Trentham Gardens 2 Antiques Roadshow


Trentham Gardens 2

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This week, the Antiques Roadshow makes a return visit

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to Trentham Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent.

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And although there's been an estate here for almost 1,000 years,

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it's the last century that's seen the most dramatic changes here.

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For hundreds of years, Trentham was a great estate.

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In the 18th century, its grounds were landscaped by Capability Brown.

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It was a show-piece for its owner,

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George Granville Leveson-Gower, the Duke of Sutherland.

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The only people who were allowed to enjoy the grounds

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were those fortunate enough to be invited to stay.

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By 1905, though, all that had changed.

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The once immaculate estate had fallen into decline

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and the fourth Duke of Sutherland tried and failed to sell it.

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Six years later, most of Trentham Hall was demolished,

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the contents of the house were sold off for a measly ?500,

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and the family moved away.

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The gardens, though, were up for grabs.

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Every possible use for the land was considered.

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A miniature railway transported visitors to an Art Deco

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open-air swimming pool, while boat rides gave families

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the chance to enjoy Capability Brown's lake in style.

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Throughout the 1930s and '40s,

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it was known as Trentham Gardens Pleasure Park.

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Trentham Gardens was no longer for the privileged few.

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Local people from Stoke-on-Trent began to flock here.

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It became known as the Playground of the Potteries.

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Trentham Ballroom was built on the grounds in 1931.

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In its day, it saw performances by countless dance bands and gigs

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by acts including Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin

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and, in 1963, the Beatles.

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Sadly, by the 1970s, Trentham Gardens was fading

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and faced an uncertain future.

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Over the next few years, the pool was filled in,

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the estate and its former attractions were largely abandoned

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and its once-famous gardens overgrown.

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The fate of the 725-acre estate

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hung in the balance for 20 years until, in 1996, it was

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bought by owners with an ambition to restore it to its former glory.

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The task was enormous, but in 2004, the gardens were finally opened.

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Much has been done,

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thousands of trees have been planted, to restore

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Capability Brown's former landscape.

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And as for the Italianate Garden,

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well, it's been uncovered, replanted

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and look at them, they're glorious.

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Trentham Gardens is once again the Playground of the Potteries

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and attracting people in their droves

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for today's Antiques Roadshow.

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Let's see what they've brought along for our experts.

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Well, I think this is a fascinating vase,

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but what is it you want to know about it?

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Well, I'd really like to know how old it is

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and what the characters mean.

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Well, it's charming. You probably know it's Chinese.

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Yes. I don't know if you've done any homework on it,

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but the type of decoration, where they've painted in under-glaze blue

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and then painted with over-glaze enamels, it's called Wucai.

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It dates from the middle of the 17th century.

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Well, I wondered if it did and then somebody told us

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it was actually 19th century, but we weren't certain.

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No. This is definitely not a 19th-century vase.

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This is usually referred to as the transitional period, which is

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the transition between the Ming dynasty and the Qing dynasty.

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But it's the subject which I think is so fascinating.

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What's written down here is two phrases of a poem.

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It's from a Chinese love story called the Yu Jiao Li,

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which translates in English to The Two Fair Maidens.

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I'm not sure, I'll have to check.

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But so we've got these fair ladies

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and they're all involved in embroidery.

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Yes. Now, have you had a look at what this one's doing?

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No, what?

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She's got, this robe here, it's got a dragon on it. Yes.

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It's a dragon robe.

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So you see the dragon head and it's got some scales there.

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And she's mending it. Ah!

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And it's got another subtle meaning interwoven in.

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They're not just making, embroidering robes for their lovers,

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but her mending a dragon robe is supposed to represent

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correcting a mistake or an error of the emperor.

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So it's got actually a bit of a political meaning, woven

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into the whole fabric of the love story, which I think is fabulous.

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There is a problem with this vase. Yes. The cracks.

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Well, it has got a crack on the back... Yes.

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..but it's worse than that.

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Oh. What have you done with the top two inches?

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Well, they were never there, when I got it.

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Well, they were there once.

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No, all that was in it was a teasel.

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It had a teasel in it. Well, I mean, it's a shame.

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This vase used to be two or three inches taller than this.

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All right, OK. And if you look closely at the top of the rim,

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we've got glaze all over here.

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But if you look at the top, it's been ground off and polished.

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Of course, it absolutely wrecks its value.

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I suppose you want to know what it's worth or what it would have

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been worth if it hadn't been sawn off.

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I guess so. Well...

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Rare transitional vases with stories illustrated on them,

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something like this could fetch 25 or ?30,000.

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Right.

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And now it's only worth ?3,000.

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Right.

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Well, that's good. Thank you.

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So if I had to match an object to an owner, you

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would be literally the last person I would put this to here today.

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It is quite gruesome. What are you doing with it?

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Well, I've just started out in the antiques trade

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and I picked it up at auction. OK.

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It's an odd one for someone starting out in the trade to buy.

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What was it that attracted you to it?

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I really like the carving, it's beautiful.

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I didn't know, first of all, what the carving was.

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And then with a bit of research, I found out it's the Last Judgment.

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I found out it's a stiletto sword.

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They were usually used to, I can't pronounce it,

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the coup de grace on the battlefield,

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to give, like, the mercy kill.

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Yes, exactly. The coup de grace, the final...

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I think it's more of a protection dagger

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rather than a battlefield piece or like you say,

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the piece which would finish someone off, as a mercy kill.

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But date-wise? I was guessing 1510, 1520. OK.

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I think it's more 17th century, so early 1600s,

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but, you know, more research is needed.

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Country of origin, you say Italian? I would, yeah, Italian.

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I would go more German. Yeah. But they did...

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And the stiletto thing, obviously, well, that's basically where we get

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the stiletto heel from, in women's shoes, it comes from the dagger.

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Oh, right, OK.

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But I still can't put the two together, it's kind of...

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I don't take it out every day. No, good.

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I think it's just stunning quality.

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This is a fruit-wood handle, all carved here.

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And like you say, you've got God there judging.

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You've got the sort of final trumpeters going down,

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descending into hell with the skeletons at the bottom.

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And then, on the other side, you've got the devil there.

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And again, more people sort of in their... Not a good state. No.

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And really the message it's giving out is that

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if you meet the person that has this stiletto, he is pretty much God

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and he's sending you to where you don't want to be.

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Did you pay much for it? ?120. OK.

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Because obviously if you're starting out life as a dealer,

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you want to make a profit. So would you guess you've done well?

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I'd guess I've done well.

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I think you've done very well

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because I would put that into an auction at 2,000 to ?3,000.

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Oh, that's brilliant.

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SHE LAUGHS

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Thank you very much.

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SHE LAUGHS

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You've got the dealer's laugh. THEY BOTH LAUGH

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That's not a good thing.

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You've done incredibly well and I'm very jealous.

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I just love it. Thank you.

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Original paintings of prize fighters, boxers,

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are particularly rare.

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In terms of condition,

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your painting has certainly been through quite a few rounds.

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Can you tell me what's happened to it?

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Well, it hung in the tap room of my parents' pub for,

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well, about 80-odd years.

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And it's probably covered in nicotine

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because you could never see for smoke in the tap room.

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And then, for the last 40 years, it's stood on the bedroom floor.

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First at my parents and then at my house.

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It's had a rough life, I think.

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It has had a rough life, but it's a very, very interesting subject.

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Do we know who he is?

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He's Bob Brettle.

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Now, Bob Brettle's quite famous.

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Can you tell me a bit more about him?

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Well, he was the Welterweight Champion of England.

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He was born in Portobello in 1832, near Edinburgh.

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And he only lived to about 40.

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Not surprisingly, some of the fights he had.

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The first fight he had was 80 rounds.

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80 rounds, that's extraordinary. 80 rounds.

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And we've got a framed newspaper, page out of a newspaper,

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with one of his fights on that actually goes 34 rounds on Tuesday

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and 100 rounds on Wednesday.

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My goodness!

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And he won it because he was the only one left standing.

