Southsea - Royal Marines Museum 2 Antiques Roadshow


Southsea - Royal Marines Museum 2

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Today the Antiques Roadshow is back in Portsmouth -

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a town steeped in naval history

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and home to Britain's most famous battleship, the Victory.

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Some 18,000 men made up the British Fleet

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at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805

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and 3,000 of those were Royal Marines, the sea soldiers,

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fully trained to handle the artillery.

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And their casualties were high, as they were up on the top deck,

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facing musket balls and the cannons.

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It was a defining moment in the history of the Corps,

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which this year celebrates its 350th anniversary.

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Welcome to the Antiques Roadshow from Portsmouth.

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Just along the coast from Portsmouth Harbour

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is the suburb of Southsea

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and the former Royal Marines Eastney Barracks,

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and this is where we're holding our Roadshow today.

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The barracks were opened in the 1860s

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and this rather grand building used to house the officers' mess.

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Since the 1970s, it's been home to the Royal Marines Museum

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and is packed with artefacts

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from the service's history on land and at sea.

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The Marines date back to 1664, a time of nonstop disputes

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between kings and countries,

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and many of those battles were fought at sea,

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so those with the strongest navies were the victors.

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So Charles II ordered 1,200 land soldiers to be forthwith raised,

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to be in readiness to be distributed amongst His Majesty's Fleet

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and prepared for sea service.

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Marines are nicknamed "bootnecks".

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In the 18th century, they would wear a splendid uniform like this

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- thank you - and the nickname comes from this leather stock,

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or tongue, they would wear under their collar like this.

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Imagine! It must have been so uncomfortable,

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to keep their neck upright and proud.

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Thank you.

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These days, their uniforms are a little more practical.

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7,000 officers and men make up the Royal Marine Corps,

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all commandos, all wearing the coveted green beret.

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Their last appointment was to Afghanistan,

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where they served nine tours of duty.

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And Eastney Barracks closed in 1991

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but the museum is still very much operational

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and makes a great backdrop for us today.

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And don't forget, if you want to play along at home,

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press red on your remote control, or go to...

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..on your computer or your smartphone,

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to play along with our valuation game.

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Well, I have to admit that,

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when I knew I was coming to Southsea, I didn't actually assume

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that I would come across a couple of sea sprites of sorts,

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so my question is, how did these two arrive

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in this part of the world?

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Well, they belong to my mother

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and prior to that, they were my grandmother's,

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and she brought them back from China, from when they lived there.

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They came back in about 1938.

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OK, well, that would make a certain amount of sense,

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because this is a design on a box by the great Rene Lalique,

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and what do you think it was used for?

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We believe it was a sweetie dish.

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It sat on the sideboard in my grandmother's house.

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-That's a lovely idea, but I'm not quite sure.

-It's not?

-No.

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I think it would be the height of decadence

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to take a jelly baby out of something like this.

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-It's actually a powder box.

-Oh, right.

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This is, without question, my favourite Lalique design

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because let's have a look at the box itself.

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First of all, you've got a glass base.

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Sometimes you get these with a card base,

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but when you've got a glass base, it's all the better.

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Now the design. Excuse me, can I bring you forward, Mademoiselle?

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Because the reason I've got this lady is to show - for the benefit

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of the people at home - it's just a magical, magical design,

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because the actual decoration - this is all polished smooth, isn't it?

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-Yes.

-So the decoration is behind, look.

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So it's moulded in relief.

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And this is an opalescent technique. It's very clever,

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because he mixes - thank you very much - he mixes into the glass

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a couple of fluorites which act as a pacifying agent.

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And a little bit of blue cobalt to give it a bluish tinge,

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-and that glass actually becomes very cloudy.

-Oh, right.

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So, date-wise, well, this appears in their 1932 catalogue,

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so 1938 works out quite nicely.

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Um, well, it's quite a nice item to own,

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because I don't think I could easily go out and buy one of these

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for less than £3,500 to £4,000.

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Oh, goodness!

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Well, it's still my mother's, and she'll be very pleased with that!

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Can I ask you a leading question?

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-What's that?

-Do you have a sister?

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I do! Unfortunately, maybe!

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Yeah, my lips are sealed. So remember, not a word, OK?

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-You have children?

-I do.

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Did you - when they were little - put them in these caps?

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I've only owned them for a few years.

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Oh. Where did you get them from?

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-My husband found them for me at a car-boot sale.

-Really?

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He knows I always have an interest in anything Oriental

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and I am a keen embroiderer, although very amateurish at it,

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and he just felt that the two interests were combined

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-in these beautiful items.

-Absolutely.

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Do you know what he had to pay for them?

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I think it was about £15 for the two.

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I see.

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Do you know what they are?

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I assume they're from China, or that part of the world.

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I'd assume one is for children,

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-the other maybe children or small adults.

-Right.

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And that's it, that's the extent of my knowledge!

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OK. Well, you're perfectly right.

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They are the work, probably, of the mother of the children.

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-Non-professional, but highly skilled.

-Yes.

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This one, I think, is probably for a boy

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and that one, I think, is probably for a girl.

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And the interesting thing is that these,

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which date from probably the middle of the 19th century,

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-so they've got a lot of age to them...

-Oh, wow!

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..of course kept the baby's head warm, but more importantly,

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it protected the child from evil spirits.

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Hence the symbols on it.

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The symbols. It's absolutely dense with symbolism.

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What you've got here is a tiger,

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and if you turn it round,

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you can see the tiger's stripes.

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And the face has got whiskers, it's got ears - which in this case,

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and I've never seen this,

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-we've got mice in his ears, which is a brilliant idea.

-They are amazing.

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Yeah. I think that's terrific.

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This one is even better, really.

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We've got on the back, up here,

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this, which just looks like a sort of scrollery stuff,

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is actually lingzhi fungus

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and that's the symbol of long life,

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so that's wishing the child long life.

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And here we've got the character "shou" in seal form,

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and that means "happiness".

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So the whole thing makes sense.

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You can read it like a book, really.

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Er...

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I think your husband's £15 were well spent.

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They're unusual, they're in perfect condition,

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there are collectors of these.

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I think this one would probably sell for around £100-£150

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and that one, perhaps,

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£150 to £250.

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-Oh, my goodness!

-So well done, hubby!

-Yes!

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Thank you very much for bringing them in.

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Not at all, thank you.

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This must be one of the smallest table desks I've ever seen.

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Sweet little thing. Now, you tell me a little bit about it.

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When I first came down here, this was sort of 30 or 40 years ago,

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I used to love auctions, and I found this, and I love walnut

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and because I don't know what it is, it fascinates me.

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Oh, lots of things,

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the sort of secret drawer and the religious motif

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and no-one can quite tell me what it is, so I hope you can do that.

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Ah, right, well, we'll look at all those things gradually.

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You mention walnut, and there is indeed

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some lovely burr walnut here, more walnut there,

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in fact, most of it is walnut.

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It's got the shape, as I said, of a little table desk

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with the slant front and of a sort

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that sometimes people used to call Bible boxes.

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But Bible boxes were never necessarily for bibles.

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They were little desks, little reading desks.

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But what I find extremely interesting about this

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is that it has the ripple moulding that you've got all round the edges.

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-Yes.

-Which is very much a 17th-century feature.

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And if I turn it round and we look at the back,

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what I immediately thought about was 17th-century cabinets,

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17th-century Dutch cabinets in particular,

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these twisted columns which are supposed to have come

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from the Temple of Solomon originally, a very Baroque feature.

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You don't often get the backs of these little desks decorated.

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And then it gets even more interesting.

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So if you turn it round, and open it up,

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if I can do this, there we go,

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it's even prettier inside.

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They're lovely hinges, aren't they?

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Delightful, cut-out hinges, more ripple moulding,

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fretwork here.

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-Oh, look, that's interesting, so you can close the mirror.

-Yes.

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A little mirror, a little sort of dressing mirror

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and drawers that you can put all sorts of little treasures in.

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And you said it had a secret drawer, so now where is that?

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You have to take the key out, and then the front lifts up,

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usually fairly easily, and then it has a...

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Oh, I see. It's quite secret, isn't it?

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-And another part there.

-Well, that's excellent.

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Now, just slot that one in again.

