashbee moved his business from London to Chipping Campden.
0:38:52 > 0:38:58It's typical of their work, it's very stylish, it's beautifully made.
0:38:58 > 0:39:02It's got a horn body with the silver overlay of fish and reeds.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06I mean, a really great piece of design.
0:39:06 > 0:39:10Now, we've got to come to what these things might be worth.
0:39:10 > 0:39:17I suppose the Tiffany piece, being as early as it is,
0:39:17 > 0:39:21is going to be worth in the region of £600 to £800.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23Gosh.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26The vase, though, may surprise you.
0:39:26 > 0:39:29- Yes?- How about £2,000 to £2,500?
0:39:31 > 0:39:32Good gracious!
0:39:33 > 0:39:36- Goodness!- You've made my day by bringing it along. Thank you.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38Thank you, thank you very much.
0:39:39 > 0:39:42I think your friend here is suffering from
0:39:42 > 0:39:45what has more recently been known as a wardrobe malfunction.
0:39:45 > 0:39:49- She seems to be revealing quite a lot.- Sort of decolletage.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53Yes, and she's certainly a very sort of sensuous lady, isn't she?
0:39:53 > 0:39:54She has a lovely smooth touch.
0:39:54 > 0:39:58Lovely, lovely finish, it's like really polished marble, isn't it?
0:39:58 > 0:40:01- Mm-hmm.- Do you know what this wonderful thing is made from?
0:40:01 > 0:40:03Absolutely no idea.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05I'm afraid we've just known her for a very long time
0:40:05 > 0:40:08but we've no idea where she comes from, what's she's made of
0:40:08 > 0:40:10or who she really is.
0:40:10 > 0:40:13Well, have you ever noticed the mark impressed on the back?
0:40:13 > 0:40:15- No.- It says "Copeland".
0:40:15 > 0:40:20- Oh. No.- Copeland were makers of Parian porcelain.
0:40:20 > 0:40:21Oh, right.
0:40:21 > 0:40:23It's a wonderful type of porcelain
0:40:23 > 0:40:27- that was invented to simulate polished marble.- Oh, OK, right.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29She's not real marble,
0:40:29 > 0:40:33she's a 19th-century thing designed to look glamorous and sensuous.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35She looks a kind of lady with personality.
0:40:35 > 0:40:37Well, as a family, we always call her Alice
0:40:37 > 0:40:40but my father was always convinced she was actually the Empress Livia.
0:40:40 > 0:40:44- Right.- But Alice is what she's been all my life and my father's life.
0:40:44 > 0:40:48- Well, she can stay as Alice, but she's actually Clyte.- Oh, right.
0:40:48 > 0:40:54And she is copied from a Greco-Roman sculpture, marble,
0:40:54 > 0:40:56- in the British Museum.- Oh.
0:40:56 > 0:41:01And she's a really famous image, an iconic figure in British art,
0:41:01 > 0:41:04- so this would have been a very well-known image in the 19th century.- Right.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08And this particular copy is modelled by a man called Delpech
0:41:08 > 0:41:12in about 1855, although the bust is probably a little bit later.
0:41:12 > 0:41:14The Parian market is not strong at the moment
0:41:14 > 0:41:16but I don't think that matters.
0:41:16 > 0:41:20I think she is an extremely beautiful and charming thing
0:41:20 > 0:41:23which many people would like to own.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26So, I think a reasonable, sensible,
0:41:26 > 0:41:29cautious estimate would be of
0:41:29 > 0:41:32between £800 and £1,200.
0:41:32 > 0:41:34Really? Oh, that's good.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37Not that we'd get rid of her, she's very much passed down the line.
0:41:39 > 0:41:42We're already sorting out who'll have her in the fourth generation.
0:41:42 > 0:41:43That's wonderful.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54Well, I guess you've worked out this is a pretty nice thing,
0:41:54 > 0:41:56so why have you brought it along?
0:41:56 > 0:41:58Well, it's been in the glass cabinet at home
0:41:58 > 0:42:00since it's been passed down through the family
0:42:00 > 0:42:02so I thought I'd bring it along today
0:42:02 > 0:42:05and see if it was... If you can tell me anything about it, really.
0:42:05 > 0:42:09Well, I can. One of the things... I mean, I know it, to start with.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12- I mean you brought it out and I knew exactly what it was.- Right.
0:42:12 > 0:42:17But it's one of these things that it is exactly what it says on the tin
0:42:17 > 0:42:19- because it's all written here. - Right, yeah.