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It's unbelievable, isn't it? No wonder he had a short life.

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Yeah, yeah.

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Now in terms of the painting, if we look at this,

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it is an original oil on canvas that's been laid down onto card.

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In the top right-hand corner, you can see the paint separation.

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That's probably from heat in the pub. It must have been near a fire.

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But further down, it's been creased, there's been repairs.

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So it has been through the wars.

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Throughout my career, I've seen a handful of really good

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pugilist pictures, but they are very, very rare.

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Now often, the ones of him and other prize-fighters,

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they were done by amateurs from original lithographs.

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One of the reasons I think the painting is by an amateur,

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is you get this very one-dimensional feel in the figure.

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And we look at the fists here too, they're very flat.

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But it's still going to date probably to the

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last half of the 19th century.

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So I hope when I give you the value

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I'm not going to get a knockout punch. No.

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But this picture is a very rare subject

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and certainly worth 1,000 to ?1,500.

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Without the damage,

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then it would be worth at least three or four times that.

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It's the condition that lets it down.

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But it's a real rarity and thank you for bringing it to us.

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My pleasure.

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How long have you had this lovely piece?

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Well, it's come from my grandmother's

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and I played with it as a child.

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She used to keep it down the side of the couch in her front room,

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you know, the best room.

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I was always allowed to just look at it, play with it a little.

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Then she gave it to my mother.

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And now it's mine. So that's actually all I know about it.

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Well, if I told you it was 1840. Right, OK.

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And they're little papier mache dolls. Oh, right.

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It's known as an automaton, but it's not

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a musical automaton because it's really early for an automaton.

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Right. It winds.

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The winding mechanism was probably made near Neufchatel in Switzerland

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and sent over and put into the box,

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which was then decorated, probably in England.

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The little dolls are all probably French dresses.

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Right. They are absolutely enchanting.

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They're one of my favourite automata.

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They're in marvellous condition. I thought they were.

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I didn't realise they were papier mache.

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But they're absolutely enchanting, absolutely enchanting.

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I think if I was born in 1840, I wouldn't be looking like that.

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THEY LAUGH

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I don't think any of us would.

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The only thing I'm really concerned about is,

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whether it's going to work.

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But before we start making it work, I'm going to just put a price on it.

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And have you any idea?

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OK. I've no idea whatsoever.

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You haven't looked on anything? No, no.

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Well, I'm going to put a price of 2,000 to ?3,000 on it.

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Really? Wow.

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Gosh, that's fantastic.

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I've always liked it a lot, but I'm surprised at that, I really am.

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Right. Let's try. Don't you dare disobey me.

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Ah.

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THEY LAUGH

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I love the little one on a swing. Yes, so do I. So do I.

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Come on, give us a hand.

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One, two, three.

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Blooming hellfire.

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I'm not sure it's big enough.

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Is this is where you keep your marmalade? No.

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I keep it on my windowsill.

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Did you buy it?

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No, I found it in an old bag in a garden of a very old

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gentleman that I'm friends with, along with a few other things.

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Wow, that certainly gets your eyeballs burning, doesn't it?

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I saw it in the presentation case in my grandma's house

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in Germany and fell in love with it ever since I was a child.

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OK. Well, this is Czech from the '70s.

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I went to the factory before it closed down. This was made at Exbor.

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I showed it to a guy who valets my car, who's

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got a bit of an interest and he said, "Oh, I think it's majolica."

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So I just like it.

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I can see why he thinks it's majolica, but it's not.

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This is cream-ware and it's about 1760.

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The blokes made them and the girls decorated them.

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This is physically a very demanding piece of glass to make.

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I've seen them working on identical pieces, albeit much smaller

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than this and they would use palette knives, just like fine artists,

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to build up this coloured gold leaf to create the gilding.

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Despite its huge scale,

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I think it's only a couple of hundred quid, to be honest. OK.

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It's a really rare thing and even though it's broken,

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it's about ?1,500 worth.

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Thank you. Happy?

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Oh, yes, really happy. Good. Thank you.

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Here we are surrounded by all this equipment

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needed to make a modern film or television programme.

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And yet we have here its earliest forebear.

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This is a movie camera dating from around 1910, 1915.

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Now I take it you must be a real enthusiast to own such a thing?

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I bought it because I liked it, rather than knowing

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anything about photography or movies or anything.

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I just liked it as a piece of furniture.

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It is and do you know, the interesting thing is,

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you say it's like buying a piece of furniture.

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Here we've got this fabulous mahogany body bound with brass.

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And down here beside me you've got the matching carrying case.

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Similarly, really robustly and beautifully made.

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When you bought it, which was what, recently? No. 1980.

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What did you know about it at that point?

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I didn't really know anything at all.

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It was supposed to have got some history with a guy called

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Cherry Kearton, but that didn't mean anything to me.

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You might as well have said the Man in the Moon.

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Well, Cherry Kearton, of course, is a name

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to conjure with in early movie making.

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I mean, one could possibly describe him as

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the David Attenborough of his day.

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He was very involved with creating wildlife and nature photography,

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right back, really from the 1890s, right the way through.

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So that's a bit about who might have owned the camera.

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Now let's just look at the camera itself.

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The viewfinder is straight through from the back to the front.

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And if I open this up,

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we can actually see the shutter in operation.

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Look at that.

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It's just a hole cut into the body of the camera

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and this swinging sector goes round and creates the moving image.

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Wonderful. I mean, it's basic technology, but it works. Yeah.

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And then this side, we can actually look at the mechanism.

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And again, with the winding handle, we can see that it grabs the film,

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it pushes it through, it's guided on the sprockets on these wheels.

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And it's feeding through from one film canister

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into another film canister.

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And on this canister is something that makes my heart beat faster.

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This monogram says W in the centre and it says K Co Limited.

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It relates to a man called James Williamson. Right.

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James Williamson was one of the Victorian pioneers of movie making.

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Oh, right.

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Based in Hove, he was a movie maker himself.

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He specialised in these sort of one-minute comedies.

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In 1910, he set up his own camera company -

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Williamson Kinematograph Co Limited.

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Right.

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And his cameras are thought to be some of the very best

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because he was a movie maker himself,

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so he knew what he wanted in a camera. Knew what he was doing.

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I'm going to ask you what you paid.

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Well, it was a long time ago,

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but I think it was pretty close to ?400.

0:18:350:18:38

I think that if that link to Kearton could be proved,

0:18:390:18:43

we're talking about 3,000 to ?5,000.

0:18:430:18:46

Happy days.

0:18:480:18:49

HE LAUGHS

0:18:490:18:51

Fantastic.

0:18:510:18:53

Yeah, great that is, isn't it?

0:18:530:18:55

Standing in front of Trentham Hall, this is just the sort

0:18:560:19:00

of table I could imagine the Dukes of Sutherland having in their house.

0:19:000:19:04

So how do you have it in your house?

0:19:040:19:06

Well, as far as I know, my best understanding is that this

0:19:060:19:10

was produced by Thomas Forrester in the early 1880s

0:19:100:19:14

as one of three for his three sons.

0:19:140:19:17

And it has remained in the family ever since.

0:19:170:19:20

So you are a Mr Forrester?

0:19:200:19:21

I am indeed, yes.

0:19:210:19:22

And this was made by your grandfather, great grandfather?

0:19:220:19:25

Great grandfather. Thomas Forrester.

0:19:250:19:27

And I understand that they did make quite a number

0:19:270:19:30

in order to get three good ones.

0:19:300:19:32

They would have to

0:19:320:19:33

because to make one is a challenge.

0:19:330:19:35

But to make three,

0:19:350:19:36

and presumably three the same, so they didn't fight,

0:19:360:19:39

that would be, I mean, they probably made 20 or 30 of them.

0:19:390:19:42

Because not only could they have bent in the kiln,

0:19:420:19:44

they could have got burnt in the kiln as well.

0:19:440:19:47

Because this would have been made and fired once to biscuit stage.

0:19:470:19:50

It would have been glazed and fired again.