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I have to say that, looking at all these things together,

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it doesn't quite all add up to me.

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All the bits are wonderful.

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All the bits, I think, are from a 17th-century cabinet.

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But I think it's been put together in the 19th century.

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-How interesting.

-When the whole antiquities or antiques trade

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was beginning to kick off, and I think this could very well have been

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made in the 19th century, to deceive.

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How very interesting. Where would this have been done?

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This was certainly done in London, in England,

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and it was done all over Europe.

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This could well have been done in England.

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Is this a surprise to you?

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I've honestly known so little, and I've asked quite a lot of people

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of various degrees of expertise, and some said it's early German.

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Nothing surprises me, I'm just fascinated.

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Well, there's one other interesting thing at the back.

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There is a medallion with St John the Baptist on,

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and I think that's been added to make it even more special,

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so it's fascinating!

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I'm not sure what you paid for it.

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I mean, not a lot, I mean probably

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in the order of £20 or something like this.

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Right, quite a lot of money 30 years ago.

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Now, because it slightly falls between two schools,

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I would think that I'd have to put a fairly broad valuation on it,

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and so, between £500 and £1,000.

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It's a lovely, pretty little thing.

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If it was all 17th-century,

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it would be worth a great deal more than that, but it's lovely as it is.

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Well, I think there's nowhere it's going, and it's small enough,

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-and the children will love to have it in due course.

-Excellent.

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Well, I have to say I've never seen anything like it before in my life.

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It has to be a unique piece of silver.

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I mean, how on earth did that end up here with the Royal Marines?

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Now, you - as the curator of the Royal Marines Museum -

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I hope will be able to help me with that.

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Well, this was presented to William Wood in 1868.

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He actually took command of the 36 Middlesex Rifle Volunteers in 1860

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and commanded them for their first eight years of existence,

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and they were obviously quite impressed with what he'd done

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for them, so they presented him with this very elaborate piece.

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This has been in the museum collection for about 50 years

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and before that it was regimental property,

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so Wood, on his death, presumably presented this back to the Corps.

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From a historical point of view, it's absolutely fascinating.

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I mean, extraordinary, with them doing target practice

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here on this rifle range.

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Yes, I mean, the figures shown here are typical

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of rifle volunteers of the 1860s.

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Marksmanship was very, very important.

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They were part-time soldiers, they were established in the early 1860s

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as a result of a French threat, and this does reflect that quite well.

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Great, and of course wonderful with these stylised oak trees

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on either side, which just lends a certain something to it.

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The scale seems to me a little odd,

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but, especially the size of the leaves, when you take an oak leaf

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and look at the size of that chap's head, but an amazing piece.

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So what is it you'd like to know from me about this piece?

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Well, obviously we know a little bit of the background,

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the person it was presented to, and everything else,

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but one of the things that's been exercising us is

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who made it and what's it made from?

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Right. Well, I can answer both those questions.

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First, it is made of silver.

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It's not electroplated.

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Of course, that does make quite a difference

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and we do know the name of the maker.

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In fact, if you look onto the leg of the soldier there, we can see that

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it was made in Birmingham in 1867

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and William Gough was the maker.

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We do of course have to consider things like value.

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I would think, conservatively,

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if it came on the market,

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with its extraordinary nature,

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£15,000 - £20,000.

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Right, yeah. We'll be sure to tell our insurers, I think!

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Not a bad idea. Mind you, I should imagine

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that the Royal Marines' security is probably pretty good!

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I don't think I'd like to mess with them!

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LAUGHTER

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Now, I know I'm looking at an engine room telegraph,

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-the message from the bridge to the engine room.

-That's right, yeah.

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You've got "Ahead, astern" and so on,

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every ship obviously has one or two of these.

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But this is a particular one, because it's from a submarine.

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It looks different, it's a different style, it's not on a stand,

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you know, all the usual things.

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But I can go so far. You need to fill me in with the rest.

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It's from the port engine of the submarine, Artemis.

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There was a bit of a disaster with the Artemis.

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It came back from the dockyard,

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it had been in the dry dock

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and was being refuelled

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and from a series of incompetent events, it sank at its moorings.

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There were cables run through hatches

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to supply power to the submarine. When it was being refuelled,

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obviously the boat got lower in the water,

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and water started coming in the hatches,

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and of course the hatches couldn't be shut.

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-Because of the cables.

-Because of the cables.

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-Now, where do you come into it?

-I was a member of the crew.

-Yeah.

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But I was on leave at the time,

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so the first I heard about the accident was,

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somebody came in the pub

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and said, "Your submarine's on television! It's sunk!"

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So the ship sank at her moorings, everybody got off,

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there were no deaths, so it was really about red faces all round.

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Oh, very much so, yes.

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I think, in fact, we've got a photograph here, haven't we?

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-Yeah, yes.

-This shows the conning tower, bubbles still coming out.

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-Yes.

-And these people have presumably been trying to do

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-various things to stop it happening.

-Yeah. An unstoppable event.

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Now, why have we got this?

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I've been looking for a souvenir from it,

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but I've never been able to find one.

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The submarine was moored out in the harbour for several years,

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waiting to be broken up for scrap.

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So she was abandoned, in effect, after the accident.

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Yes, unrepairable.

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After it was scrapped, I went to the scrap yard and said,

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"have you got anything left from the Artemis?"

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And they said, "Well, yes, we've got this telegraph. Would you like it?"

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-But this is a prime object, isn't it?

-Absolutely!

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I was amazed it was still there.

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I mean, it's the top of anybody's list, I'd have thought.

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Yeah, well, it came from the engine room

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which was where I used to work, as well.

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What I do like about it is the mark on the dial there,

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-which was the water level.

-That's the water line.

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-That's the water level inside.

-That's where it reached. Yeah.

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Yeah, which was the fumes from the battery acid,

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just etched it very slightly above it, and left the mark.

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Well, I think it's a great story because it's the sort of story

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that never gets told because it's about bungles,

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-it's not the great heroics we normally expect.

-No.

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But you've got this great treasure, and it is a very important piece.

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It's also quite valuable.

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We're looking at £500, possibly £800,

0:18:270:18:32

-so I don't know what you paid for it, but...

-£30.

0:18:320:18:34

-Oh, well, you did all right.

-Oh, I did. Oh, yes.

0:18:340:18:37

We see these on the Roadshow, not very often,

0:18:410:18:44

-just occasionally.

-Right.

0:18:440:18:47

And they're plaques, and sometimes plates, by Picasso.

0:18:470:18:50

And we know that because it says on the back "Picasso" here.

0:18:500:18:53

So how did you come to own a plaque

0:18:530:18:57

designed by perhaps the greatest artist of the 20th century?

0:18:570:19:02

My brother-in-law's headmaster, Mr Mount,

0:19:020:19:04

was a neighbour of Picasso in France,

0:19:040:19:08

and he bought up some of Picasso's pottery throughout his lifetime.

0:19:080:19:13

-Right.

-And he was prepared to sell one of them to me.

0:19:130:19:17

And it's typical of his designs of the period.

0:19:170:19:19

Some have sort of influence by some of the prehistoric art

0:19:190:19:22

discovered around that time in the caves of Lascaux,

0:19:220:19:24

and also sort of simplified, and I believe an art critic said about

0:19:240:19:27

his work afterwards, that it was "indicative of a genius on holiday."

0:19:270:19:31

-Oh, really? Oh.

-And I rather like that,

0:19:310:19:33

because you sort of have picked up on the whole a sort of seaside,

0:19:330:19:36

beach-side scene, and that's what's going on here. He's applied that.

0:19:360:19:39

-It's got a sort of great holiday, warm feel to it, hasn't it?

-Yes.

0:19:390:19:42

You can almost imagine the bathers sitting in the sun,

0:19:420:19:45

and then diving off the top there.

0:19:450:19:46

"The plongeur" I, believe would be the correct title for this piece.

0:19:460:19:50

-Right.

-And this piece was designed by Picasso in 1956.

-'56?

0:19:500:19:53

-1956.

-OK.

0:19:530:19:55

He started working at the Madoura Pottery near Vallauris

0:19:550:19:58

in the south of France in the late 1940s,

0:19:580:20:00

and this was a period of great happiness for him,

0:20:000:20:02

and I think that shows in his work again.