0:42:19 > 0:42:21And had you noticed that?
0:42:21 > 0:42:23I'd noticed the "Orrefors", yes.
0:42:23 > 0:42:28So, basically, you have "Orrefors, Lindstrand,"
0:42:28 > 0:42:31- then a digit, and then a couple of letters.- Right.
0:42:31 > 0:42:33And Orrefors is the great...
0:42:33 > 0:42:37- the greatest glassworks of the 20th century in Sweden.- Right.
0:42:37 > 0:42:39Based in a village called Orrefors.
0:42:39 > 0:42:41- Amazing, I don't know where they got the name.- Right.
0:42:41 > 0:42:45Vicke Lindstrand is the best designer of the 1930s for Orrefors
0:42:45 > 0:42:49- and this is Vicke Lindstrand because it's got his name on it.- OK.
0:42:49 > 0:42:53And it's 1939, it's just before the outbreak of war,
0:42:53 > 0:42:57- which Sweden was a non-combatant in. - Right.- A neutral country.
0:42:57 > 0:43:01- And it just works, doesn't it? - It does, yes.- Don't you think?
0:43:01 > 0:43:04- Yes, yes.- The baby blowing the bubbles, and the optics of glass
0:43:04 > 0:43:09allow that to make appear that the baby's blowing the bubbles
0:43:09 > 0:43:11- out of the pipe...- Yeah. - And the bubbles have spread.
0:43:11 > 0:43:15- Just floating.- All over. And it's just a really good use.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19- It itself is a bubble.- Is it a vase or...?- It's an object.- Right.
0:43:19 > 0:43:23It's an object. I mean, if you stuck a daff in there, you'd be daft.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25- Right. OK.- That's not what you do with it.- Yeah.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28What you do is, you look at that, you put it in the light,
0:43:28 > 0:43:31- get it out of the cabinet and put it out.- In the light.- In the light.
0:43:31 > 0:43:34Because that's a nice thing, worth 500 quid.
0:43:34 > 0:43:38£500. Yes, brilliant.
0:43:38 > 0:43:40I'm glad I brought it along, yes. Thank you.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46They say an owner looks like his pet, so...
0:43:46 > 0:43:47Thanks very much indeed.
0:43:47 > 0:43:49What are we to make of this?
0:43:49 > 0:43:53Well, he's supposed to be a Staffordshire Bull, OK,
0:43:53 > 0:43:57he was a real live dog about 150 years ago
0:43:57 > 0:44:01and he's been in my family ever since, sort of thing.
0:44:01 > 0:44:04He's supposed to be a Staffordshire Bull Terrier? He's miniscule.
0:44:04 > 0:44:08Well, he was. I think he's just a throwback of some description.
0:44:08 > 0:44:10- Has he got a name?- Yeah.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12"The Dog".
0:44:12 > 0:44:13FIONA LAUGHS
0:44:16 > 0:44:18Growing up in Scotland,
0:44:18 > 0:44:21I always wanted a Norah Wellings Highland doll.
0:44:23 > 0:44:27I mean, made by Chad Valley and Norah Wellings had her own factory
0:44:27 > 0:44:31and she's really regarded as the greatest maker of felt dolls
0:44:31 > 0:44:34- that Britain has ever produced.- Yes.
0:44:34 > 0:44:37You've got a wonderful display here. Where did you get them?
0:44:37 > 0:44:40Well, they're from Chad Valley in Wellington
0:44:40 > 0:44:44and when it closed down, my father's friend's wife, who worked there,
0:44:44 > 0:44:46he bought them off her
0:44:46 > 0:44:50and they've just sat in tissue paper for the last 40 years, I'm afraid,
0:44:50 > 0:44:54although when I was a girl, they sat on a shelf, my pride and joy.
0:44:54 > 0:44:57And so you were 10 years old...
0:44:57 > 0:44:59Yes, 10 or 11, about that, yes.
0:44:59 > 0:45:02And you opened up all these dolls?
0:45:02 > 0:45:03Yeah. Christmas.
0:45:03 > 0:45:06Like winning the lottery all in one then, it really was.
0:45:06 > 0:45:10- It's sad to think of them in tissue paper, I have to say.- It is, yes.
0:45:10 > 0:45:12But because they've been in tissue paper,
0:45:12 > 0:45:14- they're in fantastic condition.- Yes.
0:45:14 > 0:45:19I see a lot of Norah Wellings dolls that are not in very good condition
0:45:19 > 0:45:23and of course condition is something that collectors really, really want.