0:19:500:19:53

Then it would have been painted and fired again.

0:19:530:19:56

And then gilded and fired again.

0:19:560:19:57

So all those times in the kiln, it could have either bent,

0:19:570:20:00

it could have cracked, it could have got burnt.

0:20:000:20:02

And this is all completely freehand painted.

0:20:020:20:05

Even the background, everything completely hand-painted.

0:20:050:20:08

So to have produced this - and we are talking the 1870s, 1880s -

0:20:080:20:12

at that time, in coal-fired kilns,

0:20:120:20:16

this really is the most amazing tribute to the skills of your family

0:20:160:20:20

and the skill-set that was in Stoke-on-Trent at that time.

0:20:200:20:23

Oh, thank you. So is it on display,

0:20:230:20:25

is it hidden under a cover or locked away in a room?

0:20:250:20:28

Usually, it's in secure storage.

0:20:280:20:31

From time to time, we have it out at home.

0:20:310:20:34

Because I can see there's some little bits of wear here.

0:20:340:20:36

Obviously, it has been used in its time. Yep.

0:20:360:20:39

You know, it's purely hypothetical because I don't think you'll

0:20:390:20:43

ever sell it, but, you know, there is a market for this.

0:20:430:20:46

It is, you know, it is a showy piece of porcelain and some

0:20:460:20:50

people like that. And let's be fair, where would you get another one?

0:20:500:20:53

But if you were to sell this, it would easily make five, six, seven,

0:20:530:20:58

even ?8,000.

0:20:580:21:00

Well, I'm not surprised, but I've no intention of selling it.

0:21:000:21:03

Let me shake your hand. Thank you very much. It's a pleasure.

0:21:030:21:06

It's an interesting group of objects you've got here.

0:21:110:21:14

Where did they come from? Thank you.

0:21:140:21:17

They are all from China.

0:21:170:21:19

My father was born in China.

0:21:190:21:21

They were China inland missionaries to convert the...

0:21:210:21:27

The Chinese, yes. Very non-PC now.

0:21:270:21:30

Absolutely, yes.

0:21:300:21:33

And his mother brought him home when he was four,

0:21:330:21:37

along with his brother, on the Trans-Siberian railway.

0:21:370:21:41

Oh, my goodness. And these followed him.

0:21:410:21:45

Really? Yes.

0:21:450:21:47

So aged four, he didn't buy them, who did?

0:21:470:21:50

No. Well, we think they are birth gifts.

0:21:500:21:53

Right, so we're talking about the beginning of the 20th century.

0:21:530:21:56

1907. 1907.

0:21:560:21:58

I have pictures of my father,

0:21:580:22:01

which is this one.

0:22:010:22:03

Oh, yes, right.

0:22:030:22:06

And my grandfather and his wife. Yes.

0:22:060:22:10

And these two are?

0:22:100:22:11

This is my father, James.

0:22:110:22:15

And this would be their nurse, ayah, I don't know.

0:22:150:22:18

Yes, ayah, yeah.

0:22:180:22:19

Fascinating. Thank you.

0:22:190:22:21

Well, your birth suggestion is probably quite right

0:22:210:22:27

because these are on necklaces

0:22:270:22:30

to be worn as good luck and good health.

0:22:300:22:34

We've got characters here which say fu gui shou chang,

0:22:340:22:38

which is happiness, long life and all that sort of stuff.

0:22:380:22:41

And we've got a bat here.

0:22:410:22:44

Do you see the bat? Oh, yes.

0:22:440:22:47

Well, I'm Battie, am I not? Yes.

0:22:470:22:49

So I collect batty objects.

0:22:490:22:52

So you won't be leaving with this.

0:22:520:22:55

THEY LAUGH

0:22:550:22:57

The bat is a symbol of happiness. Mm-hmm.

0:22:570:23:01

Here we've got a boy riding a qilin.

0:23:010:23:07

A qilin is a mythical beast which has the feet of a deer,

0:23:070:23:11

the tail of a camel, the head of a dragon and various other bits.

0:23:110:23:16

And he is the symbol of almost everything which is good.

0:23:160:23:21

Gracious. Nice things in here, comparable.

0:23:220:23:25

They, I think, are hair pieces, worn by a woman like that,

0:23:250:23:31

as a diadem, as we would today.

0:23:310:23:34

So what are they worth?

0:23:360:23:37

These two are silver.

0:23:390:23:40

That one is worth around three to ?500.

0:23:420:23:46

That one is spectacular.

0:23:460:23:48

I think one would say probably two to 3,000 on that one.

0:23:480:23:53

And each one of those is going to be

0:23:560:23:59

500 to ?1,000.

0:23:590:24:03

It's beginning to clock up. Good gracious!

0:24:030:24:07

I think you've probably got three to 5,000 in there.

0:24:090:24:12

Bit of a shock?

0:24:150:24:16

Yes. Thank you very much.

0:24:160:24:18

Well, the word iconic,

0:24:210:24:23

I think, is often overused,

0:24:230:24:24

but I'm going to use it here.

0:24:240:24:26

We're looking at four iconic

0:24:260:24:27

images of Shackleton's

0:24:270:24:30

ill-fated Antarctic expedition in the early 20th century.

0:24:300:24:34

This is his ship, marooned on the ice, The Endurance. Yes.

0:24:340:24:38

We have two sets of very cold-looking penguins,

0:24:380:24:41

encased in ice.

0:24:410:24:42

And a very chilly dog here.

0:24:420:24:44

I recognise these as examples of photographs by the Australian

0:24:440:24:47

photographer, Frank Hurley,

0:24:470:24:49

who travelled with Shackleton down to the Antarctic.

0:24:490:24:53

And on one of them, yes, I can see a signature.

0:24:530:24:56

This does say Frank Hurley.

0:24:560:24:58

On another one, I can see just the tail of a signature.

0:24:580:25:01

But if I'm honest, I worry a little bit.

0:25:010:25:04

These photographs were reproduced in great quantities,

0:25:060:25:09

quite soon after they were first printed.

0:25:090:25:12

I really want to know that I'm looking at

0:25:120:25:14

original Frank Hurley prints.

0:25:140:25:16

Is there anything you can tell me about them,

0:25:160:25:18

and how you got them, where they came from, that would reassure me?

0:25:180:25:21

Well, they came from my grandfather.

0:25:210:25:24

I acquired them when he died.

0:25:240:25:27

He was a cellist on the White Star Line.

0:25:270:25:32

And he met Frank Hurley while he was on the White Star Line.

0:25:320:25:36

When you're a musician, you have a lot of free time because you're

0:25:360:25:39

not playing all the time. And they used to play cards a lot.

0:25:390:25:43

The rumour in the family was that this was maybe payment of a debt.

0:25:430:25:48

But he did know Frank Hurley.

0:25:480:25:50

That's a pretty good provenance.

0:25:500:25:52

I love the idea of your grandfather as cellist and part-time gambler.

0:25:520:25:56

Oh, yes. And I have this image...

0:25:560:25:58

He liked his flutter. Did he? Oh, yes.

0:25:580:26:00

I like the idea of, you know, the possibility of Hurley

0:26:000:26:03

and him sitting down and playing cards. And that really reassures me.

0:26:030:26:08

So when I see this signature, Frank Hurley,

0:26:080:26:11

I'm reassured that this is the real thing.

0:26:110:26:13

We're looking at four very high-quality photographs

0:26:130:26:16

of one of the great explorations of the 20th century.

0:26:160:26:20

This in particular, The Endurance, jacked up on the ice there,

0:26:200:26:24

marooned, you know, it's one of the great images of the 20th century.

0:26:240:26:28

I think I'm looking at a figure of about 1,500 to ?2,000.

0:26:280:26:31

Oh, as much as that? That's nice.

0:26:310:26:33

SHE LAUGHS

0:26:330:26:36

Yes. Yeah. Thank you very much.

0:26:360:26:38

Well, I'm 6'3" tall

0:26:410:26:43

and I think that kind of calibrates the height of this

0:26:430:26:47

absolutely massive Doulton stoneware jardiniere.