0:20:020:20:04

And he worked all the way through until the 1970s.

0:20:040:20:08

When you think of Picasso's plates and Picasso's plaques,

0:20:080:20:10

you hope to see something like a bull or a goat

0:20:100:20:13

or a stylised face, that really collectors are looking for.

0:20:130:20:18

You've got divers.

0:20:180:20:19

It's a charming piece, but not quite the sort of prime Picasso

0:20:190:20:22

that one would hope, from one of these editions.

0:20:220:20:25

And although he designed it, he didn't produce these.

0:20:250:20:28

The editions were produced by other people,

0:20:280:20:30

so it's a Picasso design, and the marks on the back bear that out.

0:20:300:20:34

So although not sort of prime Picasso stuff, I still think

0:20:340:20:37

you'd be looking, if you were to put it into auction, at, I suppose,

0:20:370:20:40

somewhere in the region of, well,

0:20:400:20:45

maybe sort of £2,000 to £3,000.

0:20:450:20:48

Really? I'm amazed!

0:20:480:20:51

-I thought it would be hundreds!

-Really?

-Yes.

0:20:510:20:54

It's not often that I come across what is, to me,

0:20:580:21:01

almost a completely new art form.

0:21:010:21:03

But these certainly take the biscuit.

0:21:030:21:05

I think they're extraordinary.

0:21:050:21:07

-Can I open one of these out?

-Please do.

0:21:070:21:09

It just looks like a roll of paper at first,

0:21:090:21:11

and then you hold it up to the light, and it's a watermark,

0:21:110:21:15

with the most amazing image on it.

0:21:150:21:17

1872, TH Saunders. Presumably they're the paper maker, are they?

0:21:170:21:23

Yes, he was a paper maker in Darenth, in Kent,

0:21:240:21:28

-and he married my husband's great aunt.

-Yes.

0:21:280:21:32

And that's about all we know about it, really.

0:21:320:21:34

And it came down through my husband's family, to us.

0:21:340:21:38

Well, I confess, I've got a friend who's a paper historian,

0:21:380:21:42

and I phoned him very quickly and I've learned all about them.

0:21:420:21:46

Oh, really? Tell me!

0:21:460:21:48

Well, I'm fascinated by them, completely fascinated.

0:21:480:21:52

They're paper samples, he took them to art fairs...

0:21:520:21:56

Art exhibitions.

0:21:560:21:58

..and the Great Exhibition - and look at that one -

0:21:580:22:01

and he'd show these,

0:22:010:22:02

and he won a prize for them in the Great Exhibition of 1851,

0:22:020:22:06

as early as that.

0:22:060:22:07

And he would take orders for paper from people, as a result,

0:22:070:22:10

-sold an awful lot of paper.

-Oh, yes. How interesting.

0:22:100:22:13

And the way they're made is very clever.

0:22:130:22:15

What he did is, he got a wax mould, made the image

0:22:150:22:18

and then you'd get a brass mesh, and you'd put it between

0:22:180:22:22

the two halves of the sculpture and press it together,

0:22:220:22:27

and the brass, the shape of the sculpture

0:22:270:22:30

would be transferred to the brass mesh,

0:22:300:22:32

and as you know, with laid paper,

0:22:320:22:35

the paper pulp is in a vat and you pull the mesh up through it

0:22:350:22:40

and the paper lies on top of the mesh.

0:22:400:22:43

That dries and becomes laid paper.

0:22:430:22:47

Now, if you're doing that with a shaped brass mesh,

0:22:470:22:50

then you're going to get some thin areas and some thick areas,

0:22:500:22:54

and the thin areas of course allow more light through,

0:22:540:22:57

and the thick areas less, and thus

0:22:570:22:59

the image is transferred to the paper.

0:22:590:23:01

Very intricate.

0:23:010:23:02

Well, I didn't know that, until you showed me these.

0:23:020:23:05

They're extraordinary.

0:23:050:23:06

And that one is of course the Silver Jubilee, 1935.

0:23:060:23:10

-That's George, isn't it?

-Yes, it is.

0:23:100:23:14

Absolutely marvellous. And then the last one is Queen Mary, 1935.

0:23:140:23:19

Quite extraordinary, and I've never seen anything so exciting

0:23:190:23:23

and interesting, or at least I haven't for quite a while.

0:23:230:23:25

I'm so glad, thank you.

0:23:250:23:28

I don't think they're worth a huge amount of money.

0:23:280:23:31

I can't find any being sold.

0:23:310:23:33

I think they've got to be worth, nonetheless,

0:23:330:23:35

something in the region of £50 or £60 each,

0:23:350:23:37

so the whole value here, probably about £300.

0:23:370:23:41

Yes, thank you.

0:23:410:23:42

-Maximum.

-Yes.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

0:23:420:23:45

You know, I've always thought that the skull and crossbones flag

0:23:480:23:52

was something to do with pirates,

0:23:520:23:54

but you know something different

0:23:540:23:56

-about this particular flag, don't you?

-Yes.

-Tell me about it.

0:23:560:23:59

It's a Second World War submarine Jolly Roger flag.

0:23:590:24:03

It shows the symbols of what the submarine sunk.

0:24:030:24:08

Top ones are torpedoes fired,

0:24:090:24:13

some Japanese ships.

0:24:130:24:14

The guns and stars was when the deck gun was used.

0:24:170:24:21

And each one of these stars represents

0:24:210:24:23

a Japanese ship that they have sunk?

0:24:230:24:25

Yeah. And this is cloak-and-dagger operations.

0:24:250:24:28

And I believe every British submarine

0:24:280:24:30

-had a skull and crossbones - a Jolly Roger flag.

-Yes.

0:24:300:24:32

Who would have made it?

0:24:320:24:34

This was made by a sail maker.

0:24:340:24:35

-Possibly on board?

-On board, yes.

0:24:350:24:37

So which submarine does this Jolly Roger relate to?

0:24:370:24:41

-The HMS Tantalus, my late father's submarine.

-Right.

0:24:410:24:45

He was a telegraphist on board,

0:24:450:24:48

and they had two jobs to do.

0:24:480:24:51

-One was - the main one - was telegraphist.

-Yes.

0:24:510:24:54

And second one, he had to fire the deck gun.

0:24:540:24:58

So he was responsible for some of these ships that were sunk,

0:24:580:25:02

-Japanese enemy ships that were sunk.

-Yes.

0:25:020:25:04

And where did HMS Tantalus serve most of her life?

0:25:040:25:07

In South China Seas, they were based in Perth, Western Australia.

0:25:070:25:12

-Now you've got some photographs as well.

-Yes.

0:25:120:25:14

You've brought these two photographs, for example.

0:25:140:25:17

Now, this first one amazes me because it shows a Jolly Roger flag.

0:25:170:25:22

-That.

-That is this flag?

0:25:220:25:25

That's this, and my father is standing directly underneath.

0:25:250:25:29

-This chap here?

-Yeah.

0:25:290:25:30

-That's your father?

-In the ratings uniform, all the others are officers.

0:25:300:25:34

-Yes.

-Captain.

0:25:340:25:36

The other photograph shows a group of sailors,

0:25:360:25:40

-presumably sub-mariners.

-Oh, they're all submariners.

0:25:400:25:43

-In this old car.

-Yeah, Austin.

0:25:430:25:44

-An Austin Seven, is it?

-Seven.

0:25:440:25:47

-And is your father here? Is he one of those?

-That is...

0:25:470:25:49

-This one here in the middle?

-Yeah.

0:25:490:25:51

So when he was allowed on shore,

0:25:510:25:53

he must have had a pretty good time, I guess. The weather was great.

0:25:530:25:56

All the crew had girlfriends,

0:25:560:25:58

and as this submarine was sailing out of Fremantle Harbour,

0:25:580:26:02

which is next to Perth, the captain was on the conning tower

0:26:020:26:06

with his binoculars, looking around

0:26:060:26:08

and he shouted out to his next in command.

0:26:080:26:11

He said, "Is that Brown on the pier with that girl?"

0:26:110:26:14

He said, "Get a boat and pick him up, now!"

0:26:150:26:18

So - I didn't know this - his best man at his wedding,

0:26:180:26:24

who's still alive, told me the story.