0:45:23 > 0:45:26- Yes.- And of course, they're all quite different.
0:45:26 > 0:45:29This is probably the most common one.
0:45:29 > 0:45:33- Interestingly, 70% of her dolls were exported.- Oh, right.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36- And a lot of them went onto cruise liners and were sold as gifts.- Yes.
0:45:36 > 0:45:40There's a very big collecting market in the States for these dolls.
0:45:40 > 0:45:41These ones here
0:45:41 > 0:45:43are much more unusual,
0:45:43 > 0:45:45and in actual fact, they did make
0:45:45 > 0:45:48- quite a lot of the Scotsman... - Oh, right.
0:45:48 > 0:45:50..because it was very, very popular,
0:45:50 > 0:45:52again being exported to Canada and America.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54What I love about them,
0:45:54 > 0:45:56and what I've always loved about them,
0:45:56 > 0:45:59- is how on earth did she do those ears?- I know!
0:45:59 > 0:46:02I mean, they were obviously done separately,
0:46:02 > 0:46:04and they're so distinctive,
0:46:04 > 0:46:07- they're Norah Wellings' ears. - Yes, yes.
0:46:07 > 0:46:09Most of them would be,
0:46:09 > 0:46:12I would say, about £100 each,
0:46:12 > 0:46:15but of course, some of the rarer ones
0:46:15 > 0:46:17could easily be £200 each,
0:46:17 > 0:46:20so I think we're looking at a collection
0:46:20 > 0:46:24of certainly in excess of £1,000. Probably £1,500.
0:46:24 > 0:46:27Oh, wonderful, thank you. That's lovely.
0:46:27 > 0:46:29Life on the Roadshow is about all sorts of things,
0:46:29 > 0:46:31but certainly what it brings home to us,
0:46:31 > 0:46:33talking to people like you,
0:46:33 > 0:46:37is the enduring interest in wartime activities.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39I'm very interested in wartime history,
0:46:39 > 0:46:42I'm just too young to have been part of it, but my parents were -
0:46:42 > 0:46:45like so many of us - and what fascinates me is
0:46:45 > 0:46:48there's still aspects of that story
0:46:48 > 0:46:52that have never been told, and I think you've brought me one here.
0:46:52 > 0:46:55What is the Snapshots From Home League?
0:46:55 > 0:46:59Well it was a scheme introduced by the YMCA
0:46:59 > 0:47:01during the First World War.
0:47:01 > 0:47:03This album relates to the Second World War.
0:47:03 > 0:47:05The scheme was introduced in the First World War
0:47:05 > 0:47:09but it was part of their welfare work with troops
0:47:09 > 0:47:12to try and maintain contact between
0:47:12 > 0:47:14- soldiers and their families.- Right.
0:47:14 > 0:47:16This scheme operated by the YMCA
0:47:16 > 0:47:20distributing forms for the soldiers to complete,
0:47:20 > 0:47:23to request photographs of their loved ones,
0:47:23 > 0:47:25their pets, or whatever.
0:47:25 > 0:47:28They returned the forms to the YMCA's headquarters,
0:47:28 > 0:47:31and these were then distributed to amateur photographers
0:47:31 > 0:47:33that the YMCA had recruited.
0:47:33 > 0:47:36The photographers then went out
0:47:36 > 0:47:40- and made photographs of the families, usually in the family home.- Yes.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43And then the photographers
0:47:43 > 0:47:46posted on the photographs to the individual men.
0:47:46 > 0:47:50So the soldier serving in the Air Force in India - or whatever it might be -
0:47:50 > 0:47:52he could say, "Oh, I haven't seen my mum for three years.
0:47:52 > 0:47:55- "Can you go and photograph her?" - Yes, absolutely.
0:47:55 > 0:47:57So, Miss J Cook - who was she?
0:47:57 > 0:48:01Jean Cook was a teacher, living in Sussex,
0:48:01 > 0:48:05and she was recruited as one of these tens of thousands of photographers.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08So she was just an ordinary person...
0:48:08 > 0:48:10- Who could take pictures.- Yes. - And looking...
0:48:10 > 0:48:14- just instantly at the pictures, they're pictures anybody could have taken.- Yes.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17- They're not smart photographs.- No. - They're snaps.- Yes.
0:48:17 > 0:48:19Hence the snapshot title.
0:48:19 > 0:48:21I think... let's see if we can tell a story.
0:48:21 > 0:48:23Yes, here's one.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25I mean, this is picked at random.