0:26:470:26:52

It really is stunning.

0:26:520:26:53

So stunning indeed that, with apologies to Gracie Fields,

0:26:530:26:57

it really is the biggest aspidistra pot in the world, isn't it?

0:26:570:27:01

Yes, certainly. And as I'm talking,

0:27:010:27:03

I can hear my voice echoing inside this massive vessel here. Yes.

0:27:030:27:09

Can you tell me anything about it?

0:27:090:27:11

Yes, quite simply, we have a Victorian house

0:27:110:27:13

and we'd been looking for a large jardiniere to fit in our hall

0:27:130:27:17

for some time.

0:27:170:27:19

We saw this in a local auction about five years ago

0:27:190:27:21

and thought it was just the piece.

0:27:210:27:23

It wasn't till we actually got to the sale room

0:27:230:27:25

we realised just how big it was.

0:27:250:27:27

But decided, no, it fitted and it is beautiful.

0:27:270:27:30

It sits in a lovely position in the corner of our hall.

0:27:300:27:32

And presumably in the kind of house for which it was made.

0:27:320:27:35

Yes, precisely.

0:27:350:27:36

You know, this was probably made in about 1900, 1910,

0:27:360:27:39

that kind of date. Yes. And our house was built around 1895.

0:27:390:27:42

There we are. You know, it's found its natural habitat,

0:27:420:27:45

which is really rather sweet, isn't it?

0:27:450:27:47

What I love about it, apart from its size and grandeur, is the

0:27:470:27:51

quality of the decoration.

0:27:510:27:53

And these flowers here have been hand-worked.

0:27:530:27:56

They've been carved in clay, not moulded,

0:27:560:27:59

like most pots are moulded or mass-produced in some way.

0:27:590:28:02

These are all hand done.

0:28:020:28:03

But the effect is absolutely luscious,

0:28:030:28:06

and to my eyes, really beautiful.

0:28:060:28:08

The colouring's subtle, it is a true work of art.

0:28:080:28:12

Is there a mark on the bottom here because I really can't lift it up?

0:28:120:28:16

It is extraordinarily heavy, as you can imagine.

0:28:160:28:18

It's got FCP written on the bottom.

0:28:180:28:20

Right. OK.

0:28:200:28:22

Well, that must stand for Frank or Francis C Pope. Oh, right.

0:28:220:28:26

Who was an artist at Doulton's from the end of the 19th century,

0:28:260:28:31

I think about 1880, into the 1920s.

0:28:310:28:34

And really one of the leading artists there.

0:28:340:28:37

Wonderful.

0:28:370:28:39

Now you say you bought it recently. Yes.

0:28:390:28:41

You know I'm going to ask you this. HE LAUGHS

0:28:410:28:44

How much was it?

0:28:440:28:46

We paid 1,600 for it, which we have

0:28:460:28:48

no idea whether that represents good value, it's just we loved it.

0:28:480:28:50

It fits with the house. So you buy something you like, don't you?

0:28:500:28:54

I think, of all things, that is all that matters.

0:28:540:28:57

But, you know, you're not going to retire on any profit that

0:28:570:29:01

you've made from this.

0:29:010:29:02

I don't expect you mind.

0:29:020:29:03

You know, it's worth...it's got...

0:29:030:29:05

You can't stand back and look at that

0:29:050:29:06

and say it's worth less than ?1,000.

0:29:060:29:08

Probably worth ?1,500. And, you know, there we are.

0:29:080:29:11

Fine. But that's not the point.

0:29:110:29:14

Thank you. Thank you very much indeed.

0:29:140:29:16

Well, the clouds have gathered in this afternoon,

0:29:180:29:20

but I'm really pleased to see such a pretty pendant.

0:29:200:29:23

It's really brightened up my afternoon.

0:29:230:29:25

So how have you managed to come with it today?

0:29:250:29:28

It belongs to my wife.

0:29:280:29:30

It originally came into the family through her grandmother.

0:29:300:29:34

We think that it was either a wedding present or

0:29:340:29:38

an anniversary present from her grandfather to her grandmother.

0:29:380:29:42

Oh, how lovely.

0:29:420:29:43

Well, the Edwardian era that this has been produced in would

0:29:430:29:47

certainly fit in naturally with her grandmother, wouldn't it?

0:29:470:29:50

Something like this would be worn to some really quite special

0:29:500:29:53

occasions, I would have thought.

0:29:530:29:55

But the versatility of this pendant is something that really

0:29:550:29:59

strikes me and I absolutely love.

0:29:590:30:01

Because what we have here, of course, is a little screwdriver

0:30:010:30:04

which is kept within this gorgeous box.

0:30:040:30:07

And you can actually interchange each of these panels.

0:30:070:30:10

So it's very multifunctional and a piece of jewellery for every

0:30:100:30:13

colour of dress that you might have really, isn't it?

0:30:130:30:16

It's just great. Exactly.

0:30:160:30:18

We've got beautiful platinum metalwork, set with very small

0:30:180:30:22

but perfect diamonds in there. Absolutely adorable.

0:30:220:30:25

Then the actual enamel discs that we see here,

0:30:250:30:29

it's an enamel work called guilloche enamel.

0:30:290:30:32

The pattern is engraved onto the platinum disc

0:30:320:30:36

and then the enamel is poured over.

0:30:360:30:38

And it makes it look as though the actual pattern is textured

0:30:380:30:42

on the top of the enamel.

0:30:420:30:43

I see. But it isn't, it's completely smooth.

0:30:430:30:45

So it gives off this very sumptuous look that's really quite pretty.

0:30:450:30:49

The pierced work, as well, adds to that delicacy.

0:30:490:30:53

The fashion for the time was a lot of lace work and silks,

0:30:530:30:57

so you can just imagine this lovely floating, elegant period.

0:30:570:31:00

Yes. Yeah, really gorgeous.

0:31:000:31:02

This period of jewellery is becoming really quite

0:31:020:31:05

fashionable at the moment, which is great news for you.

0:31:050:31:08

There is, of course,

0:31:080:31:09

a little bit of wear around the edge of each of the pieces.

0:31:090:31:12

I like that, though,

0:31:120:31:14

because it shows that the piece of jewellery was loved and worn.

0:31:140:31:17

Naturally, any collector would have to take that into consideration

0:31:170:31:20

though and so, consequently, I think we'd be looking at between

0:31:200:31:23

2,500 and ?3,000.

0:31:230:31:25

If they had the opportunity.

0:31:260:31:28

THEY LAUGH Thank you.

0:31:280:31:30

I see from the uniform that's beside you

0:31:320:31:35

that you were a member of

0:31:350:31:37

the Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps.

0:31:370:31:41

That's correct, yes.

0:31:410:31:42

And I see from the front cover of this newspaper,

0:31:420:31:45

a Southampton newspaper, it says,

0:31:450:31:48

"Angels sail on mercy mission."

0:31:480:31:50

What does that refer to?

0:31:500:31:51

The army nurses were deployed to the Falklands after the ceasefire.

0:31:510:31:56

And this was the day we boarded the troopship

0:31:560:31:59

to sail to the South Atlantic, on the 19th of June, 1982.

0:31:590:32:03

So that was really a very short time after hostilities finished.

0:32:030:32:08

Yes, it was. And the after-effects of war was very evident.

0:32:080:32:12

What were some of the injuries that you had to treat?

0:32:120:32:15

Well, there was general accidents, but there was also,

0:32:150:32:18

with the mine clearance, the soldiers were

0:32:180:32:21

suffering from injuries as a result of mine clearance.

0:32:210:32:25

Well, these photographs tell a little bit of the story of

0:32:250:32:30

your journey down to the Falklands and what happened down there.

0:32:300:32:34

So if we look at this one here,

0:32:340:32:35

this shows you, where is that?

0:32:350:32:37

Well, we were just approaching Ascension. It was early morning.

0:32:370:32:40

Now that's beautiful weather, by the look of it.