0:26:240:26:28

He said, "Your dad was going to jump ship for his girlfriend

0:26:280:26:31

and stay in Australia".

0:26:310:26:33

And I wouldn't have been here now if he'd stayed there.

0:26:330:26:35

-So he was going to elope?

-Yeah.

0:26:350:26:37

-Good grief!

-Because a lot of them did.

0:26:370:26:40

Well, do you know - gosh -

0:26:400:26:42

I have to say that I don't think I've ever seen

0:26:420:26:45

a Jolly Roger submarine flag come up for auction ever before.

0:26:450:26:51

I think, from a commercial point of view, if ever this was sold,

0:26:510:26:57

-I think the flag, together with, you've got other photographs?

-Yes.

0:26:570:27:01

And documents and things?

0:27:010:27:03

His service record.

0:27:030:27:04

You see, that's important.

0:27:040:27:06

I think it's going to be worth

0:27:060:27:08

something in the region of...

0:27:080:27:10

..£5,000 or £6,000.

0:27:120:27:15

Yeah, yes.

0:27:150:27:17

My father died when he was 46, so it's what's left of his life,

0:27:180:27:23

you know.

0:27:230:27:24

I'm quite proud.

0:27:270:27:29

Now, this album has the initials IB on the front cover.

0:27:440:27:47

Can you tell me who that stands for?

0:27:470:27:49

IB stands for Ivy Bale, who was my great aunt.

0:27:490:27:54

And is this Ivy?

0:27:540:27:55

This is Ivy and this is a photograph of Ivy in her later years,

0:27:550:27:59

in amongst the family with her three sisters.

0:27:590:28:02

Very nice, very nice indeed.

0:28:020:28:03

Now, we have an album full of original pencil drawings,

0:28:030:28:06

celebrities of the day. All signed, I think.

0:28:060:28:10

And how did she get them signed?

0:28:100:28:12

She sent each and every one of them off to the recipient,

0:28:120:28:16

who duly returned, some with simple comments, some with actual letters.

0:28:160:28:20

Do you know how she started, why she started this album?

0:28:200:28:23

Don't particularly know why she started, but she was interested

0:28:230:28:27

in the idea of fame and I think the idea of celebrity in days gone by

0:28:270:28:32

was somewhat different from the idea of celebrity now.

0:28:320:28:35

Indeed, indeed.

0:28:350:28:36

Well, I think you'd have trouble sending a picture

0:28:360:28:39

to the Prime Minister now, and getting it signed and sent back,

0:28:390:28:42

which is exactly what we have over here.

0:28:420:28:45

This is Winston Churchill, it's a pencil drawing,

0:28:450:28:48

an original pencil drawing signed by Ivy.

0:28:480:28:51

And Churchill has also signed it along the bottom in ink.

0:28:510:28:53

That's a great picture. Very nice indeed.

0:28:530:28:56

If we go back to the album for a moment,

0:28:560:28:59

well, we've got a lot of good names in here.

0:28:590:29:01

Turning the page, we've got two of Madam Pavlova.

0:29:010:29:04

Now, she's a good autograph. People will pay money for those.

0:29:040:29:08

Condition's a little bit difficult, but could be restored

0:29:080:29:11

and they're period signatures from about the '30s, which is nice.

0:29:110:29:15

A very strong portrait of Maria Callas dated 1967,

0:29:150:29:21

it's quite difficult to believe that that's a pencil drawing,

0:29:210:29:24

it's so dramatic and has such a photographic quality,

0:29:240:29:28

signed clearly. That's a collector's item, definitely.

0:29:280:29:31

And moving on, Monty. Very typical portrait of Monty,

0:29:320:29:36

signed again as Field Marshall.

0:29:360:29:39

And right towards the end, we end up with Neil Armstrong,

0:29:390:29:42

the first man to walk on the moon.

0:29:420:29:44

Pencil drawing again of the moon's surface signed boldly

0:29:440:29:47

in blue ink by Neil Armstrong, so that's very nice.

0:29:470:29:52

Value-wise, you've got to tot up all the various people you've got

0:29:520:29:55

in here and that's a good one, that's potentially about £1,000

0:29:550:29:59

at auction.

0:29:590:30:01

Mr Churchill over here is certainly £500, £600, £700.

0:30:010:30:06

Most of them in here will be £20, £30 at least.

0:30:060:30:08

And there are others which will be a few hundred.

0:30:080:30:11

I've been through and done a rough tot up and I think

0:30:110:30:14

we're looking at an auction value of between £4,000 and £6,000.

0:30:140:30:18

-Ah.

-Gosh!

-So thank you, Ivy, your work is much appreciated!

0:30:180:30:24

Am I right in thinking that this is a bit of a homecoming for you?

0:30:280:30:32

Yes, indeed.

0:30:320:30:33

I was here in 1980 when I retired from the Marines.

0:30:330:30:36

And I was hauled out of this very spot on a gun carriage,

0:30:360:30:39

which is customary when you retire.

0:30:390:30:41

You were hauled out on a gun carriage?!

0:30:410:30:43

Well, yes.

0:30:430:30:44

And am I right in thinking you were the Commanding Officer here?

0:30:440:30:47

Yes, I was, yes.

0:30:470:30:48

-Well, it's lovely to have you back.

-A pleasure.

0:30:480:30:51

But you've brought with you a very unusual English table clock

0:30:510:30:56

which was made right at the end of the 18th century, around 1790 or so,

0:30:560:31:02

but what we all find interesting is when we come across objects

0:31:020:31:05

that have a relationship to the location that we're shooting in.

0:31:050:31:08

Does this have any relationship at all?

0:31:080:31:10

-Not with the barracks here, no.

-Right.

0:31:100:31:13

It's an heirloom.

0:31:130:31:14

It belonged to my great great great grandfather

0:31:140:31:17

who lived in a house in Kent.

0:31:170:31:19

And there's a painting that I've seen of the drawing room of that house,

0:31:190:31:23

in which this clock appears, and that was early 19th century.

0:31:230:31:26

It must have been in the family for 200 plus years,

0:31:260:31:29

and I just get a lot of satisfaction out of that when I wind it.

0:31:290:31:33

And it still tells me the time pretty accurately.

0:31:330:31:35

-Does it?

-Mmm.

0:31:350:31:37

It should do, it should keep accurate time,

0:31:370:31:39

because it's an interesting combination of a domestic clock,

0:31:390:31:43

and it has a slightly sort of academic,

0:31:430:31:45

almost scientific purpose to it as well.

0:31:450:31:48

The maker is Thomas Walder of Southampton,

0:31:480:31:52

but we don't know a great deal about him.

0:31:520:31:54

It's the sort of clock that a collector,

0:31:540:31:57

or someone that's very interested in timekeeping,

0:31:570:32:01

would commission a clockmaker to make for them.

0:32:010:32:03

And certainly, stylistically, the whole thing looks like

0:32:030:32:06

it's a one-off because it doesn't comply with a normal clock dial.

0:32:060:32:09

So, very briefly, let's just run through what it does.

0:32:090:32:13

In the arch, we've got a strike-and-silent lever.

0:32:130:32:16

And next to that we've got what we call an up-and-down dial,

0:32:160:32:19

which regulates the height of the pendulum,

0:32:190:32:21

-which therefore regulates the speed at which the clock runs.

-Yes, yes.

0:32:210:32:24

Then we've got these two curious, subsidiary,

0:32:240:32:27

rather lovely painted dials.

0:32:270:32:30

This one is the phase of the moon, which goes to 29 and a half days,

0:32:300:32:34

which is the age of the moon, the full cycle.

0:32:340:32:37

And this one shows the date.

0:32:370:32:39

And then we have a seconds ring, an hour ring and an outer minute ring.

0:32:390:32:44

And that format of dial, where you have the seconds,

0:32:440:32:47

hours and minutes split up, is called a regulator dial

0:32:470:32:49

and that stems back, way back into the late 17th century,

0:32:490:32:53

where, when you wanted to keep precision time,

0:32:530:32:55

you divided the hours, minutes and seconds up.

0:32:550:32:57

But it isn't a precision movement,

0:32:570:33:01

it's a very domestic-quality movement.

0:33:010:33:03

-So it's a...