0:48:25 > 0:48:30So this is the form that Driver Knight filled in.
0:48:30 > 0:48:33So, he sent that back and he gave the home address
0:48:33 > 0:48:38- and then the photographs came and they were sent by Miss Cook.- Yes.
0:48:38 > 0:48:40So she had the contact with the soldier.
0:48:40 > 0:48:42This is one, quite a good one I think,
0:48:42 > 0:48:45so it's from...
0:48:45 > 0:48:48Mr Roselle, 1942.
0:48:48 > 0:48:50He's on the Revenge or something like that
0:48:50 > 0:48:52or he's at a base called Revenge.
0:48:52 > 0:48:57"Dear Miss Cook, I have just received a letter from home
0:48:57 > 0:49:00"and enclosed in it were some delightful snaps of my family.
0:49:00 > 0:49:03"I am writing to thank you from the bottom of my heart
0:49:03 > 0:49:05"for these grand keepsakes
0:49:05 > 0:49:08"and I must say, my family all looked well."
0:49:08 > 0:49:11- So his whole life is improved by it, isn't it?- Yes, it is.
0:49:11 > 0:49:13So Jean Cook just went round
0:49:13 > 0:49:17day after day, taking photographs of ordinary people?
0:49:17 > 0:49:21Yes. I understand she used a bicycle and got on her bike after school
0:49:21 > 0:49:24and visited families to take these photographs.
0:49:24 > 0:49:27- And she was one of thousands. - Yes, tens of thousands, yes.
0:49:27 > 0:49:31In different parts of Britain. I think this is a wonderful record
0:49:31 > 0:49:32- of how things were.- Yes.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35We know about all the front line stuff, it's all documented,
0:49:35 > 0:49:38but when you think of this vast support system this represents,
0:49:38 > 0:49:42- it's almost like that sort of mass observation thing, isn't it?- It is.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45Where we're recording ordinary people in their lives.
0:49:45 > 0:49:48And you can imagine Jean Cook knocking on the door saying,
0:49:48 > 0:49:50- "Can I just take a picture?" - "What, now? All right."
0:49:50 > 0:49:52- "Just sit there", you know, and off she goes.- Yes, yes.
0:49:52 > 0:49:56And I just have this image of these women, mostly, I imagine,
0:49:56 > 0:49:58cycling all over Britain, taking photographs.
0:49:58 > 0:50:03And all these troops who were, sort of, reassured by that contact home.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07Of course now it's quite different, I mean, it's easy, isn't it?
0:50:07 > 0:50:09It is, but I can really appreciate this,
0:50:09 > 0:50:13- the resonance of this. My daughter's in the army.- Right.
0:50:13 > 0:50:17So I can understand very much how important it is, to keep in touch.
0:50:17 > 0:50:20I mean it's very hard to think of things like this in terms of value.
0:50:20 > 0:50:25I mean, personally, I'd love to pay £100, £200 for it,
0:50:25 > 0:50:29simply because I'd like to feel that I'm part of that story.
0:50:29 > 0:50:30But I think it's actually irrelevant.
0:50:30 > 0:50:33It's really about the contact between these people,
0:50:33 > 0:50:35what it meant to all of them.
0:50:35 > 0:50:37I thought I knew a lot about the war but, you know,
0:50:37 > 0:50:39you've taught me something new
0:50:39 > 0:50:41and I'm delighted to be able to open
0:50:41 > 0:50:46- a new chapter of memory and experience. Thank you.- Thank you.
0:51:01 > 0:51:04This is a splendid loving cup.
0:51:04 > 0:51:06They call these loving cups, with two handles,
0:51:06 > 0:51:11and made to commemorate the Worcester Corporation Sports Day
0:51:11 > 0:51:13of 100 years ago.
0:51:13 > 0:51:16That was Edward VII's coronation,
0:51:16 > 0:51:18- wasn't it, really? Good, wasn't it?- Yes.
0:51:18 > 0:51:19How did you get hold of it?
0:51:19 > 0:51:22It was left to me by my mother when she died,
0:51:22 > 0:51:24because she knew that I liked pots
0:51:24 > 0:51:28and it was won by my great uncle in 1911,
0:51:28 > 0:51:31as far as we know, for the sports.
0:51:31 > 0:51:34- And this is him in here, is it? - This is him, yes.
0:51:34 > 0:51:36- Which one is he? He's the cyclist there.- That's right.
0:51:36 > 0:51:38Not necessarily for a cycle race,
0:51:38 > 0:51:41this could be for any sort of sports day, couldn't it?