0:32:400:32:42

It was. It was warm, sunny and very, very comfortable.

0:32:420:32:45

But then this picture shows you in the snow.

0:32:450:32:48

What was the temperature there?

0:32:480:32:49

Well, at sea, it was minus-18 that day.

0:32:490:32:52

But it was well below zero on land.

0:32:520:32:54

I can believe it.

0:32:540:32:56

Is this the hospital?

0:32:560:32:57

Yes, that's the small King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

0:32:570:33:00

And this large picture, here at the end. That's me.

0:33:000:33:03

Nearest to me, this is you here.

0:33:030:33:05

Yeah, that's it, in the operating theatre.

0:33:050:33:07

Now, Margaret Thatcher visited you, didn't she?

0:33:070:33:09

She did, yes, in January 1983.

0:33:090:33:12

And here's a photograph of it.

0:33:120:33:13

She came to the hospital and visited and she thanked

0:33:130:33:16

everybody, personally, for everything we'd done.

0:33:160:33:19

Now, you were awarded the South Atlantic Medal.

0:33:190:33:25

Tell me about that.

0:33:250:33:27

Well, this has only come about recently.

0:33:270:33:30

When David Cameron came into power,

0:33:300:33:32

he ordered a review of all modern conflicts,

0:33:320:33:35

post-Second World War.

0:33:350:33:37

And as a result of this review, the nurses and nursing sisters

0:33:370:33:42

of the QAs were allowed to apply for the medal.

0:33:420:33:46

How many of them have been issued?

0:33:460:33:47

Well, I haven't an accurate number,

0:33:470:33:49

but I know two of us have already received them.

0:33:490:33:52

Well, that makes that, I suppose, quite a rare medal awarded to you.

0:33:520:33:57

Yes. If there are only two at the moment issued.

0:33:570:33:59

What does it mean to you, to have had that experience?

0:33:590:34:04

I remember feeling really rather special to have been able

0:34:040:34:10

and been allowed to go down and do this work for our soldiers.

0:34:100:34:15

We have to look at the value of objects

0:34:150:34:18

and I feel slightly awkward doing that.

0:34:180:34:20

Frankly, the photographs,

0:34:200:34:22

well, they're personal to you, aren't they? They are, yes.

0:34:220:34:25

But the medal, now that's something that's very different.

0:34:250:34:29

Because it was awarded to you,

0:34:290:34:31

I think it has quite an interesting value.

0:34:310:34:34

I think it could, possibly, if ever this came up for auction,

0:34:350:34:41

make three, four,

0:34:410:34:44

maybe even ?5,000.

0:34:440:34:47

It's an incredibly scarce medal and I think it's wonderful.

0:34:470:34:51

It's a testament to your bravery really because you didn't know,

0:34:510:34:55

I suppose, what to expect when you went down there.

0:34:550:34:58

We had no idea.

0:34:580:34:59

We sailed into the unknown.

0:34:590:35:01

A painted plaque that belonged to Tony's auntie.

0:35:070:35:09

She used to work in service across the road from Trentham Park.

0:35:090:35:13

I don't really know much about the age of it or who did it,

0:35:130:35:16

but we're interested to find out.

0:35:160:35:19

This is the auction details that went on over seven days in 1919,

0:35:190:35:25

selling off cottages, land, farms. Farms.

0:35:250:35:31

Anyone would recognise the view, of course.

0:35:320:35:34

That's here at Trentham, isn't it?

0:35:340:35:36

Let's have a look.

0:35:360:35:37

That's what I wanted to see.

0:35:370:35:39

There's the signature of the artist, JE Dean.

0:35:390:35:42

And that's Teddy Dean,

0:35:420:35:44

who was a great painter at Minton's.

0:35:440:35:47

"Cottage with a good garden. Yearly rental, ?4."

0:35:470:35:51

It's not much, is it? Amazing.

0:35:510:35:53

And behind that little advertisement lies the story of Trentham Gardens,

0:35:530:35:59

Trentham Hall in the 20th century.

0:35:590:36:01

The house, of course, is as it was in its heyday.

0:36:010:36:04

I think by that date,

0:36:040:36:06

all this had been demolished or half of it, hadn't it?

0:36:060:36:09

And you can imagine how splendid the gardens were then.

0:36:090:36:12

As they look again now.

0:36:120:36:14

Then the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland decided to try something

0:36:140:36:16

else with this property. They created the Art Deco swimming pool.

0:36:160:36:19

And you went to that pool.

0:36:190:36:20

Yeah, we all went. Yes. You all swam in it? Yes.

0:36:200:36:22

And what was it like?

0:36:220:36:24

We did have photographs. Absolutely wonderful.

0:36:240:36:26

I used to have lunch in the ballroom every day

0:36:260:36:29

because I worked in the estate office.

0:36:290:36:31

Made in Stoke at Minton's.

0:36:310:36:33

And here it is, a lovely plaque worth

0:36:330:36:37

?1,000.

0:36:370:36:39

That's lovely, that's really lovely.

0:36:390:36:42

Well, I talked about Trentham at the beginning

0:36:420:36:44

of the programme and how it had changed.

0:36:440:36:47

I didn't think I'd get to meet a mum and her three daughters

0:36:470:36:50

who could tell me so much about it. And bring me this as well.

0:36:500:36:53

Thank you so much. Oh, you're welcome. Thank you.

0:36:530:36:56

When I first knew I was coming to Stoke with the Roadshow,

0:36:590:37:02

Trentham Park, I had an idea what I might see.

0:37:020:37:05

What I didn't expect to see was a naked woman wrestling a goat.

0:37:050:37:10

So tell me, what's the story? How did this come into your life?

0:37:100:37:13

Well, I've been interested in ceramics for a long time.

0:37:130:37:18

I saw this came up at auction and I'd never seen such a large piece.

0:37:180:37:23

Technically, it would be quite difficult to make something like

0:37:230:37:26

this without, say, the arms drooping or the legs of the goat bending.

0:37:260:37:30

Yes. And nobody else seemed to be interested

0:37:300:37:34

and I could afford it, so I bought it.

0:37:340:37:36

Right. Right. So, at home, where do you have it?

0:37:360:37:40

Is it pride of place?

0:37:400:37:42

Well, sort of, yeah.

0:37:420:37:43

Cos she's got no clothes on, she's on the mantelpiece, above the fire.

0:37:430:37:48

Right, keeping warm.

0:37:480:37:50

Cos you can't, she's too long to turn round all the time,

0:37:500:37:53

so we have a mirror at the back, so you can see all round.

0:37:530:37:56

Right, see her attributes to their full. Yes.

0:37:560:37:58

And why not?

0:37:580:38:00

Well, shall we take a closer look at her?

0:38:000:38:02

I mean, she's here, so she's rather an athletic girl,

0:38:020:38:05

it's got to be said.

0:38:050:38:07

And locked in combat with this goat.

0:38:070:38:09

I'm not sure if she's got it by the horns

0:38:090:38:11

and is dragging it towards her or if it's about to give her a butt,

0:38:110:38:14

so she's resisting it. Certainly, it's an action piece.

0:38:140:38:18

And the first thing that strikes me when I saw it,

0:38:180:38:21

is this wonderful face.

0:38:210:38:22

This almost puckish, mischievous expression.

0:38:220:38:25

It really, really is great.

0:38:250:38:26

And this wonderful sort of 1920s bobbed hairstyle.

0:38:260:38:30

Look a bit closer. There is a mark on it.

0:38:300:38:33

It says "A Gory, Paris." I'm sure you've seen that.

0:38:330:38:36

Affortunato Gory was an Italian sculptor

0:38:360:38:41

who studied in Florence

0:38:410:38:43

and he was active from 1895 to about 1925.

0:38:430:38:46

He was particularly known for his works in bronze.

0:38:460:38:50

and had a thing for nudes, you might be surprised to learn.

0:38:500:38:54

This is going to date to around about 1920 or thereabouts.

0:38:540:38:58

And it's a fabulous thing.

0:38:580:39:00

It shouts, in fact, it screams Art Deco.

0:39:000:39:03

In the best way.

0:39:030:39:04

It's fun, it's nice, it's decorative, it's very decorative.

0:39:040:39:08

I can see this striking a chord in a sale room today.

0:39:080:39:11

Now, you say you found it in an auction. How long ago was that?

0:39:110:39:16

2005.

0:39:160:39:19

I think, if she were to come up at auction today,

0:39:190:39:23

just on decorative appeal alone,

0:39:230:39:25

I think she should easily make between 300 and ?500. Mm.

0:39:250:39:31

I think it shows as well,

0:39:310:39:33

that there are still bargains to be had.

0:39:330:39:35

You've clearly got a good eye.

0:39:350:39:36

You found this, you love her, you enjoy it.

0:39:360:39:38

And thank you for bringing it in.

0:39:380:39:40

Well done, you. Thank you.

0:39:400:39:42

Well, we may well be in Trentham Gardens today,

0:39:440:39:47

but you've brought a little bit of Hollywood to this

0:39:470:39:51

part of Staffordshire. Mm-hmm.

0:39:510:39:53

And if I can name drop,

0:39:530:39:56

you have brought along a garment,

0:39:560:39:57

which we're going to look at in a moment,

0:39:570:40:00

which once belonged to Maria de los Dolores Asunsolo Lopez-Negrete.

0:40:000:40:07

Really? Now, I don't normally sort of read

0:40:070:40:10

things from papers on this programme,

0:40:100:40:11

but that's a name that doesn't quite roll off the tongue.

0:40:110:40:14

But we know her better as... Dolores del Rio.

0:40:140:40:19

Dolores del Rio.

0:40:190:40:21

Way back in the '20s and the '30s, '40s,

0:40:210:40:24

she was the female answer to Rudolph Valentino. True.

0:40:240:40:30

She was said to have the most beautiful face in Christendom.

0:40:300:40:35

You know all this because you are the owner of this amazing shawl.

0:40:350:40:40

I am. I have kept it for 30 years.

0:40:400:40:43

It was given to my daughter when she was about 18.

0:40:430:40:47

But as children these days leave all their belongings with you

0:40:470:40:50

when they leave home, I've still got it.

0:40:500:40:53

I'm led to believe it belonged to a friend.

0:40:530:40:56

Marjorie Trueman.

0:40:560:40:58

She'd been an art student

0:40:580:40:59

and she often entered competitions in newspapers and this was a prize.

0:40:590:41:05

Well, let's have a look at the prize.

0:41:050:41:07

It's being modelled here by Annie. Annie, could you...?

0:41:070:41:09

I mean, always wanted to say this. Could you give us a twirl?

0:41:090:41:12

Could you give us...? Just give it... Just... There we go.

0:41:120:41:15

Thank you very much indeed.

0:41:150:41:17

The weird thing about your shawl is that, you know,

0:41:170:41:19

from the floral composition, which is all hand-stitched,

0:41:190:41:23

it has got a sort of a Chinese look to it. Hasn't it?

0:41:230:41:26

But, I mean, the long tassels and everything else, they are made

0:41:260:41:30

for movement, rather like a shimmy dress of the same period.

0:41:300:41:33

So when you wore that and walked from A to B, people would notice.

0:41:330:41:39

They would. Now, what is interesting...

0:41:390:41:42

With anything like this, you need provenance, don't you?

0:41:420:41:45

And if we pay close attention, we can see the very same garment

0:41:450:41:51

being worn by Dolores, probably sometime in the 1930s.

0:41:510:41:54

I would think so. I would've thought.

0:41:540:41:57

So I would probably estimate your shawl at auction at somewhere

0:41:570:42:04

between ?3,000 to ?5,000.

0:42:040:42:06

CROWD GASPS CROWD MEMBER: Wow!

0:42:060:42:08

Wow. SHE CHUCKLES

0:42:080:42:11

I should warn you that what you said earlier about your daughter

0:42:110:42:16

not coming back for things...

0:42:160:42:17

That may well change once she finds out...

0:42:180:42:21

Yes, I think it might suddenly disappear. OK. Thank you.

0:42:210:42:24

One thing I love to do

0:42:290:42:30

when I get a spare bit of time is to wander around country houses.

0:42:300:42:34

And one place I always head for in country houses is

0:42:340:42:37

the gentleman's desk,

0:42:370:42:38

the aristocrat's desk -

0:42:380:42:39

the powerhouse of the house, if you like.

0:42:390:42:41

And the desk seal,

0:42:410:42:43

the little tiny seal used to imprint an impression on a wax seal on

0:42:430:42:47

a document or a letter is something that always catches my eye. Yes.

0:42:470:42:50

And I have to say that if I could collect one thing, and I don't need

0:42:500:42:54

to start collecting another thing, it would probably be desk seals.

0:42:540:42:57

I'm so delighted that someone has started to collect them.

0:42:570:43:00

What kicked you off? Well, they were my father's.

0:43:000:43:04

He was a postal historian,

0:43:040:43:06

and in the early '70s, we used to go round to stamp and postcard fairs,

0:43:060:43:10

and I'm afraid I got sent ahead of time to have a look and see if

0:43:100:43:14

I could find a seal and, you know, sort of negotiate on his behalf.

0:43:140:43:19

So you were young, nimble and athletic, and sort of sent off

0:43:190:43:22

to flutter your eyelids to try and get a good deal on these things.

0:43:220:43:25

Sure. What were you paying?

0:43:250:43:27

It could be...not very much.

0:43:270:43:29

You know, we could get them for as little as perhaps ?5, ?15,

0:43:290:43:33

?30, ?35.

0:43:330:43:35

So how many did he collect? I think there's about 127.

0:43:350:43:38

Wow.

0:43:380:43:40

Well, they've got a great history.

0:43:400:43:41

They date right back to sort of ancient Roman and Egyptian times...

0:43:410:43:44

Right. ..and Mesopotamian times. Mm-hm.

0:43:440:43:46

Sealing official documents,

0:43:460:43:48

wax began to be used in the 10th century.

0:43:480:43:50

But they really peeked in sort of the Georgian period

0:43:500:43:52

and the Victorian period.

0:43:520:43:53

And most of these date from, I believe, the Victorian period.

0:43:530:43:56

Right. And many different types of materials, from gold to all

0:43:560:44:00

these hard stones, from chalcedony all the way through to agate.

0:44:000:44:03

So variety abounds,

0:44:030:44:05

and I think it is that that really appeals to most collectors.

0:44:050:44:07

They were often engraved on the base,

0:44:070:44:09

so if we pick up this one here, which is my favourite...

0:44:090:44:11

So just on the base here,

0:44:110:44:12

they'd be engraved in intaglio, so they've been engraved inside... Yes.

0:44:120:44:16

..with an armorial, or a coat of arms,

0:44:160:44:18

or something that had a meaning to its owner. Yes.

0:44:180:44:20

This one in particular I adore.

0:44:200:44:23

So backwards, we have here - settled with thanks.

0:44:230:44:26

And I love this one because just above it -

0:44:260:44:28

it was obviously for invoices - there's a little sort of hanged man.

0:44:280:44:32

The invoice is dead, I suppose. Yes, he's rather nice, isn't he?

0:44:320:44:34

I mean, I should imagine something like that would probably

0:44:340:44:37

fetch ?150, ?200. Really?

0:44:370:44:39

That's jolly nice.

0:44:390:44:41

They are quite sought-after things. Are they? Oh. Right.

0:44:410:44:44

That's nice news. It's not just me that would like to collect them,

0:44:440:44:48

and your father, of course. Values do vary widely. Sure.

0:44:480:44:51

And it comes down to materials

0:44:510:44:53

and also the quality of manufacture and the detail.

0:44:530:44:56

So a little piece like this with its mother-of-pearl handle, you're

0:44:560:44:59

probably not looking at certainly under ?100, I would've thought.

0:44:590:45:02

But some of these wonderful hard stone pieces -

0:45:020:45:04

there's fantastic hard stone here -

0:45:040:45:06

we're talking ?300, ?400, ?500 even. Really?

0:45:060:45:09

It's not a bad return when you were spending sort of ?5,

0:45:090:45:11

?10, ?30, is it? It was worth a look, wasn't it?

0:45:110:45:13

So how many did you have again?

0:45:130:45:15

127.

0:45:150:45:17

So even if we said 127 at ?100,

0:45:170:45:19

which would be a ridiculously low valuation for them,

0:45:190:45:22

we're talking a considerable sum of money, aren't we?

0:45:220:45:25

That's really nice to hear. Well done, Father.

0:45:250:45:27

Do you think it would meet with his seal of approval?

0:45:270:45:30

I'm sure he'd be delighted. THEY LAUGH

0:45:300:45:33

Earlier this year, I did a major tour of North America's greatest

0:45:360:45:40

glass museums - Toledo, New York, Brooklyn and Corning.

0:45:400:45:45

And in these museums, the work of one of the great heroes

0:45:450:45:49

of American glass-making is prominently displayed.

0:45:490:45:53

And they look just like that,

0:45:530:45:55

and they are designed by Frederick Carder.

0:45:550:45:57

Now, I know that you know that he's not American at all.

0:45:570:46:01

No, he was born in Brierley Hill in 1863

0:46:010:46:05

and went over to Corning about 1903, I believe. OK.

0:46:050:46:10

And how do you know all this? What's it to do with you?

0:46:100:46:13

I'm his great-great-niece. Oooh!

0:46:130:46:17

So, tell us about what you know about him.

0:46:180:46:21

He started off at his parents' pottery,

0:46:210:46:24

and then he went over to America, over to Corning

0:46:240:46:28

and to Steuben Glass.

0:46:280:46:31

Yeah, but the story is slightly more complicated than that.

0:46:310:46:35

The essence is absolutely true.

0:46:350:46:37

What Frederick Carder was, was the technical artistic

0:46:370:46:40

director of Stevens Williams.

0:46:400:46:43

They were a major...the best glass makers in Stourbridge

0:46:430:46:47

at the end of the 19th century - 1890, 1900.

0:46:470:46:51

And Carder was dispatched on a fact-finding mission to the States.

0:46:510:46:54

He was supposed to go and do industrial espionage, nick all their

0:46:540:46:58

best ideas, bring them back and feed them into Stevens Williams.

0:46:580:47:02

But what did he do? He took the money and stayed.

0:47:020:47:06

They saw his talent, which was certainly undeniable,

0:47:060:47:10

and they said, "Will you stay? And we'll play you a fortune."

0:47:100:47:14

And he became pretty much the leading glass designer

0:47:140:47:18

in America of his age, in the Art Nouveau period.

0:47:180:47:20

And his stuff is distinguished by this iridescence.

0:47:220:47:27

This is called Aurene.

0:47:270:47:28

And it's not difficult to know that

0:47:280:47:32

because it's exactly what it says on the bottom - Aurene.

0:47:320:47:37

And then there's the 232, which is the shape.

0:47:370:47:41

So Aurene is the range of this iridescence glass

0:47:410:47:45

and 232 is the specific model.

0:47:450:47:48

The market for this is in America,

0:47:480:47:50

where he is lauded as a glass-making hero.

0:47:500:47:52

And if you were to sell this,

0:47:520:47:54

they would have to pay ?300 to ?400 for it, which is

0:47:540:47:59

nothing compared to the family connection between you

0:47:590:48:02

and a design by your great-great-uncle.

0:48:020:48:06

And I think that's magical. And I'm so chuffed you came along.

0:48:060:48:10

Thank you. Thank you very much.

0:48:100:48:12

So you brought in a photograph album, which belonged to your uncle.

0:48:150:48:18

He was one of the secretaries to Mrs Gandhi. Prime minister of India.

0:48:180:48:22

First lady prime minister of India. Yes.

0:48:220:48:25

I can see from the ciphers on this that it's a saddle cloth

0:48:250:48:28

from the 17th Lancers, the Death or Glory Boys.

0:48:280:48:31

It belonged to Colonel Samuel Boderson,

0:48:310:48:34

who led the charge at the Battle of Ulundi in 1874.

0:48:340:48:39

Against the Zulus? Against the Zulus, yes.

0:48:390:48:42

And he's obvious travelled widely

0:48:420:48:44

because there's sort of Downing Street,

0:48:440:48:46

there's one there of the Kremlin.

0:48:460:48:48

Mrs Gandhi with Fidel Castro.

0:48:480:48:51

Here she is, obviously, quite a lot later on with Ronald Reagan.

0:48:510:48:54

It's fantastic, really. Yeah, he did travel everywhere with Mrs Gandhi.

0:48:540:48:58

This incredibly embellished saddle cloth would have gone over

0:48:580:49:03

the horse, and the saddle would have gone on top of it.

0:49:030:49:06

And you've got an oil painting of his horse,

0:49:060:49:10

presumably that is the saddle cloth.

0:49:100:49:12

We... It must be. Yes, it was found in a loft, that picture.

0:49:120:49:17

Well, I think it's quite a significant document

0:49:170:49:20

of Indian politics throughout

0:49:200:49:22

the mid-to-latter part of the 20th century.

0:49:220:49:25

You know, I would've thought it might be worth ?500 to ?1,000.

0:49:260:49:30

Well, it's not for sale. Yeah.

0:49:300:49:31

Well, obviously, it's part of your family history. It is.

0:49:310:49:34

Thank you very much.

0:49:340:49:35

It's quite a scarce object, you know. They don't turn up very often.

0:49:370:49:40

What's it worth?

0:49:400:49:42

I guess, the painting, the photograph,

0:49:420:49:44

the saddle cloth, it's going to be worth at auction today

0:49:440:49:48

somewhere in the region of ?2,000.

0:49:480:49:50

2,000?

0:49:500:49:51

Well, that's nice.

0:49:520:49:54

So you queued up to the Antiques Roadshow with a brick. Yes.

0:49:590:50:03

Tell me about the brick.

0:50:030:50:05

Well, it was found in our garden when we moved house.

0:50:050:50:08

My husband looked at it and he said, "Wow, it's Longton Hall!"

0:50:080:50:13

Now, he is a Longton Hall china fanatic.

0:50:130:50:17

And he couldn't believe that the brick was made by Longton Hall.

0:50:170:50:22

We've had it for 15 years and he's cherished it.

0:50:220:50:24

THEY LAUGH

0:50:240:50:27

It's fabulous. I mean, you...

0:50:270:50:28

I mean, thankfully,

0:50:280:50:30

you've also brought this wonderful

0:50:300:50:32

coloured figure from the Longton Hall factory.

0:50:320:50:34

And of course, Longton Hall was the first porcelain factory

0:50:340:50:36

in Staffordshire.

0:50:360:50:38

And it ran from 1750 to 1760.

0:50:380:50:41

And she is a lovely example. She's really pretty. Yes.

0:50:410:50:45

I suppose, at the time, she's competing with figures

0:50:450:50:47

made at Chelsea and Bow and Derby.

0:50:470:50:49

But she's a lovely theatrical figure.

0:50:490:50:53

But in terms of compare and contrast...

0:50:530:50:55

Yes, I think he's got every book on Longton Hall.

0:50:560:50:59

And we lived... As children, we lived near to Longton Hall.

0:50:590:51:03

Well, we are Longtonians.

0:51:030:51:04

Is it on display in the display cabinet?

0:51:040:51:06

SHE LAUGHS

0:51:060:51:08

It's hidden. It's hidden? It was on display for a while...

0:51:080:51:12

It is a little secret of shame. ..in the kitchen.

0:51:120:51:14

But the brick, of course, didn't come from the porcelain factory.

0:51:140:51:17

It's not porcelain, it's brick.

0:51:170:51:18

And it's a 19th-century thing, it's not an 18th...

0:51:180:51:22

It's not 250 years old, it's sometime in the last century.

0:51:220:51:24

So I assume it comes from what, the colliery? Longton Hall colliery?

0:51:240:51:27

Yes. It must be. But what a wonderful thing to have. Yes.

0:51:270:51:30

I can't say the brick's got much commercial value.

0:51:300:51:32

I wouldn't expect it to.

0:51:320:51:33

But the figure is charming. She has got a little bit of damage

0:51:330:51:36

here and there. Yes, we did realise that.

0:51:360:51:38

And she is broken in the waste.

0:51:380:51:39

But she's a rare figure, she's a very colourful.

0:51:390:51:42

She's... I suppose, in the market today,

0:51:420:51:44

she's worth, what?

0:51:440:51:45

?800, maybe ?1,000. Really?

0:51:450:51:48

Is she? She's a great thing. She's a lovely thing. Wow.

0:51:480:51:50

Oh, good. SHE LAUGHS

0:51:500:51:53

Thank you. Thanks for your interest.

0:51:530:51:55

The subject of this gorgeous little oil painting is very

0:51:580:52:02

different to the beautiful gardens of Trentham behind us.

0:52:020:52:05

And of course, it's signed lower left - AT Hibbard,

0:52:050:52:10

which I know as Aldro Thompson Hibbard,

0:52:100:52:13

an American artist.

0:52:130:52:15

So we're going all the way to America.

0:52:150:52:17

And it's a gorgeous little oil painting.

0:52:170:52:20

Tell me how it's come so far.

0:52:200:52:22

Well, I inherited it many years ago.

0:52:220:52:25

My father's sister lived in America,

0:52:250:52:28

and she collected a lot of paintings.

0:52:280:52:31

And when she died, my father was an executor with his brother.

0:52:320:52:36

And they decided it would be nice

0:52:360:52:38

if all the members of the family had one of her paintings.

0:52:380:52:41

So I just picked out a snow scene,

0:52:410:52:44

and that is what arrived from America.

0:52:440:52:46

And it has lived with us ever since. He was born in Cape Cod, 1886.

0:52:460:52:51

He comes to Europe just before the First World War.

0:52:510:52:55

But he settles back in Rockport.

0:52:550:52:58

He studies at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

0:52:580:53:00

It's believed he studied under the great

0:53:000:53:02

American Impressionist artist Frank Benson.

0:53:020:53:05

But later on, he got very much a name for himself

0:53:050:53:08

and he became the sort of

0:53:080:53:09

New England artist for winter scenes.

0:53:090:53:12

And I think this little picture,

0:53:120:53:13

although he painted much bigger canvases,

0:53:130:53:15

really sums him up as a great kind of colourist,

0:53:150:53:18

a great plein air painter, a man who would paint literally on the spot.

0:53:180:53:23

There's not a great deal of white.

0:53:230:53:24

No. I mean, that's the cleverness about it.

0:53:240:53:26

You get that hue, that beautiful winter hue.

0:53:260:53:29

And I love the little cottages in the front, too.

0:53:290:53:32

The date of this picture is quite difficult

0:53:320:53:35

because he painted the same sorts of subjects for quite some decades.

0:53:350:53:38

But I would date it to about 1940 to 1950. Ah.

0:53:380:53:42

Very collectible, actually.

0:53:420:53:43

There are a lot of collectors that buy his pictures

0:53:430:53:45

and compete at auction for them. Oh.

0:53:450:53:48

And in terms of value, for this gorgeous, vibrant,

0:53:480:53:51

lovely little picture, ?3,000 to ?5,000.

0:53:510:53:55

GASPING: You're joking!

0:53:550:53:57

I had no... 3,000 to 5,000? Good heavens.

0:53:570:54:00

Gosh. SHE LAUGHS

0:54:020:54:04

Yes, I'm just sort of trying to work out who he's meant to be.

0:54:090:54:12

That's not really a Staffordshire costume, is it?

0:54:120:54:14

SHE LAUGHS Is that how people dress locally?

0:54:140:54:16

Well, I don't know.

0:54:160:54:18

Well, just look. He's wearing robes there.

0:54:180:54:21

And it looks like a little round bobble hat there.

0:54:210:54:24

But I guess I think he's meant to be a Chinaman. I think so.

0:54:240:54:28

Do you think so? So, family history?

0:54:280:54:31

It's been in the family a very, very long time.

0:54:310:54:33

Grandpa would always speak of it,

0:54:330:54:34

and his father would always speak fondly of it.

0:54:340:54:36

So it has been in the family a long, long time.

0:54:360:54:39

So this was your grandfather's. Did he tell you anything about it?

0:54:390:54:42

I always remember as a child I'd sit on his knee

0:54:420:54:44

and it'd sit on the mantelpiece. And he just...

0:54:440:54:47

He'd always make the joke that it's a Chinaman,

0:54:470:54:49

but he's from Staffordshire. THEY LAUGH

0:54:490:54:52

So, is it your figure? Has it come down to you?

0:54:520:54:55

Um, no, it's still a family figure. Yeah. Do you like it?

0:54:550:54:59

I love it cos it's so unique-looking and it's such a character.

0:54:590:55:02

Yes. I mean, there is so little to it.

0:55:020:55:04

I mean, we've got here a very sort of simple, crude, clumsy figure.

0:55:040:55:09

There's not really much to look at at all.

0:55:090:55:10

SHE LAUGHS But I suppose we can forgive that

0:55:100:55:13

because it does have quite a bit of age.

0:55:130:55:15

It goes back...

0:55:150:55:16

Well, I suppose we're looking at the middle of the 18th century.

0:55:160:55:20

Wow. We're going back to

0:55:200:55:21

around about, well, 1750s, '60s.

0:55:210:55:25

Something like that. Quite a long time ago.

0:55:250:55:28

And it was made here in the potteries.

0:55:290:55:31

It is an early piece of Staffordshire

0:55:310:55:34

and actually quite a rare figure indeed. So...

0:55:340:55:37

At that time, most china, most good ceramics came from the Orient, came

0:55:380:55:43

from China, and I'd have guessed that must be the inspiration here.

0:55:430:55:47

They're copying the idea of a little Chinese figurine that might

0:55:470:55:51

have come from a Chinese temple and been imported.

0:55:510:55:54

And they've made their own version in Staffordshire clay. Ah!

0:55:540:55:57

This would have been made in a small family firm,

0:55:570:56:00

just somewhere in the area

0:56:000:56:02

all those years ago.

0:56:020:56:04

The piece is made in a simple cream and then it is decorated,

0:56:040:56:09

well, very big basic splashes.

0:56:090:56:10

One can see... I guess here, that little mottling.

0:56:100:56:15

I think that's what we would call sponging. Yeah.

0:56:150:56:17

Could you imagine just getting a simple sponge and decorating

0:56:170:56:20

it there? Patting it on.

0:56:200:56:21

You can't get much more naive than that, can you?

0:56:210:56:23

There's very little to him.

0:56:230:56:25

And in the past, these have been referred

0:56:250:56:27

to as Wedgwood Wheeldon figures or just as Wheeldon.

0:56:270:56:31

And to find him surviving from 1750s

0:56:310:56:34

and with... There's no damage!

0:56:340:56:37

I mean, it's in incredible condition.

0:56:370:56:40

No wonder it's treasured.

0:56:400:56:42

It's quite expensive. How about...

0:56:420:56:45

..?5,000, ?6,000? CROWD GASPS

0:56:460:56:49

Wow.

0:56:520:56:53

Well, that is exactly what we hoped to see.

0:56:570:56:59

We couldn't come to Staffordshire, to what was once

0:56:590:57:02

the playground of the potteries, without seeing a nice bit of china.

0:57:020:57:05

And here we have it.

0:57:050:57:06

Lovely piece of early Wedgewood Wheeldon.

0:57:060:57:08

Perfect.

0:57:080:57:10

From Trentham Gardens and the Antiques Roadshow, bye-bye.

0:57:100:57:12

They might tell me one of my twins has died.

0:57:440:57:45

They are not going to say that baby.

0:57:450:57:47

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