-Yes, a compromise.

0:33:030:33:05

But it's a compromise.

0:33:050:33:06

It's a good word, it's the right word to use.

0:33:060:33:08

But it is a true collector's clock, let's make no bones about it.

0:33:080:33:13

At auction, it has to be worth

0:33:130:33:16

between £15,000 and £20,000.

0:33:160:33:20

It's absolutely super.

0:33:220:33:24

It's probably the nicest domestic table clock

0:33:240:33:26

-I have ever seen on a Roadshow.

-Really?

0:33:260:33:28

Thank you very much for bringing it along.

0:33:280:33:30

Great pleasure, thank you.

0:33:300:33:31

See this leather collar here?

0:33:350:33:36

Do you remember I was telling you at the beginning of the programme,

0:33:360:33:39

it's what earned the Royal Marines the nickname "bootnecks"

0:33:390:33:42

because they wore that very uncomfortable piece of leather

0:33:420:33:44

under the collar of their uniform.

0:33:440:33:46

Now, Robert Bruce, you run the Royal Marines Museum here.

0:33:460:33:49

I should say, Robert Bruce, no relation.

0:33:490:33:51

More's the shame!

0:33:510:33:53

Well, what a shame. Who is this fine chap?

0:33:530:33:55

This fine chap is Captain James Kettel,

0:33:550:33:58

who joined the Royal Marines in 1798 aged 17 and served for 36 years.

0:33:580:34:04

And he was an artist, wasn't he?

0:34:040:34:06

He was an artist indeed, and we believe that this

0:34:060:34:09

is a self-portrait that he painted in around about 1810.

0:34:090:34:13

And in the book here?

0:34:130:34:15

This is a book of sketches which has come to us only recently,

0:34:150:34:18

in the last six months or so.

0:34:180:34:21

And these are done by James Kettel?

0:34:210:34:22

These are all painted by him, and depict the service

0:34:220:34:26

that he carried out in different parts of the country.

0:34:260:34:28

And there are some beautifully descriptive paintings here.

0:34:280:34:32

So he did time at sea, serving both at Trafalgar

0:34:320:34:35

where he served on HMS Tonnant, but then he did land service,

0:34:350:34:39

like many Royal Marines did, both then and indeed today.

0:34:390:34:42

And was he an official artist,

0:34:420:34:43

or was he just doing this for his own pleasure?

0:34:430:34:45

No, no, he was doing it for his own pleasure.

0:34:450:34:47

Did he live a long and happy life? Did he die in a battle?

0:34:470:34:50

He didn't live a very long and happy life.

0:34:500:34:52

He was actually flung out of the Royal Marines.

0:34:520:34:54

-No!

-Because he went bankrupt.

0:34:540:34:56

And because he'd been put into debtors' prison,

0:34:560:34:58

he didn't turn up for parade, so he was dismissed from the Royal Marines.

0:34:580:35:01

Gosh, that seems a bit harsh.

0:35:010:35:03

It was a bit harsh, but I think life was quite harsh

0:35:030:35:05

for those in those days.

0:35:050:35:06

So that was the end of his service in the Royal Marines?

0:35:060:35:08

And that was the end of his service.

0:35:080:35:10

-He'd done 36 years, which is a long time.

-Goodness me.

0:35:100:35:12

And these paintings, which is the loveliest thing about this story,

0:35:120:35:16

these paintings have been in his family ever since they were done.

0:35:160:35:20

And his great great grandson, Michael Kettel,

0:35:200:35:23

came to us only about six months ago and revealed these paintings to us

0:35:230:35:27

and it was the first we knew of them.

0:35:270:35:29

Well, James Kettel, you may have been chucked out

0:35:290:35:31

of the Royal Marines, but we salute you today.

0:35:310:35:34

Absolutely!

0:35:340:35:35

Well, what a calm scene.

0:35:380:35:41

Sleeping baby, quiet surroundings.

0:35:410:35:46

Wait a minute, though!

0:35:460:35:48

Wait a minute, it's waking up!

0:35:480:35:50

Ah! And yawning and ready for the day.

0:35:500:35:54

What happens next? "Oh, what's happening now?

0:35:540:35:57

"This looks very exciting, am I at the Antiques Roadshow?

0:35:570:35:59

"I've always wanted to be there."

0:35:590:36:02

"Oh, no, I hate the Antiques Roadshow!"

0:36:020:36:05

SHE LAUGHS

0:36:050:36:07

It's the most disturbing doll. I can't even look at that face.

0:36:070:36:10

Would you mind if I turn this face round so that we've got

0:36:100:36:13

-the sleepy doll again?

-Absolutely not.

0:36:130:36:15

I think that's probably OK. Do you like it?

0:36:150:36:18

I hate it. I hate it, I don't like dolls.

0:36:180:36:21

Four faces and a swinging head is too much.

0:36:210:36:24

It's like something out of The Exorcist in a way, isn't it?

0:36:240:36:27

Absolutely, absolutely, yeah.

0:36:270:36:29

Bizarre, but I have to say, creepy and rather sort of unattractive

0:36:290:36:35

as it might be, these dolls are sought after, and I think they were

0:36:350:36:40

probably quite creepy at the time, because not many of them were made.

0:36:400:36:45

This is almost certainly made by a company called Karl Berger,

0:36:450:36:50

based in Sonnenberg in Germany. And the company started in the 1890s

0:36:500:36:55

and went right the way through the 1920s.

0:36:550:36:58

I mean, I would say that the doll could be as late as 1925.

0:36:580:37:04

This company was famous for making multi-headed dolls.

0:37:040:37:11

And this is an unusual one, first of all because it's made of -

0:37:110:37:16

not porcelain - it's made out of a kind of composition.

0:37:160:37:19

But I would have said the most extraordinary thing is that

0:37:190:37:23

it's four faces, and he's made two faces and three faces,

0:37:230:37:26

but four faces are really particularly unusual.

0:37:260:37:29

They cover every emotion, don't they, really?

0:37:290:37:31

Um, in pretty good condition.

0:37:310:37:34

I've had a little look underneath, and the body's not bad.

0:37:340:37:38

And very often, these papier-mache fingers get damaged,

0:37:380:37:43

and they're not.

0:37:430:37:44

So whose was it? How has it got down to you?

0:37:440:37:47

Well, it was given to my auntie who was born in the early 1920s,

0:37:470:37:50

that's all I know.

0:37:500:37:51

She had it all her life and then she gave it to my mother

0:37:510:37:54

a few years before she died, so my mother's had it for five years.

0:37:540:37:57

-And did they both love it?

-They both love it.

0:37:570:37:59

-It's an age thing.

-Mmm, must be.

0:37:590:38:02

Maybe when you get older, you'll grow to like it.

0:38:020:38:04

No, no, it will not happen, that won't happen!

0:38:040:38:08

As far as value's concerned,

0:38:080:38:10

I'm finding it slightly tricky to value it, because I know

0:38:100:38:14

that the ceramic-headed dolls are sought after.

0:38:140:38:19

The composition ones don't come up that often.

0:38:190:38:21

But I'm going to stick my neck out

0:38:210:38:22

and say that it's going to be something between £1,000 and £1,500.

0:38:220:38:27

But it's just its quirkiness that I think will make some people

0:38:270:38:31

really want it, so thanks very much for bringing it along.

0:38:310:38:34

No, thank you very much, it's very interesting, thank you.

0:38:340:38:37

You know, our working day is composed of thousands of people

0:38:390:38:43

bringing along jewellery, gold, beads, rings and brooches.

0:38:430:38:48

You have brought along something rather special.

0:38:480:38:52

A dark blue velvet box. Contained within, a gold bangle

0:38:520:38:58

painted in the centre with a miniature of Queen Victoria,

0:38:580:39:02

in a diamond frame on a gold wirework bangle back.

0:39:020:39:07

Now, is this a family piece, or what's the story behind it?

0:39:070:39:11

My late wife, she was very interested in Victoria generally

0:39:110:39:16

and we were living up in the Cotswolds at the time

0:39:160:39:19

and I got to know a local jeweller there very well.

0:39:190:39:23

And we bought one or two bits and pieces from him,

0:39:230:39:25

and he phoned me up one day and said,

0:39:250:39:27

"I've got something you really must come along and have a look at."

0:39:270:39:30

-I should think so.

-And that was how we acquired it.

0:39:300:39:34

And when your wife saw it, did she fall in love with it?

0:39:340:39:36

Oh, very much so, yes, very much so.

0:39:360:39:38

She wouldn't take it off for the first week!

0:39:380:39:40

Really? I'm not surprised, I'm not surprised.

0:39:400:39:43

You know, there are several puzzles about this bangle.

0:39:430:39:47

I should say that at the back of the bangle itself,

0:39:470:39:50

and you know this, but it's worth pointing out,

0:39:500:39:52

there is a royal crown, "VR" engraved there.

0:39:520:39:56

Yes, yes.

0:39:560:39:57

Victoria Regina on the back with a crown motif.

0:39:570:40:01

Now, what does that suggest to you?

0:40:010:40:03

That it was commissioned by the Queen for presents,

0:40:030:40:06

or appreciation to friends of hers.

0:40:060:40:09

Well, or even perhaps something like a lady-in-waiting...

0:40:090:40:12

-Yes, indeed.

-..At her wedding in around about 1840.

0:40:120:40:15

-Yes.

-But I've got a problem with that.

0:40:150:40:18

Really?

0:40:180:40:19

And that is that the bangle is in a box by a jeweller

0:40:190:40:23

called Frazer and Haws and they didn't really get started

0:40:230:40:27

till around about 1869-1870.

0:40:270:40:29

-I see, yes, yes.

-So here's my possible solution.

0:40:290:40:34

I think that the centre piece, which incidentally,

0:40:340:40:38

when you look at the back of it, can be taken apart,

0:40:380:40:41

-because there's a little tiny wing nut there.

-Yes, yes.

0:40:410:40:44

..May have come from a piece of jewellery such as a ring,

0:40:440:40:47

or brooch, coinciding with her wedding, 1840.

0:40:470:40:52

Yes.

0:40:520:40:53

Then at some point 25, 30 years down the line,

0:40:530:40:58

this piece was then remounted as a diamond-set bangle.

0:40:580:41:03

So I think there's a possibility that this is a marriage,

0:41:030:41:07

-literally a marriage...

-Yes, yes.

0:41:070:41:09

..Of different components. Let's move on to the value.

0:41:090:41:13

Anything with an enamel miniature of Queen Victoria in a diamond frame

0:41:130:41:17

has got to be highly desirable, would you not agree?

0:41:170:41:21

Well, it was for us, yes.

0:41:210:41:23

-I mean, your wife loved it, you loved it.

-Yes, yes.

0:41:230:41:26

Everybody loves it, it's a wonderful piece of jewellery.

0:41:260:41:29

I think that if one were to put this bangle into an auction

0:41:290:41:34

with the right amount of research that's been done on it,

0:41:340:41:37

my feeling is it's worth something like £5,000 to £7,000.

0:41:370:41:41

Right, thank you. Best news I've had today!

0:41:410:41:45

Well, this looks like a real one-off. Do you know who made it?

0:41:520:41:55

Well, all I know is that my grandmother was given it

0:41:550:41:59

about 15-20 years ago, by a lady from Birmingham,

0:41:590:42:03

who she believed had made it in the 1940s during the Second World War.

0:42:030:42:08

And it was sewn on blackout blind,

0:42:080:42:10

and that's all that I'm aware of, really.

0:42:100:42:12

And she kind of gave to me with the premise,

0:42:120:42:15

"I don't want it, you do with it what you will."

0:42:150:42:18

To me it feels like it's a real sort of make-do-and-mend.

0:42:180:42:21

But actually, it's even better than that, isn't it?

0:42:210:42:24

It's kind of make-do-and-be-creative in the midst of the war.

0:42:240:42:28

Yeah, yeah. I mean, just the attention to detail

0:42:280:42:31

of all of the flowers and the butterflies.

0:42:310:42:33

It's very cleverly done,

0:42:330:42:35

even the leaves have sort of got all the colours of green in them.

0:42:350:42:38

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. That variation of green, yeah.

0:42:380:42:40

-She knew what she was doing.

-She sure did.

0:42:400:42:42

-It's a real... it's a real work of art.

-Yeah.

0:42:420:42:44

-But it's also a real one-off.

-Yeah.

0:42:440:42:47

In fact, when it was made then, with this blackout blind material

0:42:470:42:51

in the 1940s, it would have been quite old hat,

0:42:510:42:54

because this is more the kind of decoration that you expect to see

0:42:540:42:59

on 1920s and 1930s fire screens or printed on tea services.

0:42:590:43:04

It's actually... the bulk of it's pretty good condition,

0:43:040:43:06

there's a touch of moth just here and some brilliant sticky tape.

0:43:060:43:10

-Black duct tape!

-Yes, black gaffer.

0:43:100:43:13

In any event, I completely agree with you, it's a real work of art

0:43:130:43:18

-and really a very accomplished piece of sewing.

-Yeah.

0:43:180:43:22

So I think top marks to whoever made it.

0:43:220:43:24

Absolutely, yeah.

0:43:240:43:26

And at the moment I think it would be worth around £400.

0:43:260:43:29

Yeah, yeah.

0:43:290:43:31

Now, when you brought this out of your bag this morning,

0:43:330:43:36

I thought, this is just the most terrific piece.

0:43:360:43:39

I love bronzes. OK, I'm a man, you know, so I'm bound to respond to it

0:43:390:43:44

in a particular way, but I just think the sense of movement,

0:43:440:43:48

the life it captures, it's just terrific.

0:43:480:43:51

I must admit the sculptor, Yuriovich,

0:43:510:43:55

-wasn't very familiar to me.

-No.

0:43:550:43:57

But you know all about him, don't you?

0:43:570:43:59

I know quite a lot about him.

0:43:590:44:01

I met him in the '50s when he came to the pottery for clay,

0:44:010:44:06

and he asked if he could do a bust of me, which is this one.

0:44:060:44:10

-And you were how old?

-I was eight years old then.

0:44:100:44:13

-Yeah.

-My parents were very worried about having it done at all,

0:44:130:44:16

because he'd never met me before!

0:44:160:44:19

So they insisted that he came once a week, and I sat for him

0:44:190:44:22

with them watching.

0:44:220:44:23

What was it like, sitting for a sculptor?

0:44:230:44:25

My father said I'd never sit still, but he told me so many

0:44:250:44:29

captivating stories that I did sit still.

0:44:290:44:31

Working for the Tsar, moving to France, he had a Legion d'Honneur

0:44:310:44:36

little badge as well, which he was very proud of also.

0:44:360:44:39

-Wonderful stories.

-Yeah.

0:44:390:44:40

And he could make them up as he went along as well.

0:44:400:44:42

-I'm sure it didn't matter!

-It didn't matter.

0:44:420:44:45

He first exhibited in Paris in about 1909,

0:44:450:44:48

so he was obviously within that sort of Paris ambience.

0:44:480:44:51

-Yes.

-And I think that's very important,

0:44:510:44:53

-because this amazing figure actually goes back to Degas.

-Ah.

0:44:530:44:57

If you think of those Degas ballet dancer bronzes of the 1870s-80s.

0:44:570:45:03

Right.

0:45:030:45:04

That was a real revolution. It was carrying on from Rodin.

0:45:040:45:08

-Ah, yes.

-It was presenting the human figure

0:45:080:45:10

in ways it had never been seen before.

0:45:100:45:13

And dancers appealed to sculptors

0:45:130:45:15

because they were flexible, they could achieve amazing positions.

0:45:150:45:18

-Yes.

-He may have ended up in Britain,

0:45:180:45:20

-but his whole sort of sense and training...

-Yes, yes.

0:45:200:45:23

..is Paris-driven.

0:45:230:45:24

I think the point is that with these pieces,

0:45:240:45:27

which are to do with the Russians' rediscovery of their history,

0:45:270:45:32

in a sense, the sky's the limit.

0:45:320:45:33

Within a European context, this piece - because it's so terrific -

0:45:350:45:40

-is probably worth £3,000 to £5,000, possibly £6,000.

-Right.

0:45:400:45:46

-But I love the idea of you sitting there talking to him.

-Sitting still.

0:45:460:45:49

And him engrossing you with amazing stories.

0:45:490:45:51

And he did, all the stories that he had.

0:45:510:45:53

"N.A.Finch Esq. VC".

0:45:570:46:00

Now, I saw that name when I was walking round

0:46:000:46:03

the Royal Marines Museum. Just remind me how he won the VC?

0:46:030:46:07

He was awarded the Victoria Cross at the sea battle at Zeebrugge.

0:46:070:46:10

First World War, about 1918.

0:46:100:46:13

And he was one of the few survivors at that battle.

0:46:130:46:16

It says here, "The Queen's Bodyguard",

0:46:160:46:18

so when was he performing that role?

0:46:180:46:20

When he was decommissioned,

0:46:200:46:22

he was appointed Sergeant Major of Queen's Bodyguard.

0:46:220:46:26

He stood by the King's coffin when it was lying in state.

0:46:260:46:32

-King George VI?

-King George VI.

0:46:320:46:34

He also walked by the gun carriage for the King's funeral

0:46:340:46:38

and also walked by the Queen's Coronation coach for her Coronation.

0:46:380:46:43

When he came out of the military, he joined Lloyds Bank as a messenger.

0:46:430:46:47

My father worked for Lloyds Bank and I was given this from Finch

0:46:470:46:52

for my stamp collection, as a nine-year-old.

0:46:520:46:54

As a nine-year-old! Now, that's quite a stamp, isn't it?

0:46:540:46:57

Well, that's dated March 1952, so that's a month after the King died.

0:46:570:47:04

Now, let's just look at it a minute,

0:47:040:47:05

because this is an envelope with the mark of Buckingham Palace here.

0:47:050:47:09

You must have been rather chuffed with this?

0:47:090:47:11

Well, not very many other kids of nine, at school,

0:47:110:47:14

had an envelope like this, so it was rather special.

0:47:140:47:17

-So you've had this sat in a drawer, what, for 60 years or so?

-Yes.

0:47:170:47:20

What are you planning to do with it now?

0:47:200:47:22

Well, I thought it should go to the museum here.

0:47:220:47:25

They've got his VC, they've got some of his personal effects,

0:47:250:47:28

and it seems appropriate that this should go with it.

0:47:280:47:32

Well, that's incredibly kind of you.

0:47:320:47:34

So if you're talking to them, can you pass it over to them?

0:47:340:47:38

Well, I'd be honoured. I'd be delighted to do that.

0:47:380:47:40

That's so generous of you.

0:47:400:47:41

It's a pleasure, it's a pleasure.

0:47:410:47:43

Now, this self-portrait is by, and of, George Richmond,

0:47:470:47:52

who, at the age of 16 in 1827, closed the eyes of William Blake,

0:47:520:47:59

the great painter/poet. That's ten years before Queen Victoria

0:47:590:48:04

comes to the throne. And this painting was done in 1886.

0:48:040:48:08

It must be one of the very last things he ever painted.

0:48:080:48:12

Tell me about it.

0:48:120:48:13

Well, there is an inscription on the back, written in his own handwriting.

0:48:130:48:17

Oh, is there? Yeah.

0:48:170:48:19

And it says that, "This is the last picture that I will ever paint."

0:48:190:48:23

-Yes.

-"My eyes are failing me,

0:48:230:48:25

"the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Amen."

0:48:250:48:29

Written on the back.

0:48:290:48:31

That's marvellous. That's really quite moving,

0:48:310:48:33

because he was one of England's great painters, I think.

0:48:330:48:36

You know, when he was a disciple of William Blake,

0:48:360:48:38

he was a member of the Shoreham Ancients.

0:48:380:48:40

His great friends were Samuel Palmer

0:48:400:48:43

and they met at the house of John Linnell.

0:48:430:48:45

Palmer said of Blake that he held the keys to the English imagination.

0:48:450:48:50

And there's that dimension, the romantic imagination of the English,

0:48:500:48:54

that comes flooding into English art at about that time.

0:48:540:48:59

And George Richmond is a vehicle for it.

0:48:590:49:01

I mean, later, there's not a single important person

0:49:010:49:04

in the land of England who doesn't have his portrait done

0:49:040:49:07

by George Richmond, but always in the most human way.

0:49:070:49:11

A man so interested in humanity and the psychology of people

0:49:110:49:13

and such a fluid painter.

0:49:130:49:15

This is a very emotional thing, it seems to me,

0:49:150:49:18

with his glasses and his failing eyesight.

0:49:180:49:21

All his life, he painted himself, didn't he?

0:49:210:49:23

Yes, there are probably about nine or ten self-portraits,

0:49:230:49:26

a lot of them in the National Portrait Gallery

0:49:260:49:30

and other galleries around the world.

0:49:300:49:32

But this came down through the family,

0:49:320:49:35

-presumably because it was his last.

-You're related to the artist?

0:49:350:49:39

Yes, he was my great great grandfather, so a direct descendant.

0:49:390:49:43

-Direct descent.

-Through his daughter.

0:49:430:49:45

Now, is that his daughter?

0:49:450:49:47

-That is his daughter.

-So that's Laura?

0:49:470:49:49

-Laura, yes.

-What a pretty girl.

0:49:490:49:51

And presumably this is a great deal earlier than that, then?

0:49:510:49:54

-This must be about. what, 18...

-That's 1850-odd.

0:49:540:49:56

-50, yes.

-Well, she was born in 1841.

-Right.

0:49:560:49:59

So if you assume she's about ten...

0:49:590:50:02

It's quite a quick sketch for him, isn't it?

0:50:020:50:04

I mean, he's normally more finished. But nonetheless, it shows him

0:50:040:50:07

at the height of his fluency and the powers that I was talking about.

0:50:070:50:10

And it was around about this time that he started developing into oils

0:50:100:50:14

-from watercolours, which was...

-And miniatures.

0:50:140:50:17

And miniatures, yes, and I have one here.

0:50:170:50:20

Ah. That is so pretty, and who's that?

0:50:200:50:24

That is of his wife, painted for their marriage in 1830.

0:50:240:50:30

They eloped to Gretna Green.

0:50:300:50:32

What, because her father didn't approve?

0:50:320:50:34

Father wouldn't give his permission for them to be married.

0:50:340:50:36

That's terrifically romantic.

0:50:360:50:38

And they had a lifelong love affair, and when she died,

0:50:380:50:41

he was absolutely devastated.

0:50:410:50:43

Oh, dear, a very romantic story. I'll give you that back safely.

0:50:430:50:46

Thank you.

0:50:460:50:47

So, in terms of dates, we're talking about 1830, 1850

0:50:470:50:53

and of course 1886.

0:50:530:50:55

And really. these three pictures

0:50:550:50:56

tell the whole story of Victorian art,

0:50:560:50:58

or at least portraiture.

0:50:580:51:00

Now, presumably, because they're family pictures,

0:51:000:51:02

you've never valued them, or anything like that?

0:51:020:51:04

But I've got to do that. Shall we start with the miniature?

0:51:040:51:07

-Yes.

-Well, you know, they're historically important,

0:51:070:51:10

so there's that dimension.

0:51:100:51:12

Slightly faded, unfortunately, but not very much.

0:51:120:51:15

Very alive, such a pretty thing, and so personal.

0:51:150:51:18

I think I've probably got to put £10,000 on that.

0:51:180:51:21

On this very pretty picture of Laura, well, it's heaven.

0:51:210:51:26

I think probably £18,000.

0:51:260:51:29

And then for the self-portrait, to me,

0:51:290:51:33

that's a very, very powerful thing, it tells such a big story,

0:51:330:51:36

which we've only been able to skim today.

0:51:360:51:39

I think probably about £30,000, something like that.

0:51:390:51:43

Good heavens!

0:51:430:51:45

Well, it's not for sale, at the moment anyway!

0:51:470:51:50

You know, sometimes you look at a piece of silver and you think,

0:51:550:51:58

"Oh, if only it had this, or if only it was by so-and-so",

0:51:580:52:02

but that doesn't apply here.

0:52:020:52:05

This is a piece that has everything it should have, in spades.

0:52:050:52:11

It is a most wonderful piece of silver,

0:52:110:52:14

which has been gilded, of course, so it's silver-gilt.

0:52:140:52:17

Now, here we've got - which adds a certain something to it -

0:52:170:52:23

the arms of King George III. But how has it ended up with you?

0:52:230:52:29

A relation of mine was a friend of a lady

0:52:290:52:34

called Lady Hester Stanhope, who was actually the niece

0:52:340:52:39

of William Pitt and was William Pitt's housekeeper.

0:52:390:52:44

And William Pitt gave it to Lady Hester Stanhope

0:52:440:52:49

and my relation was one of her closest friends.

0:52:490:52:53

-He inherited it from her.

-Wonderful.

0:52:530:52:56

And it has trickled down my family.

0:52:560:53:00

-And I now own it.

-Right.

0:53:000:53:03

So, we're right at the beginning of the Regency here

0:53:030:53:06

and, in fact, if we look at the dating,

0:53:060:53:09

we've got the London hallmark there for 1805.

0:53:090:53:15

Now the makers, Digby Scott and Benjamin Smith.

0:53:150:53:19

-Yes.

-Two of the greatest goldsmiths that have ever lived.

0:53:190:53:23

-Yes.

-And the important thing here is that they worked...

0:53:230:53:27

..in fact they were in partnership, with Rundell, Bridge and Rundell.

0:53:270:53:31

-Rundell, Bridge and Rundell were the Royal goldsmiths.

-Yes.

0:53:310:53:35

So, this shell, which you might imagine

0:53:350:53:38

to have been chased out of the body,

0:53:380:53:40

in fact is cast and applied to the body.

0:53:400:53:44

All of these sections are casting,

0:53:440:53:47

and, in fact, if you look on the inside there,

0:53:470:53:50

-you can actually see it's perfectly smooth there.

-Yes.

0:53:500:53:53

-Because of the application.

-Yes.

0:53:530:53:54

Everything made in the very finest possible way.

0:53:540:53:59

And, of course, we've got an ivory handle there,

0:53:590:54:01

it wouldn't be anything else but ivory with this firm.

0:54:010:54:06

And the triangular base again, so typical of the period.

0:54:060:54:09

-Mm-hmm.

-But wherever you look, Greek elements coming in,

0:54:090:54:13

all these things, so important at this time.

0:54:130:54:16

But, of course, one thing we haven't considered is value.

0:54:160:54:22

You've got a Royal piece. Now, that does make a bit of a difference.

0:54:220:54:25

In fact, a very big difference.

0:54:250:54:28

I've been mulling it over

0:54:280:54:31

and I think you'd be hard pushed

0:54:310:54:35

to be able to get that today

0:54:350:54:37

under £50,000.

0:54:370:54:40

< GASPS NEARBY

0:54:400:54:41

Yes.

0:54:410:54:43

And if it went on significantly beyond that,

0:54:430:54:46

it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest.

0:54:460:54:48

-Right, well, thank you very much.

-Thank you.

0:54:480:54:51

I knew it was worth a few pounds, but I didn't know quite how much.

0:54:510:54:55

Well, there's a very good reason that you have brought this along,

0:54:570:55:00

isn't there?

0:55:000:55:01

There is. This has caused arguments at home.

0:55:010:55:04

Love it.

0:55:040:55:05

I tend to pick up things that I like if I see them around

0:55:050:55:08

and I can afford them and my son thinks

0:55:080:55:10

I should get rid of my clutter.

0:55:100:55:12

And I did kind of promise that I wouldn't buy any more.

0:55:120:55:14

Then I came home with some glass.

0:55:140:55:16

And this one, I got because I could see myself having a spritzer

0:55:160:55:19

out of it, and I thought it was old, and I thought it was fine,

0:55:190:55:22

and he doesn't and he wants me to bin it.

0:55:220:55:24

So, I said I was going to bring it here today

0:55:240:55:26

and find out if it was old or not.

0:55:260:55:28

If I'm right, my stuff stays, and if I'm wrong,

0:55:280:55:31

-I've got to get rid of some.

-Wow, oh, brilliant!

0:55:310:55:34

And what's actually really good fun about this

0:55:340:55:37

is the fact that...

0:55:370:55:39

-..you're absolutely right.

-Oh, yes! Yes, oh, yes!

0:55:390:55:44

-You're right, the junk stays!

-It stays!

0:55:440:55:46

And good on you, because this glass

0:55:460:55:48

is 250 years old!

0:55:480:55:52

You're joking.

0:55:520:55:54

Would I joke?

0:55:540:55:56

Oh, this is the best news!

0:55:560:55:57

-I would joke, but...

-I can't wait.

0:55:570:56:00

I'm absolutely right.

0:56:000:56:01

Because this is a really unusual English wine glass from 1750.

0:56:010:56:06

So, how do we know this?

0:56:060:56:08

Well, that's a very good question, so, first of all,

0:56:080:56:11

that's English, Scottish possibly, but it's really English,

0:56:110:56:15

made in London, it's...and it's quite unusual in that it's big!

0:56:150:56:19

Big and heavy.

0:56:190:56:20

It's really big because most mid-18th century wine glasses

0:56:200:56:23

look like, you know, if you sipped out of them, you know,

0:56:230:56:26

you'd get your tongue wet and it's empty, because they were designed

0:56:260:56:29

to take a toasting mouthful, bottoms up, down the hatch.

0:56:290:56:32

Well, that's clearly a mid-18th century wine glass

0:56:320:56:35

-that's got good size.

-Right. I never realised.

0:56:350:56:38

And then you look underneath the foot, which we've got to do,

0:56:380:56:41

and it's a good old mess!

0:56:410:56:43

Like a hand-made glass from 250 years ago, and you can't fake it.

0:56:430:56:47

So, go on, how much did you pay?

0:56:470:56:49

-I paid 50 pence.

-50 pence, cor!

0:56:490:56:52

I'll give you a profit here, hold on a minute!

0:56:520:56:55

-Um, 400 or 500 quid?

-Honestly?

0:56:550:56:59

Oh, God, I cannot wait to see him, thank you.

0:56:590:57:03

-Thank you. Thank you very much.

-Give him hell!

-I will.

0:57:030:57:07

Robert, we met you earlier on,

0:57:090:57:10

and you're in charge of the Royal Marines Museum here.

0:57:100:57:13

Thank you very much for putting on the sunshine.

0:57:130:57:15

-It's been glorious.

-It's lovely to take credit for that.

0:57:150:57:17

It's been absolutely wonderful.

0:57:170:57:19

You're celebrating your 350th anniversary

0:57:190:57:23

and a visitor has come along to see us today

0:57:230:57:26

and gave me something that he would like to donate to the museum,

0:57:260:57:31

which is a letter that belonged to N.A. Finch,

0:57:310:57:34

who won the VC, who you commemorate here in the museum.

0:57:340:57:37

Absolutely we do, absolutely we do.

0:57:370:57:39

Of course, and this is a letter from Buckingham Palace,

0:57:390:57:41

it has the mourning, to commemorate the death of George VI at the time.

0:57:410:57:47

It's been in his family since he was nine,

0:57:470:57:49

for about 60 years or so, and he now thinks it should go to the museum

0:57:490:57:53

and asked me to pass it over.

0:57:530:57:55

This is absolutely wonderful. Finch is one of our heroes.

0:57:550:57:59

-Yes.

-Finch is a First World War VC,

0:57:590:58:02

wounded, fired his machine gun at the Germans,

0:58:020:58:05

despite everybody around him being killed,

0:58:050:58:08

and he's a great, great hero of ours.

0:58:080:58:10

Unusually awarded the Victoria Cross by ballot,

0:58:100:58:13

which meant that his mates actually thought a lot of him.

0:58:130:58:16

Because his mates voted for him.

0:58:160:58:17

Absolutely, so to have this to add to the collection,

0:58:170:58:20

-it's just stupendous.

-Good, oh well, I'm...

0:58:200:58:22

-This is so exciting.

-I'm so glad you're pleased.

0:58:220:58:24

Well, I shall do him a very good shake by the hand

0:58:240:58:27

and buy him a very good pint of beer, too.

0:58:270:58:29

You can buy me one as well.

0:58:290:58:31

From the Antiques Roadshow, on the 350th anniversary

0:58:310:58:34

of the Royal Marines, until next time, bye bye.

0:58:340:58:37

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