0:51:41 > 0:51:44But wonderful, with the city coat of arms and motto,
0:51:44 > 0:51:49and everything, and wonderful blue ground. Royal Worcester, of course,
0:51:49 > 0:51:50but the glory of it, to me,
0:51:50 > 0:51:55- is this side and this wonderful painting.- Beautiful.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59It's signed by the great fruit painter of all time.
0:51:59 > 0:52:04- Really? I didn't know that.- This is Richard Sebright - R Sebright.
0:52:04 > 0:52:06It's superb painting of fruit
0:52:06 > 0:52:08and the gilding around it is magnificent.
0:52:08 > 0:52:10It is beautiful, yes, it is.
0:52:10 > 0:52:13A lovely, lovely cup. It's going to be worth a fair bit of money.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15- Really?- Yeah.- Oh.
0:52:15 > 0:52:19I suppose you're looking at a pot, with this marvellous painting here,
0:52:19 > 0:52:21- £1,000.- Oh, golly.
0:52:23 > 0:52:26- So look after it.- Yes, I'll look after it. We treasure it.
0:52:26 > 0:52:27- It's beautiful.- Yes.
0:52:29 > 0:52:31Last time we came to Birmingham,
0:52:31 > 0:52:35we had a fantastic valuation of about £50,000 on one item.
0:52:35 > 0:52:37And rumour's going round the experts,
0:52:37 > 0:52:40that this could be another big-ticket item,
0:52:40 > 0:52:41so, I'm just going to sit down here
0:52:41 > 0:52:44and have a little listen to what they're going to say.
0:52:44 > 0:52:47You could tell from the far side of a football pitch
0:52:47 > 0:52:49that a box of this quality
0:52:49 > 0:52:53has got to have something wonderful in it.
0:52:53 > 0:52:55Just look at the beautiful engraved brass inlay
0:52:55 > 0:52:58of these coat of arms.
0:52:58 > 0:53:01They look vaguely familiar to me.
0:53:01 > 0:53:02Do you know whose they are?
0:53:02 > 0:53:04Yes, I do, they're Spencer Churchill's crest.
0:53:04 > 0:53:08The two shields, crossed shields
0:53:08 > 0:53:11and I bought it because of Lady Diana -
0:53:11 > 0:53:13then Princess Diana -
0:53:13 > 0:53:16and I fell in love with it.
0:53:16 > 0:53:18I'm not surprised.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21You're talking of two of the most famous families
0:53:21 > 0:53:24in the British Isles -
0:53:24 > 0:53:26- the Spencers and the Churchills. - Quite.
0:53:26 > 0:53:27And I've got a feeling
0:53:27 > 0:53:31- that something good is going to be inside.- Oh, yes, oh, yes.
0:53:33 > 0:53:34Wow!
0:53:34 > 0:53:38Absolutely stunning!
0:53:38 > 0:53:41Let's have a look in closer detail.
0:53:41 > 0:53:44A beautiful box, made in silver gilt
0:53:44 > 0:53:47and silver, lovely combination,
0:53:47 > 0:53:51just makes it a bit more exciting than either completely gilding it.
0:53:51 > 0:53:53- More work involved, so, you know.- Oh, yes.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57Absolutely stunning quality,
0:53:57 > 0:54:02beautifully engraved in the centre here with the same armorials,
0:54:02 > 0:54:06but the condition looks quite amazing.
0:54:06 > 0:54:08Travelling sets like this
0:54:08 > 0:54:12first started appearing in the early 19th century,
0:54:12 > 0:54:14and as the Grand Tour
0:54:14 > 0:54:17became fashionable throughout the 19th century,
0:54:17 > 0:54:19these boxes got more and more elaborate,
0:54:19 > 0:54:23and well known companies, like Asprey and Garrard,
0:54:23 > 0:54:27won gold medals at great exhibitions and international exhibitions,
0:54:27 > 0:54:30for producing these amazing sets.
0:54:30 > 0:54:33But this one, I mean, just look at the scent bottles -
0:54:33 > 0:54:37beautifully painted in gold on the glass here.
0:54:37 > 0:54:39Even the stopper
0:54:39 > 0:54:41is a work of art,
0:54:41 > 0:54:44it's absolutely stunning.
0:54:44 > 0:54:46I've got to ask you where you got it.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51Well, I bought it from a London auction house
0:54:51 > 0:54:54and when I saw it the first time,
0:54:54 > 0:54:57I said, "This has to be bought."
0:54:58 > 0:55:01- I don't blame you. - I had to fight for it, but I got it.
0:55:01 > 0:55:03Can you remember what you paid for it?
0:55:03 > 0:55:0435,000.
0:55:04 > 0:55:0635,000.
0:55:06 > 0:55:09OK, let's look a bit further,
0:55:09 > 0:55:11because if we lift this out,
0:55:11 > 0:55:14we've got another
0:55:14 > 0:55:16wonderful row of manicure items.
0:55:16 > 0:55:19Fairly standard to find a manicure set,
0:55:19 > 0:55:21but not fairly standard to find one
0:55:21 > 0:55:24- with a lapis-handled letter knife.- Correct.
0:55:24 > 0:55:27You've got beautiful cut steel scissors,
0:55:27 > 0:55:30mother-of-pearl-handled manicure items,
0:55:30 > 0:55:33absolutely glorious things.
0:55:33 > 0:55:36If we look at one of the boxes...
0:55:38 > 0:55:41- ..we see it's got the maker's mark, RG...- Yes.
0:55:41 > 0:55:42- ..for Robert Garrard.- Yes.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45He was the royal goldsmith to Queen Victoria
0:55:45 > 0:55:48and one of the best makers...
0:55:49 > 0:55:51..in the 19th century.
0:55:51 > 0:55:53Some say, perhaps the best maker after Paul Storr,
0:55:53 > 0:55:56- who's generally regarded as the finest maker.- Yeah.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59It's got a date letter for 1844 here,
0:55:59 > 0:56:01so, early Victorian.
0:56:03 > 0:56:05Garrard's quite proudly...
0:56:07 > 0:56:09..put on the front here,
0:56:09 > 0:56:12another little brass plaque saying,
0:56:12 > 0:56:15"R & S Garrard & Co, Crown Goldsmiths and Jewellers,
0:56:15 > 0:56:17"Panton Street."
0:56:17 > 0:56:20So, they were very proud of this, quite obviously.
0:56:20 > 0:56:23- It doesn't end there though, does it?- Oh, no!
0:56:23 > 0:56:26- We've got another drawer... - More to come.
0:56:26 > 0:56:28..at the bottom,
0:56:28 > 0:56:31where we've got an ivory brush set,
0:56:31 > 0:56:34but the things that I really like are these.
0:56:35 > 0:56:40Because they're actually the candlestick branches,
0:56:40 > 0:56:42- and I think they screw into here, don't they?- They do, yeah.
0:56:44 > 0:56:47And so, if you're travelling around Europe
0:56:47 > 0:56:49in the 1840s,
0:56:49 > 0:56:53- this is pretty much everything you could ever want.- Oh, yeah.
0:56:53 > 0:56:57This really is the ultimate travelling set
0:56:57 > 0:56:59by a great maker.
0:57:00 > 0:57:02So...
0:57:02 > 0:57:04how do you put a value on something like this?
0:57:04 > 0:57:07I think you paid a very reasonable price.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10- That was 1998.- 1998.- Yeah.
0:57:10 > 0:57:14Well, I've seen some pretty staggering sets in my time,
0:57:14 > 0:57:18but this ranks as one of the prettiest and the best quality.
0:57:18 > 0:57:20It's got a great history,
0:57:20 > 0:57:23one of the most noble families in England,
0:57:23 > 0:57:28and if I was valuing this for insurance,
0:57:28 > 0:57:32I would put at least £100,000 - maybe more.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35Yeah.
0:57:35 > 0:57:36- Is that all right with you?- Oh, yes.
0:57:36 > 0:57:38That's very all right, thank you.
0:57:38 > 0:57:42Well, that has to go back into the vaults again tomorrow, I'm afraid,
0:57:42 > 0:57:43that sort of money.
0:57:43 > 0:57:45Well, I'm not surprised.
0:57:45 > 0:57:47Absolute pleasure
0:57:47 > 0:57:50to see something so wonderful as this,
0:57:50 > 0:57:52and in fabulous condition.
0:57:55 > 0:57:58That travelling set - £100,000!
0:57:58 > 0:58:00And wasn't it exquisite?
0:58:01 > 0:58:03What a great way to end our programme!
0:58:03 > 0:58:07A wonderful time here at Birmingham University in the Great Hall.
0:58:07 > 0:58:09Until next time, from the whole Antiques Roadshow team,
0:58:09 > 0:58:10bye-bye.
0:58:34 > 0:58:36Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd