Ightham Mote 1 Antiques Roadshow


Ightham Mote 1

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Today we're in Kent,

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at one of the oldest medieval manor houses in the land.

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Knights, sheriffs, courtiers, MPs

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have all been past owners of Ightham Mote

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over the last 700 years.

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And it's against this magical backdrop

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that we raise our Antiques Roadshow flag.

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Nestled in a valley and encircled by its very own moat,

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this manor house evokes a fairy tale picture of England past,

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though some of it of the rather GRIMM variety.

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Now, every fairy tale worth its salt has a tower.

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Though, thankfully, I'm no damsel in distress.

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Well, not yet, anyway.

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Rather like Jack's beanstalk, this tower grew and grew.

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You see, the base and the door frame, that's early 14th century.

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Windows on the first floor?

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Tudor.

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The window on the next floor is Elizabethan, and then the turret,

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well, that's from the Victorian era.

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And some of Ightham Mote's past owners

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could easily fit into a fairy tale of their own.

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Like this beautifully dressed lady, Dame Dorothy Selby,

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who was renowned for her fine needlework.

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But, unlike Sleeping Beauty, when she accidentally pricked herself,

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she didn't fall asleep for 100 years.

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Her wound became infected, and, rather grimly, she died,

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without a handsome prince coming to her rescue.

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Others have tales of mixing with royalty.

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Such as Sir Richard Clement, who was knighted by Henry VIII.

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Sir Richard was at Anne Boleyn's coronation,

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and just a few years later, he served on the jury

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that condemned her to death for high treason.

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But this story does have a fairy tale ending.

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The last owner of Ightham Mote,

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an American called Charles Henry Robinson,

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donated the house to the National Trust back in 1985.

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And they have saved its many layers of history

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for us and future generations to enjoy.

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Now we just need a sprinkling of our own magic,

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which we can leave to our specialists

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on this week's Antiques Roadshow.

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Now, I've been doing the Roadshow for just over ten years now,

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and this is the one thing I've always wanted to see.

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I know you're going to think I'm weird,

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but why have you got them?

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Well, my dad bought a box of junk at a boot fair, he paid a few pounds,

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and they were in the bottom of the box.

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And what have you found out about them?

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We know that the... One plate is gold, the springs are gold,

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and the pins that hold the teeth in are gold.

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Mm-hmm. Now, you were pretty wealthy if you had a set of teeth like this.

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Like you say, they are in gold,

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and the rare thing about them is they are porcelain teeth.

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And the history of anything like this is fascinating,

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because with teeth, during the 18th century,

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the wealthy obviously had vast amounts of sugar,

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and generally their teeth were rotten.

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Their breath stank, and they would lose their teeth,

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and they needed something to sort that out.

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And they tried... I mean, surgeons tried everything,

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from implanting teeth into chicken's heads to see if it would take,

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and you would pull out your tooth if you were poor

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and sell it instantaneously, and they would try and implant it.

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None of that really worked.

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So, when they came up with a set of teeth like this,

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it was the obvious solution.

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Now, these are made of porcelain on a gold background,

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but the earlier ones from the Napoleonic Wars,

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they actually went round, say after the Battle of Waterloo,

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picked up the teeth from all the bodies and corpses, pulled them out,

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and then sold them to make denture sets like this.

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So English people were going around with French teeth in their mouth.

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-LAUGHTER

-Fantastic!

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So, when porcelain came in...

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This is why I love it. I know it is disgusting and horrible,

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but it's a fascinating history.

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Because here... I would say they were, sort of, 1845, 1855 in date.

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-Did you get a date on them?

-1850 to 1860.

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OK, so around that sort of period, mid-19th century.

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They're still... The fact that they're porcelain, I love.

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They are, I'm not going to say any jokes like "rare as hens' teeth"

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or anything like that, but they are incredibly rare.

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And the fact that they're gold, the fact that they're porcelain...

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Er...

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£2,000 to £2,500.

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Whoa.

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-Wow.

-LAUGHTER

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I'm amazed!

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-Wow.

-So this is a rare survivor,

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which is why I say I've been waiting ten years to see a set.

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-OK.

-Thank you very much.

-No, you're welcome, thank you.

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On a grey old day like today,

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what a joy it is to see a picture like this.

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In fact, I almost want to jump into the sea here.

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A lovely summer's day on the coast, and it could be by only one artist,

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by the way the children have been painted in this impressionistic way,

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which is Dorothea Sharp.

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Have you had this a long time?

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Well, we started off with an aunt who bought it originally,

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and then it was passed to my parents,

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and then my parents passed it to me about 25 years ago.

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Is it a picture you love?

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I thoroughly enjoy it.

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It sits facing me in the sitting room,

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the light on it, and it's just... The shades and the colour...

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A glorious summer's day.

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Now, I have here the label from the back,

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and I know quite a lot about dear old Dorothea.

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She used to paint... Well, she lived in London,

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and she came from quite a wealthy family,

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and she did a sort of tour in the summer around Chichester, Cornwall,

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back to London. She also went abroad.

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And this one is painted in Saint-Malo,

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and it's the first time I've seen a picture by her in Saint-Malo.

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What I can say about Dorothea,

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she didn't have any children, she never married.

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And I often find this with female painters rather than male painters -

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they can actually paint children better than men.

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They've got some affinity.

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And these young girls, here, and the boys, it's just fantastic,

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and it's so sensitively done.

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Now, you say your aunt bought it.

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Looking at this label, I think she must have bought this in the 1920s.

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I know this because I think this is Dorothea Sharp's best period.

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You know, I love the picture, it's got everything going...

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This little girl dragging the teddy bear through the water.

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I mean, it's all about youth.

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And it's just beautiful, absolutely beautiful.

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-And you love it?

-I thoroughly enjoy it, yes.

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Well, I just see on here that we've got the price that was paid for it

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at the Royal Institute of Oil Painters - £35.

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So what is that today going to be worth?

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Well, Dorothea Sharp really is back in fashion,

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and people love this sort of picture,

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cos it's impressionistic, it's loose, it's got a nice feel to it.

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And I think, if this came up for auction,

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it would make somewhere in the region...

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of £25,000 to £35,000.

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That's very nice.

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I think the children will love that idea!

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LAUGHTER

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Well, I hope they hold on to it!

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-Yes!

-I certainly would!

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One of the most wonderful things about the Antiques Roadshow

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is that you see things that you hope to find, and this is one of them.

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It's such an unusual piece.

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Tell me, where did you get it from?

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I've inherited it from my godmother, about two years ago,

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but I've known it for about 40 years.

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It's just great. I mean, we know what it does,

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but let me just show the front here.

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This wonderful embossed leather, sort of Japanese aesthetic style,

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that helps me date it, possibly 1880, 1890, something like that,

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late 19th century. A little matching stool,

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which is incredible to have that with it.

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That really is a one-off.

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And these wonderful brass rods here, which articulate.

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So let's just show everybody,

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cos we've cheated and we know what it does.

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Open it up...

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But look at the inside, it's just fantastic.

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We can see now clearly, it's used as an easel,

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but it's actually a writing desk.

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Do you use it at home?

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Yeah, I've just begun to use it, but we have it in the main living room,

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and it's normally closed,

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and when people come in they often ask about it,

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and then I can open it up and reveal the inside.

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They want to see inside, OK.

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But just look at the inside.

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-Firstly, have you identified the view?

-No.

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Because I've tried to in the few minutes I've had, but I can't.

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Is it French, is it German?

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Probably not Swiss.

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Someone, someone out there can probably identify that view for us,

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it would be very interesting. It looks like a print,

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but it's very beautifully done, obviously,

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I'm sure from a famous painting.

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And all this lovely mahogany framework.

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So we've got stationery compartments,

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a little articulated thing there. This is for pens, I suppose.

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-And anything in here?

-Yes.

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-Oh, look.

-And the same the other side.

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Oh, in here?

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So these are hunting, a saddle, and then this is a dog.

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That's rather fortuitous, look.

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A horseshoe, and I'm wearing a horseshoe tie.

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That's serendipity for you!

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What I love to see is... Imagine how it was used originally.

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You know, what context was it used in?

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Was it used in a home, like you're now using it? As a revered piece?

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Was it used...

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Somehow, I think a hotel, perhaps?

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Can you see it in the reception of a big grand hotel,

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-somewhere on the lakes in Switzerland? The Alps?

-Maybe.

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I don't know. You can see it's been well-used.

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This is the original velvet,

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and it's been used a lot, for many, many years.

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And this is an expensive piece of furniture to make.

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We'll probably never find out exactly who made it or how much,

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but it would have been expensive, certainly.

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So 1880s.

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I think it's French.

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I was hesitating between French and German.

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The clock, or timepiece, because it doesn't strike,

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is a French-made timepiece.

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So let's say French, 1880s, in this wonderful mixture of styles,

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aesthetic style, Moorish, very eclectic,

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typical of the late 19th century.

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The stool is great, just to have that together.

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So, value.

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-Have you had it valued?

-No.

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Not at all? So you're going to have to leave me to do the valuation.

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Very, very difficult, cps it's getting on for unique.

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Nothing's ever unique, but...

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I doubt I'll ever see another one in my career.

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In a shop?

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Minimum of £4,000.

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-That sounds good.

-It's irrelevant, the value, isn't it?

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But what a great piece of furniture.

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I love it, thank you.

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I love the juxtaposition of this.

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I love the fact you've got ballroom dancing

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going on inside a television.

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For me, it just sums up retro and vintage.

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Certainly in a shop, they'd ask for £350.

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-A very nice thing to be given.

-Yeah!

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Well, he hasn't given it to me, I've got to take it back to him!

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So this was kind of like the Woolies version of Lalique!

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So instead up being worth a thousand quid, it's worth 80.

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But it's jolly pretty, and if this were lying around,

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any of us would be pleased to nick it, wouldn't we?

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LAUGHTER

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Well, a wonderful cameo necklace, meticulous craftsmanship.

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But tell me about it with you.

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Well, originally this came into my wife's possession in the '60s.

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I'm not quite sure how she got hold of it.

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And I know not a lot about it at all.

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-And that's why you've brought it, of course.

-Absolutely.

-Absolutely.

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Well, we can date it, fairly conveniently.

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It's from the very early 19th century, sort of 1820, 1840.

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And, the jeweller's work is undoubtedly English,

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but the cameos probably come from the Mediterranean countries,

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perhaps even from Naples, the great centre for shell cameos.

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And people went there to enjoy classical antiquity.

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They went to Rome, to Naples,

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and then bring it back to the cold and damp England,

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as a sort of souvenir.

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And the recipient of this would have understood it on many levels.

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The first thing about a gift of jewellery

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is that it's often a gift of love,

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but the message is written plain here.

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Every one of them is a reference to love,

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and it's sort of covert, in a way,

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but a lot of these images are famous ones, for obvious reasons.

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This is called The Sale of Cupids, here,

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and Venus is offering cupids that have been in a chicken cage.

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And, because they're winged, they're being allowed to fly out,

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and are offered to these ladies here.

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And here we see Mars and Venus,

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and Mars, the God of War, is offering Venus -

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and she certainly looks the part, as goddess of love -

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and he's offering her Cupid, flying through the air.

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And even the shell itself is a reference to this,

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because Venus was born of the shell,

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and so the fact that these are shell cameos

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underwrites this covert message.

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There's a lot of gods and goddesses here to unscramble.

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They're all neoclassical, some are based on Roman frescoes,

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some on Roman sculpture.

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And so it really is a letter home from Rome,

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a letter home from Naples, if you like,

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to be unscrambled by this owner.

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It's a very, very good thing.

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I am thrilled to see it.

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And I think it's very wearable, isn't it?

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Does your daughter wear it a bit?

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She may do after this!

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Yeah, I think she will! I wouldn't blame her if she did.

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But anyway, it's a very subtle, very fragile, very beautiful,

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very poignant object, and a poetic object in every sense of the word.

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And of course, a very desirable one,

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so you'll be jolly lucky to find it again for...

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£2,000.

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Thank you very much, that's surprising.

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Thank you.

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I actually hate hearing the sound of my own voice,

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but you've got quite an interesting story relating to that,

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and this rather blonde lady.

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Yeah, Barbie doll, and she actually talks with my voice.

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She talks with your voice.

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My 18-year-old voice.

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So you are, effectively, Barbie?

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Um, I'm the voice of Barbie, she's the doll.

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Tell me more, tell me how this came about.

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OK, right. So, I'd just finished at drama school, 1968,

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agent says to me, "Got something for you,

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"go in onto Greek Street Recording Studio."

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Recorded, I don't know, about 15 different sentences.

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Forget about it until 1969, I was with Mum in Harrods...

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Hang on, hang on. Forget about it?

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You recorded the voice of Barbie, and you forgot about it?!

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Yeah. I didn't know. I thought it was just a doll!

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So when I saw her in Harrods, I said, "It can't be,"

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but it's a talking doll.

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If I hadn't have been in Harrods, I don't know,

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I probably would never have even thought about it.

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But when I saw it, my goodness me!

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I was excited.

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So pulling the flower-shaped ring on the back pulls out a cord,

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which operates a little spinning disk which is on an elastic band,

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and that plays one of six different sayings, doesn't it?

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She said, "I have a date tonight," "Let's do some shopping,"

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"How shall I wear my hair?" "Let's play some records,"

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"What's playing at the cinema?"

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'Let's play some records.'

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Let's play some records.

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I was given a doll in 1970, it was sent to my mother,

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and she didn't mean anything to me very much,

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and she just got lost in time.

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When it was Barbie's 40th birthday,

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I thought, "No, I want my doll back!"

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And thank goodness that I actually managed to source another doll,

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and that she was still talking.

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So you bought a doll.

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For the 40th anniversary of Barbie,

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you bought your doll that you'd had as a child and been the voice of.

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And then she really meant something to me, and she still does.

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Well, value-wise, she's in great condition,

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and that's what collectors are looking for.

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Incidentally, did you know that

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she was the first Barbie with individual fingers?

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Individual fingers, really?

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And what's great about her as well is her hair's in great condition.

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Collectors really look out for that.

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And also, her limbs are intact,

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which sounds like an odd thing to say,

0:16:150:16:17

but her arms and legs were often prone to falling off.

0:16:170:16:19

So she's in great condition, original clothes.

0:16:190:16:22

Now, you bought her from a collector,

0:16:220:16:24

so I'm guessing you'd have paid a sensible price.

0:16:240:16:26

I honestly can't remember, it wouldn't have been a lot of money.

0:16:260:16:29

Well, they're worth somewhere between £30 and £70,

0:16:290:16:31

unboxed in original condition.

0:16:310:16:33

Sometimes they can go a little bit more,

0:16:330:16:35

and if you've got the box

0:16:350:16:37

and the original packaging in great condition, too,

0:16:370:16:39

you're looking at somewhere around maybe up to £300, £350 or so.

0:16:390:16:42

-But in that condition, she's your doll.

-Yeah.

0:16:420:16:45

And, of course, that's what you remember.

0:16:450:16:47

She's got to stay in the family, she's got to.

0:16:470:16:51

Well, thank you very much.

0:16:510:16:52

-Thank you.

-It is not often that you get to talk to Barbie!

0:16:520:16:55

Thank you.

0:16:550:16:56

So, as the Second World War in the Far East came to an end,

0:16:590:17:02

those prisoners of the Japanese who had been in the jungle or in camps,

0:17:020:17:06

in Hong Kong and other places, suddenly their world changed -

0:17:060:17:11

the guards started to disappear.

0:17:110:17:14

Something had happened.

0:17:140:17:16

Now, these items here belong to...?

0:17:160:17:18

My father-in-law, George King.

0:17:180:17:20

And he was in one of those camps?

0:17:200:17:22

-Yep, he was.

-Which camp was he in?

0:17:220:17:24

That, I don't know.

0:17:240:17:25

He was stationed out in Hong Kong

0:17:250:17:29

and he was captured on Christmas Day,

0:17:290:17:31

and he used to hate Christmas Day -

0:17:310:17:33

it was a struggle, always, to get through.

0:17:330:17:36

And he was held, I believe,

0:17:360:17:37

in the hold of a ship for a couple of years, until it was torpedoed,

0:17:370:17:43

and he was one of the very few survivors

0:17:430:17:45

of that ship being torpedoed.

0:17:450:17:48

Then he was moved to a camp where he was living

0:17:480:17:53

in the roof of a building, it was used for storage underneath,

0:17:530:17:58

where you couldn't stand up.

0:17:580:18:00

And these things on the table are the things that he brought home?

0:18:000:18:05

Yeah, I think the billycan and the food ones, they...

0:18:050:18:09

At the end of the war, as they were repatriated,

0:18:090:18:12

they met up with other prisoners of war,

0:18:120:18:14

and they formed strong friendships, and they swapped items.

0:18:140:18:18

These few possessions that he has,

0:18:180:18:20

actually, are an American water bottle,

0:18:200:18:23

it's an American mess tin

0:18:230:18:25

and it's an American knife, fork and spoon set.

0:18:250:18:29

So I don't think he would have necessarily had them in the camp,

0:18:290:18:32

but as he was being repatriated and he had nothing,

0:18:320:18:37

those American servicemen who were liberating him, suddenly thought,

0:18:370:18:42

"Mac, you need this more than I do."

0:18:420:18:44

And they gave away their own possessions to him,

0:18:440:18:48

and probably all the others that they were picking up,

0:18:480:18:50

so that they actually had something to eat with

0:18:500:18:52

-and something to keep water in.

-Oh, right.

0:18:520:18:55

I always imagined that there would have been a POW,

0:18:550:18:58

sort of in the camp,

0:18:580:19:00

sort of scratching and etching these things out.

0:19:000:19:03

No, I think what you're looking at

0:19:030:19:06

is very personal items of American marines and soldiers.

0:19:060:19:10

I mean, the water bottle is a First World War water bottle.

0:19:100:19:13

-Oh, right!

-So that's been carried for a very long time by someone,

0:19:130:19:16

and they gave that away to someone much more in need than them,

0:19:160:19:20

in just a compassionate moment, I think.

0:19:200:19:23

And what is this little bag thing?

0:19:230:19:25

Well, at the end of the war,

0:19:250:19:27

they would never have known that the war had ended.

0:19:270:19:30

And the American aircraft carriers out at sea in Asia

0:19:300:19:37

produced these Sea View... Like a newspaper,

0:19:370:19:41

which they put in the canvas bags and dropped into the POW camps,

0:19:410:19:46

to let the POWs know that the war had ended...

0:19:460:19:49

-And this is the original.

-..and what they should do.

0:19:490:19:51

-And this is the original...

-That's one of the original papers.

0:19:510:19:55

It's dated Monday the 3rd of September 1945.

0:19:550:19:58

And I suppose the paragraph

0:19:580:20:00

that would have set their hearts trembling

0:20:000:20:04

would have been this one here that says,

0:20:040:20:05

"The dramatic ceremonies aboard the giant battleship Missouri

0:20:050:20:08

"reached a climax when representatives of Emperor Hirohito,

0:20:080:20:12

"the Japanese government and Imperial headquarters,

0:20:120:20:14

"signed the capitulation document."

0:20:140:20:17

The war's over. That's the piece of paper that says,

0:20:170:20:20

after all those years, actually, you're going home.

0:20:200:20:23

Would have been hard to believe.

0:20:230:20:25

Isn't it just?

0:20:250:20:26

It's an incredibly fragile piece of paper, still in its airdrop bag.

0:20:270:20:32

Mm-hm.

0:20:320:20:33

One of the odd things about this, I suppose, is that, um...

0:20:350:20:39

my dad was in Burma in the Royal Air Force, and when the war ended,

0:20:390:20:44

he and his crew dropped these bags...

0:20:440:20:46

-Really?

-..into the camps in the jungles.

0:20:460:20:48

So when I saw this today, I had to do this one.

0:20:480:20:50

-So you knew about it?

-I knew about these ones.

0:20:500:20:52

Isn't it fantastic? I've never seen one.

0:20:520:20:54

But dear old Dad did tell me about them, and here I am holding one.

0:20:540:20:57

What that meant to them, when that landed in the camp,

0:20:570:21:00

is much more than any price can ever put on it.

0:21:000:21:03

But, I don't know, I suppose if we did see it

0:21:030:21:06

on a marketplace...

0:21:060:21:08

..humble spoons and a tatty piece of newspaper,

0:21:100:21:15

I think we'd have to be looking at somewhere in the region of...

0:21:150:21:18

-£800 to £1,000.

-You're kidding!

0:21:180:21:20

-No.

-Good grief.

0:21:200:21:22

-Incredible.

-It's such a rare survivor from the Japanese camps,

0:21:230:21:29

it's such a rare survivor from that part of the war,

0:21:290:21:32

because they had nothing.

0:21:320:21:34

George Frampton, Madonna of the Peach Tree bust,

0:21:360:21:39

it's absolutely beautiful.

0:21:390:21:41

He's one of my favourite sculptors.

0:21:410:21:43

Is this something you bought?

0:21:430:21:45

Well, my mother died recently, so we've inherited it from her.

0:21:450:21:48

-Oh, wow.

-She inherited it from her mother's cousin,

0:21:480:21:52

a very wealthy lady who lived in Jersey.

0:21:520:21:54

My mother picked it out

0:21:540:21:56

as the one item she would really like to bring back,

0:21:560:21:58

because she thought it looked like my daughter.

0:21:580:22:00

I'm not surprised she picked this out, it's gorgeous.

0:22:000:22:03

-She chose well.

-So do you know where it came from before that?

0:22:030:22:06

Yes, the lady in Jersey is called Kay Monks-Hooper,

0:22:060:22:12

and she was the daughter of a guy called Horatio Nelson Collingwood.

0:22:120:22:17

-Oh, Collingwood.

-Who was a descendant of Admiral Collingwood.

0:22:170:22:21

Nelson's right-hand man?

0:22:210:22:22

Absolutely, yes. We assume that he bought it from George Frampton.

0:22:220:22:26

-The dates work.

-That Collingwood bought it from...?

-Yeah.

-Wow.

0:22:260:22:29

-So you've got the provenance right back to Frampton.

-Yeah.

0:22:290:22:32

I think this one, the Madonna of the Peach Tree,

0:22:320:22:34

is from a story by Maurice Hewlett.

0:22:340:22:37

It's about an Italian maiden, who was wrongfully accused of something,

0:22:370:22:41

and she escaped from the village...

0:22:410:22:42

Having an illegitimate child, or something, yes.

0:22:420:22:44

And when she appealed to the shepherds for help,

0:22:440:22:46

they thought she was the Virgin Mary, and then...

0:22:460:22:49

It's a fantastic story.

0:22:490:22:50

I know, yeah. Because they found her so beautiful,

0:22:500:22:53

and she is so beautiful.

0:22:530:22:55

I'll tell you why Frampton's one of my favourite sculptors.

0:22:550:22:59

He's the first sculptor that inspired me to want to sculpt.

0:22:590:23:02

When I was seven, I used to walk through Kensington Gardens

0:23:020:23:06

and gaze at his Peter Pan.

0:23:060:23:07

You must know Peter Pan,

0:23:070:23:09

standing on a mound with animals coming out.

0:23:090:23:11

-We do indeed.

-Rabbits and hedgehogs,

0:23:110:23:13

and all the fauna and flora from the British countryside.

0:23:130:23:18

And I used to be amazed by that sculpture.

0:23:180:23:21

And I think he studied at the Royal Academy, he went to Paris,

0:23:210:23:25

he came back, I think he taught at the Slade.

0:23:250:23:28

I think this was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1910.

0:23:280:23:32

But it's got this very distinctive monogram here, "GF 1915".

0:23:320:23:37

But on the back, it's got "Geo Frampton 1910".

0:23:370:23:43

So it's slightly confusing whether this was a 1910 or 1915 edition,

0:23:430:23:48

because it's got both on there. I don't know which came first.

0:23:480:23:51

Could it have been signed again when Collingwood bought it?

0:23:510:23:54

That's possible. It's one or the other.

0:23:540:23:55

It's a beautiful thing, and I think this sculpture,

0:23:550:23:58

depending on the date...

0:23:580:24:00

Now, if it's the 1915 date,

0:24:000:24:02

if we can establish that, as a later piece,

0:24:020:24:05

it's probably £8,000 to £12,000.

0:24:050:24:08

-OK.

-But if this is the 1910 edition,

0:24:080:24:11

I think it's now £15,000 to £20,000.

0:24:110:24:14

That would be wonderful!

0:24:140:24:15

-Wow.

-I mean, this is a first-class piece of British sculpture.

0:24:180:24:21

-It's lovely, isn't it?

-I mean, it is divine.

0:24:210:24:24

I mean, you must all love it.

0:24:240:24:25

-CROWD:

-Mm.

-It's beautiful.

0:24:250:24:26

What's not to love?

0:24:260:24:28

Many years ago, I went to India for a day.

0:24:310:24:34

Crazy! In fact, I was on the way to somewhere else.

0:24:340:24:37

And I wanted a day in Delhi because I wanted to see New Delhi

0:24:370:24:41

because I'm very keen on architecture of that period.

0:24:410:24:45

So I saw it, and I know what I'm looking at here in this drawing.

0:24:450:24:49

The great work of Lutyens and Herbert Baker.

0:24:490:24:52

Wonderfully diverse architect.

0:24:520:24:54

Very good in what you might call imperial architecture.

0:24:540:24:57

India House, Bank of England.

0:24:570:24:59

-South Africa House.

-Exactly.

0:24:590:25:01

-And so it goes on.

-Yeah.

0:25:010:25:02

He and Lutyens were both principal architects

0:25:020:25:05

for the Imperial War Graves Commission.

0:25:050:25:07

Here is someone who's really shaped the modern world.

0:25:070:25:09

I know what I'm looking at. Where do you fit in?

0:25:090:25:12

Well, Sir Herbert Baker, the architect,

0:25:120:25:15

is my great-great-grandfather-in-law.

0:25:150:25:18

Right. So you are the family.

0:25:180:25:19

-Yes. Yes, we are.

-This is a wonderful connection.

0:25:190:25:22

So tell me what you know about this?

0:25:220:25:24

Well, um, this is made as a mock.

0:25:240:25:27

It was commissioned by Sir Herbert Baker,

0:25:270:25:29

to sell the concepts to the Viceroy and to the Government of India,

0:25:290:25:35

to have this built.

0:25:350:25:37

-This is one of three debating chambers.

-Yeah.

0:25:370:25:40

I think this is the Lok Sabha, which is the people's debating chamber.

0:25:400:25:44

-Within the parliament?

-Yes. That's right.

0:25:440:25:46

I mean, let us think, what is New Delhi?

0:25:460:25:48

In 1912, Lutyens and Baker began to work

0:25:480:25:54

on the building of what is, in a sense, a new city.

0:25:540:25:58

But it was actually a new government structure for the whole of India.

0:25:580:26:04

-Yes.

-It was an imperial palace in every sense.

0:26:040:26:06

The Viceroy would live there.

0:26:060:26:08

It was the Parliament.

0:26:080:26:10

This was, in a sense, the commission that launched Lutyens' career

0:26:100:26:14

and, to some extent, Herbert Baker's career.

0:26:140:26:16

They were both well known but they'd done nothing on this scale.

0:26:160:26:20

So what we're looking at is a drawing,

0:26:200:26:22

not by Baker, who's down there,

0:26:220:26:24

but by Hepworth - quite a well-known architectural draughtsman.

0:26:240:26:27

-An architect's drawing is actually quite hard to read.

-Yes.

0:26:270:26:30

But this is a wonderful visualisation.

0:26:300:26:33

It's free, it's lively, it's a great image.

0:26:330:26:36

You can see the Viceroy sitting down, thinking,

0:26:360:26:38

-"Oh, yeah, it'll look like that. I see what you mean."

-Yeah.

0:26:380:26:42

The great thing to me is that Baker was very, very good

0:26:420:26:45

at picking up what I would call local style.

0:26:450:26:48

-This is very Indian, isn't it?

-Yes. Yes, it is.

0:26:480:26:50

-Without being a parody or travesty.

-Yeah.

0:26:500:26:52

And I think this is... You know, he was very responsive to...

0:26:520:26:56

to that local culture.

0:26:560:26:58

You obviously never knew him,

0:26:580:26:59

-but what did you hear about him in the family?

-Oh, lots.

-Tell us.

0:26:590:27:02

Well, every year, my father-in-law still organises a Baker Day,

0:27:020:27:07

where we go as a whole family

0:27:070:27:09

and visit one of the sites where he designed.

0:27:090:27:11

So it's wonderful that the family still reveres

0:27:110:27:14

the memory of somebody who was a great architect.

0:27:140:27:16

-Yes. Yes.

-Well, I think it's a fantastic drawing.

0:27:160:27:18

It takes us, as I say, wonderfully

0:27:180:27:20

into that sense of imperial splendour.

0:27:200:27:24

We were a confident nation.

0:27:240:27:26

We were building these great documents,

0:27:260:27:28

-and statements to our power around the world.

-Yes.

0:27:280:27:31

And it's so lively, it's so full of detail.

0:27:310:27:34

It looks very good in daylight.

0:27:340:27:36

We keep it dark, obviously.

0:27:360:27:38

-Quite right.

-Because it's a watercolour.

0:27:380:27:40

When they brought it out here on the lawn, this sort of electric blue,

0:27:400:27:43

-it's extraordinary.

-It is extraordinary.

0:27:430:27:45

In a sense, this is Baker's vision made real

0:27:450:27:49

-by a very clever architectural draughtsman.

-Yes.

0:27:490:27:52

So what are we looking at?

0:27:520:27:53

We're looking at a great drawing, a great bit of British history.

0:27:530:27:56

It has a value, and a significant one, because of all those points.

0:27:560:28:01

And so I'm going to say, if this came on the market,

0:28:010:28:05

it must be between 3,000 or 5,000,

0:28:050:28:09

simply because of its importance and its decorative quality.

0:28:090:28:14

This could well go, if it was ever sold,

0:28:140:28:17

could actually go back to India and be put into the building.

0:28:170:28:20

Wow.

0:28:200:28:21

-But it goes back to your wall.

-Yes, yes, it does.

0:28:210:28:24

Lucky you.

0:28:240:28:25

But what a stunning fan!

0:28:310:28:35

-What's the history?

-I don't know the history of it.

0:28:350:28:38

I bought it in a market in Birmingham

0:28:380:28:40

at seven o'clock in the morning for £8.

0:28:400:28:43

The man in front of me put it down.

0:28:430:28:45

He looked at it, shook his head, and said, "No," and put it down,

0:28:450:28:48

and I picked it up and bought it for £8.

0:28:480:28:50

Well, thank goodness he did. Do you know anything about it, then?

0:28:500:28:53

Well, I assume it's Chinese.

0:28:530:28:54

No, you're absolutely right.

0:28:540:28:56

What we've got is a stunning example of Chinese filigree work,

0:28:560:29:01

combined with these wonderful enamels.

0:29:010:29:04

Each of these panels will represent something.

0:29:040:29:08

So we've got all of that marvellous enamel work, gilding.

0:29:080:29:12

That might even be a little plate of gold added at that point.

0:29:120:29:15

So it's going to be somebody very high in Chinese society.

0:29:150:29:19

You so rarely see things of this quality.

0:29:190:29:22

-The Chinese market, of course, today, is hot.

-Yes.

0:29:220:29:27

And it's hot for this sort of piece.

0:29:270:29:29

It has to be very Chinese, and this couldn't be more.

0:29:290:29:33

Dating, tricky. Um...

0:29:330:29:36

I would have thought probably 18th century.

0:29:360:29:40

-You paid £8 for it.

-I did.

-OK. I think, er, you reasonably could

0:29:400:29:45

multiply that by a thousand.

0:29:450:29:47

-Ooh!

-LAUGHTER

0:29:470:29:50

-Really?

-Really!

0:29:500:29:52

I'm staggered.

0:29:520:29:54

Really?

0:29:540:29:55

Yes, 6,000 to 8,000.

0:29:550:29:57

Good heavens!

0:29:570:29:59

I am... I'm speechless. Really speechless.

0:30:010:30:03

Wonderful!

0:30:030:30:05

It's time for this week's Enigma Challenge.

0:30:180:30:20

This week, it's Hilary Kay's turn to scour a local museum

0:30:200:30:23

and bring along a mystery object,

0:30:230:30:24

and supply us with three suggestions as to what it was used for.

0:30:240:30:29

What's the first suggestion, Hilary?

0:30:290:30:30

What you're looking at is a tongue clamp.

0:30:300:30:33

Ow! That sounds very painful.

0:30:330:30:36

It does. Dating from the latter part of the 19th century,

0:30:360:30:39

and used in the diagnosis and the spotting of diphtheria, which is...

0:30:390:30:45

Its first signs are a swelling in the neck and throat,

0:30:450:30:49

which can then lead to suffocation. So it was very important

0:30:490:30:52

to be able to get the tongue right out of the way.

0:30:520:30:54

So you could get a clear view right down the back of the throat.

0:30:560:30:59

So do that rather than just press the tongue down with something?

0:30:590:31:02

-Exactly. Because you don't get a clear view, perhaps.

-OK.

0:31:020:31:05

Perhaps.

0:31:050:31:07

What do we think of that so far?

0:31:070:31:08

-CROWD:

-Mm.

0:31:080:31:10

-OK.

-I'll try you with another then. OK.

0:31:100:31:13

Number two is it's a skirt-lifter.

0:31:130:31:17

LAUGHTER Why would you need a skirt-lifter?

0:31:170:31:20

-All right. Picture the scene.

-I'm trying not to, but...

0:31:200:31:22

It's raining - you have a long skirt.

0:31:240:31:27

There is no little crossing sweeper to come and clear your path.

0:31:270:31:32

You don't want to get the hem of your dress dirty.

0:31:320:31:35

You clamp that onto it and then you pull it up,

0:31:350:31:38

-to keep it out of the way of the mud.

-OK.

0:31:380:31:41

Thirdly... It is part of an end-of-pier amusement machine.

0:31:420:31:47

Now, when I was a kid, I used to love something called the crane.

0:31:470:31:51

Do you know what I mean by the crane?

0:31:510:31:53

OK, so it-it has this arm.

0:31:530:31:56

You've got a sort of window full of prizes.

0:31:560:32:00

And it comes along and it grabs one of them.

0:32:000:32:02

-You've got a sort of joystick.

-Or lets it drop most of the time.

0:32:020:32:05

The really expensive ones, the ones you really want, always drop out.

0:32:050:32:09

This is a terribly fancy crane.

0:32:090:32:12

I presume this is silver.

0:32:120:32:14

It's silver-coloured, I think, is the best description.

0:32:140:32:17

Right.

0:32:170:32:18

Do you know, I was assuming that the last definition, if you like,

0:32:180:32:22

would be the most plausible cos I haven't bought the first two.

0:32:220:32:24

But that's the least plausible of all.

0:32:240:32:26

So what do we think, then?

0:32:260:32:29

So, the only thing about a tongue clamp, hideous as that sounds,

0:32:290:32:33

is surely to be able to see down the throat,

0:32:330:32:36

you just need to put something on the tongue

0:32:360:32:38

-to flatten the tongue. Don't we think?

-It does sound sensible.

0:32:380:32:41

-A skirt-lifter.

-You think it's a skirt-lifter.

0:32:410:32:44

The only thing about the skirt-lifter,

0:32:440:32:46

is if you've got a long skirt on, you have to bend all the way down...

0:32:460:32:49

..with these little, short handles, to lift it up.

0:32:500:32:53

And then, unless you're going to lift it up to your knicks...

0:32:530:32:56

You know, you'd have to walk around like that.

0:32:560:32:59

It's a dilemma.

0:33:000:33:02

And then there's the very fancy amusement arcade crane.

0:33:020:33:07

Which you dismissed.

0:33:070:33:08

I just think they all sound ludicrous.

0:33:080:33:10

Good!

0:33:100:33:11

OK, show of hands for the first one - the tongue clamp.

0:33:110:33:15

Show of hands for the skirt-lifter.

0:33:170:33:19

I think that's more.

0:33:200:33:21

Show of hands for the amusement arcade thing.

0:33:210:33:24

OK, we're forgetting that.

0:33:240:33:25

With a heavy heart, cos I don't believe that, the skirt-lifter.

0:33:250:33:29

Is it the skirt-lifter, Hilary?

0:33:290:33:31

I can now...

0:33:320:33:33

It's true.

0:33:330:33:34

It's a skirt-lifter?! CHEERING

0:33:340:33:36

Really?

0:33:360:33:38

-It's a skirt-lifter.

-It seems so impractical.

0:33:380:33:40

Look! The thing is, we've been a bit naughty.

0:33:400:33:44

Oh? Have you hidden a really crucial part?

0:33:440:33:47

It does have a bit of a cord.

0:33:480:33:50

It's not the original cord.

0:33:500:33:51

Oh, I see!

0:33:510:33:52

Ah! Now it makes sense.

0:33:520:33:55

So were we too naughty?

0:33:550:33:57

So you would lift your skirt up

0:33:570:33:58

but then you could hold it up with the cord.

0:33:580:34:01

I see - ah, no, that does make sense.

0:34:010:34:02

I so wanted you to have a tongue twister.

0:34:020:34:05

We could demonstrate it, get deep into it.

0:34:050:34:09

No, congratulations! Well done to you.

0:34:090:34:11

I've got to tell you, I had no idea.

0:34:110:34:13

And that's all thanks to you. So thank you very much.

0:34:130:34:15

Hilary, with your skirt-lifter...

0:34:150:34:18

LAUGHTER

0:34:180:34:19

Not something I ever thought I'd say in the same sentence. Well done!

0:34:190:34:23

So, you were a 12-year-old

0:34:440:34:46

with obviously impeccable taste.

0:34:460:34:48

Because you chose this sword.

0:34:480:34:51

No taste at all.

0:34:510:34:52

I just wanted to have a sword and show off to my friends at school.

0:34:520:34:56

And then I wasn't allowed to take it to school.

0:34:560:34:58

What made you pick this, though?

0:34:580:35:00

I liked the shape of it.

0:35:000:35:02

It was in an umbrella stand.

0:35:020:35:04

We were on holiday in the Norfolk broads.

0:35:040:35:07

It was a junk shop.

0:35:070:35:08

And in this umbrella stand, with a lot of walking sticks,

0:35:080:35:12

was this sword.

0:35:120:35:13

What did you pay for it then?

0:35:130:35:16

Seven and sixpence.

0:35:160:35:17

-How much pocket money was that?

-Seven shillings and sixpence.

0:35:170:35:20

Was that the entire week's pocket money?

0:35:200:35:22

That was three weeks' pocket money.

0:35:220:35:23

-Fantastic!

-I had half a crown a week.

0:35:230:35:26

Right, do you know what it is?

0:35:270:35:29

Someone told me it's a shamshir, but you can tell me.

0:35:290:35:33

It is a shamshir, but it's a shamshir shekargar,

0:35:330:35:37

which means "hunting sword".

0:35:370:35:39

Well, I'm not surprised, because there are hunting scenes on it,

0:35:390:35:42

with people chasing animals.

0:35:420:35:45

And there are lions and panthers, and birds, and deer, and rabbits,

0:35:450:35:50

and I don't know what else.

0:35:500:35:51

And we've got this fantastic blade.

0:35:510:35:54

When I first bought it in this junk shop at Ranworth,

0:35:540:35:57

-it was completely black.

-Yeah?

0:35:570:36:00

And I took it home, and scrubbed it with a scrubbing brush on the lawn,

0:36:000:36:05

-and soapy water.

-Right.

0:36:050:36:07

And black waxy stuff came away,

0:36:070:36:10

-revealing all these lovely golden animals.

-Yeah.

0:36:100:36:13

Imagine the excitement!

0:36:130:36:14

It must have been fantastic. Because they are, indeed, gold.

0:36:140:36:18

-They're not gold, are they?

-Yes. That's inlaid gold.

0:36:180:36:20

-I thought they were probably brass.

-Nope. That's gold.

0:36:200:36:23

-Good heavens!

-Engraved on the back, it is a hunting sword.

0:36:230:36:27

Bone handle. This incredibly distinctive shape.

0:36:270:36:32

It's a cutting sword.

0:36:320:36:34

-It's very sharp.

-It's designed solely for a draw cut.

0:36:340:36:37

It's Indo-Persian, early 1800s.

0:36:370:36:40

1820s, 1830s.

0:36:400:36:42

It's fantastic. It's a beautiful thing.

0:36:420:36:44

As I said, fantastic taste for a 12-year-old.

0:36:440:36:46

We've really got to think about what it's worth now, though.

0:36:460:36:50

So you paid seven and six, a princely sum.

0:36:510:36:54

Yes, equivalent to 37½p now.

0:36:540:36:57

Right. It's not...

0:36:570:36:59

But it was 70 years ago, and there's been a bit of inflation.

0:36:590:37:02

There has been a touch. A little bit. We'll factor that in as well.

0:37:020:37:06

I would think I am holding...

0:37:070:37:11

£1,200 worth of sword at the moment.

0:37:110:37:13

Oh, really?

0:37:130:37:14

So your seven and sixpence investment from your junk shop

0:37:140:37:18

has proved pretty good. And it's just a fabulous sword.

0:37:180:37:21

I really, really envy you.

0:37:210:37:23

We have a lot of Young Masters on the Antiques Roadshow,

0:37:290:37:33

from the 20th century.

0:37:330:37:34

It's very refreshing to be bordered by two Old Masters,

0:37:340:37:37

at least 400 years old.

0:37:370:37:40

Have you had them that long?

0:37:400:37:42

Well, they've been in the family since about 1966.

0:37:420:37:45

This one, '68.

0:37:450:37:46

-How did that come about?

-Well, the Portuguese boy behind you

0:37:460:37:49

was probably bought at a saleroom my father frequented.

0:37:490:37:53

And this one, from the great sale of Luton Hoo, in the '60s,

0:37:530:37:57

via a well-known picture restorer at the time, Michael Leslie.

0:37:570:38:01

And he sold it to my father.

0:38:010:38:04

Well, let's start with the young man,

0:38:040:38:06

because he's an early 17th-century portrait.

0:38:060:38:08

I notice there's a label, rather usefully, on it

0:38:080:38:11

which says Portuguese School, and a nice enough piece.

0:38:110:38:14

I don't think we need discuss that,

0:38:160:38:18

as much as this rather more alluring, rather intense,

0:38:180:38:23

but also captivatingly poetic woman next to us.

0:38:230:38:27

Now, do you know who she is?

0:38:270:38:29

Well, she is Princess Mary.

0:38:290:38:31

She's aged 12 in this picture.

0:38:310:38:34

It's dated just here as 1641.

0:38:340:38:37

She's the daughter of Princess Henrietta and Charles I.

0:38:370:38:41

She later married Prince William of Orange,

0:38:410:38:45

and they succeeded to the throne of England as William and Mary.

0:38:450:38:49

What makes you think that?

0:38:490:38:50

It's been examined, 50 years ago,

0:38:500:38:54

by a number of people.

0:38:540:38:56

It was verified by the Rijksmuseum, a Dr Hannema,

0:38:560:39:01

who was the director of the Boijmans Institute at the time.

0:39:010:39:04

Who also appended the artist's name as well?

0:39:040:39:07

Pierre Dubordieu, someone who worked with Rembrandt,

0:39:070:39:11

and then started on his own in the 1630s and '40s.

0:39:110:39:16

-Yes.

-So, 50 years ago,

0:39:160:39:18

-this was christened not only with an identity but a firm artist.

-Yes.

0:39:180:39:22

But art history moves on.

0:39:220:39:25

This is no aristocrat, in my view.

0:39:250:39:28

It doesn't have any of the attributes.

0:39:280:39:30

She doesn't actually have the demeanour.

0:39:300:39:32

I'm convinced that this is a Dutch, middle-class portrait,

0:39:320:39:36

or perhaps upper-middle-class,

0:39:360:39:38

if we want to try and elevate it a little bit.

0:39:380:39:41

Because certainly the dress suggests someone of taste and advantage.

0:39:410:39:46

This is a merchant's image.

0:39:460:39:47

I suspect a merchant's wife.

0:39:470:39:49

She's got all the attributes of luxury -

0:39:490:39:53

she's got gloves, hugely expensive things,

0:39:530:39:56

which she's holding in her left hand.

0:39:560:39:58

A rather beautiful, exotic fan in her right.

0:39:580:40:01

That silver bow.

0:40:010:40:03

But, more than anything else, in her expression, in her demeanour,

0:40:030:40:06

you can feel the imprint of Rembrandt.

0:40:060:40:09

Rembrandt, who managed to increase in a poetic and intense way,

0:40:090:40:14

the whole language of communication.

0:40:140:40:17

And, although she looks like a woman of her period,

0:40:170:40:22

the more you look into that face,

0:40:220:40:23

the more you can actually feel depth,

0:40:230:40:26

a sense of communication, a subtlety,

0:40:260:40:30

which is what Rembrandt brought to art.

0:40:300:40:33

It is quite possible that it is by Pierre Dubordieu,

0:40:330:40:36

because, certainly, there are characteristics.

0:40:360:40:38

But when it comes to a valuation,

0:40:380:40:40

I think I'll give you two.

0:40:400:40:42

One which will be on the basis of what it is now in front of us,

0:40:420:40:47

and the other on that little bit more work that we always need to do

0:40:470:40:50

with these portraits to try to nail it.

0:40:500:40:53

So starting with the young man on my left...

0:40:530:40:56

The condition is not great, the quality is not great.

0:40:560:40:59

It's only worth about...

0:40:590:41:01

£800 to £1,200.

0:41:010:41:03

Mm-hm.

0:41:030:41:04

Our woman is of a different order altogether.

0:41:040:41:08

So, on the basis that we don't know who the artist is,

0:41:080:41:12

I would say it was worth somewhere between £20,000 and £30,000.

0:41:120:41:17

I think there would be people out there who would pay that.

0:41:170:41:20

Just because it's an alluring image from that period

0:41:200:41:24

with a Rembrandt-esque look, and it's in superb condition.

0:41:240:41:28

If we were able to attach with certainty

0:41:290:41:33

the name that is written here, Pierre Dubordieu,

0:41:330:41:36

then we could be talking about £50,000, £60,000, even £70,000.

0:41:360:41:41

We, you, will have your job cut out doing that,

0:41:410:41:44

-but at least it's an indication.

-Thank you.

0:41:440:41:47

As far as carriage clocks go,

0:41:510:41:53

this is an absolutely stonking clock.

0:41:530:41:56

It's huge.

0:41:560:41:57

It must weigh two, three kilograms at least.

0:41:570:42:01

It was given to my aunt in the '50s.

0:42:010:42:04

As part of two presents, two different clocks

0:42:040:42:07

that she got from her employer when she was in service.

0:42:070:42:10

One was for long service, and the other one was when she got married.

0:42:100:42:14

So she ended up with two beautiful clocks.

0:42:140:42:17

She was very close to my father - her brother -

0:42:170:42:20

and she offered him one of the clocks.

0:42:200:42:22

And, at first, he had this one.

0:42:220:42:25

But they used to regularly swap the clocks over.

0:42:250:42:28

She was in Ireland, he was in England.

0:42:280:42:31

If he went to Ireland, he would take his clock -

0:42:310:42:34

whichever one he had at the time - over, swap them over.

0:42:340:42:37

My aunt would also put a bottle of poitin in the package

0:42:370:42:41

because it was the only way he could get his poitin back to England.

0:42:410:42:45

And that's how they swapped them over for getting on for 20 years.

0:42:450:42:49

After that, they did make the decision

0:42:490:42:51

that my father would keep this one

0:42:510:42:53

and then, when he died, I inherited this.

0:42:530:42:57

I was very happy to have it.

0:42:570:42:59

I've got two children and they're both mad for it.

0:42:590:43:02

So I think, when it comes to my passing it on to them,

0:43:020:43:07

they'll have to share it, just like their grandfather did.

0:43:070:43:11

I think that's a wonderful story,

0:43:110:43:12

and I'm so glad that the clock is appreciated and coveted.

0:43:120:43:18

Do you know anything about the clock itself?

0:43:180:43:21

I know a little, because, um...

0:43:210:43:23

it was cleaned and regulated quite a long time ago.

0:43:230:43:27

I know that one of the plates in it has got the date 1861 on it.

0:43:270:43:33

There was talk about whether it was a French clock or an English clock

0:43:330:43:37

because of the way it was inside,

0:43:370:43:39

but I don't know much more about it than that, really.

0:43:390:43:41

Well, from my point of view, 1861 is probably a good date for this clock.

0:43:410:43:47

It's mid-Victorian.

0:43:470:43:49

The question over English or French, there is no question in my mind -

0:43:490:43:53

it's English through and through.

0:43:530:43:56

This is so over-engineered, it's massive.

0:43:560:43:59

There were makers like McCabe, Dent, all producing this style of clock.

0:43:590:44:04

And it is one of my favourite sort of clocks.

0:44:040:44:08

Carriage clocks are great, English carriage clocks are fabulous.

0:44:080:44:11

You've got this wonderful, heavy case,

0:44:110:44:14

with this wonderful moulded cast brass.

0:44:140:44:17

But then you come up and you've got this beautiful, delicate,

0:44:170:44:20

engraved dial mask with this inset dial.

0:44:200:44:24

This is all gilded. The whole clock would have been gilded.

0:44:240:44:27

When it was new, it would have been really bright

0:44:270:44:30

and it would have said, "Look at me! I'm magnificent."

0:44:300:44:33

Then you come to the top and you've got this wonderful, detailed handle.

0:44:330:44:38

It's really, really a great piece of work.

0:44:380:44:41

We can see inside, we have these heavy plates.

0:44:410:44:44

These beautiful turned pillars that most people wouldn't really notice,

0:44:440:44:48

and this lovely chain fusee movement with the platform on top.

0:44:480:44:53

So this is a magnificent clock, and it is well loved.

0:44:530:44:56

I can't imagine that you would

0:44:560:44:58

ever come to sell it or part with it in any way.

0:44:580:45:01

But if it was in an auction, I would say,

0:45:010:45:04

it could easily sit with an auction estimate...

0:45:040:45:07

of £5,000 to £8,000.

0:45:070:45:09

Oh, my days!

0:45:090:45:10

Mm.

0:45:120:45:13

I didn't... I really didn't expect that.

0:45:150:45:18

I've had it...

0:45:180:45:19

..valued once, and it was a long time ago, at 1,000,

0:45:200:45:23

and I thought that was amazing then.

0:45:230:45:25

But gosh!

0:45:250:45:26

Yes, well, it'll get dusted even more often now, I think.

0:45:270:45:31

There's something wonderful about a walking stick,

0:45:330:45:35

in that you put your hand on it

0:45:350:45:38

and you're shaking hands with the previous owner.

0:45:380:45:42

Now, tell me who the previous owner was.

0:45:420:45:44

Well, the previous owner was Sir Walter Scott,

0:45:460:45:48

and this was given to his friend, William Allen, the artist,

0:45:480:45:53

the year before his death.

0:45:530:45:55

Sir Walter Scott. He was THE perhaps best-known historical novelist

0:45:550:46:00

of his day, in the early part of the 19th century.

0:46:000:46:03

He wrote novels like Rob Roy, Ivanhoe, Waverley.

0:46:030:46:07

These novels that sort of created a heroic Scottish past.

0:46:070:46:13

And this is his walking stick.

0:46:130:46:15

Well, how did you get it?

0:46:150:46:17

My parents and I used to collect walking sticks in the early '90s.

0:46:170:46:20

A walking stick dealer we used to buy the occasional stick from

0:46:200:46:23

had this and offered it to us. It's a unique slice of history -

0:46:230:46:27

it was an opportunity we didn't want to miss.

0:46:270:46:30

No. Well, why would you?

0:46:300:46:31

I'm going to actually read the little band on here,

0:46:310:46:35

which says, "Given by Sir Walter Scott, Bart.,

0:46:350:46:39

"to William Allan at Abbotsford, 19th September, 1831."

0:46:390:46:45

It looks like a five on first glance

0:46:450:46:47

but, looking closely, you can see that that is a three.

0:46:470:46:51

Well, Abbotsford was the house that Walter Scott designed and built,

0:46:510:46:56

where he in fact died the following year.

0:46:560:46:59

And William Allan, president of the Scottish Academy of Artists,

0:46:590:47:04

was perhaps... He was certainly a friend,

0:47:040:47:07

but he was also responsible for creating

0:47:070:47:11

some very memorable portraits of Sir Walter Scott himself.

0:47:110:47:15

Is that one? You're grasping a piece of paper.

0:47:150:47:17

I'm not sure if that's one of his, but there are a number of paintings

0:47:170:47:21

of Scott with the actual stick.

0:47:210:47:23

First of all, it's made of malacca and it's in certain...

0:47:230:47:25

a number of segments, which you can count on any of the paintings.

0:47:250:47:29

It's then got this eyehole where a string would have gone through,

0:47:290:47:33

which again you can see in the portraits.

0:47:330:47:36

The other thing, of course, is it's a proper stick,

0:47:360:47:39

because Sir Walter Scott needed a stick.

0:47:390:47:42

This wasn't a dandyism.

0:47:420:47:45

I believe he had polio as a child.

0:47:450:47:47

That's what I had heard.

0:47:470:47:49

This is a strong stick on which a man could have rested his weight,

0:47:490:47:53

and I'm rather excited about it, I have to say,

0:47:530:47:55

to hold it and to know what a part it played in a great man's life.

0:47:550:48:00

Would other people think the same, I wonder? What did you pay for it?

0:48:000:48:03

In the early '90s, I believe it was £700.

0:48:030:48:07

The profile of Sir Walter Scott waxes and wanes

0:48:070:48:12

and there was a time when he was almost as popular as Robbie Burns.

0:48:120:48:18

I have to say, that is not the case now.

0:48:180:48:20

The big American institutions that were buying Robert Burns

0:48:200:48:24

and Sir Walter Scott material

0:48:240:48:26

are not so interested in Sir Walter Scott any more.

0:48:260:48:28

So, I'm going to be a bit, um...

0:48:280:48:32

conservative, I think, with the estimate.

0:48:320:48:34

I'm going to put it at between £2,000 and £3,000.

0:48:340:48:37

-Oh, right. OK.

-Because of who it belonged to

0:48:370:48:40

and because of his profile in the literary world.

0:48:400:48:43

-It is a remarkable survivor.

-Yeah. Thank you.

0:48:430:48:46

So you're becoming a bit of a familiar sight at the Roadshow.

0:48:510:48:54

Yes, indeed. Last year we were down at Walmer

0:48:540:48:57

and we brought something along but today I've got something different.

0:48:570:49:00

I wondered if you can give us some history, anything about it, really.

0:49:000:49:04

We just know nothing about it at all.

0:49:040:49:05

Well, you must know where you've got it from.

0:49:050:49:07

I inherited it from my granny.

0:49:070:49:09

That's really all we know about it.

0:49:090:49:10

It's probably been in the family about 100 years or so.

0:49:100:49:14

One of the most familiar questions that's asked on the roadshow is,

0:49:140:49:17

-how old is it?

-Yes.

0:49:170:49:19

A lot of stuff that we get, a lot of objects we get, are reproductions.

0:49:190:49:26

The period that we're talking here is 1760, is the sort of date.

0:49:260:49:32

The question is, is this one from 1760 or is this a later...

0:49:320:49:37

-Copy?

-..copy?

0:49:370:49:39

Well, actually, that's really easy with this one.

0:49:390:49:42

Now, if you look at that very carefully...

0:49:420:49:45

You've heard of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

0:49:450:49:48

This is called the Leaning Glass of Ightham,

0:49:480:49:51

-because, if you look at it, it's all over the place.

-Yeah.

0:49:510:49:55

Now, if we come round here, there's some stuff on here.

0:49:550:50:00

Yes. I've always wondered what that is. I have tried to rub it off.

0:50:000:50:03

-It's called grot.

-Oh, right. OK.

-That's what it's called.

-Excellent.

0:50:030:50:07

And there's another bit here.

0:50:070:50:09

Basically, that is telling you that it's old.

0:50:090:50:14

Now, when we look at 18th-century drinking glasses, you think,

0:50:140:50:16

"What were they used for?"

0:50:160:50:17

Well, they were just a single mouthful.

0:50:170:50:20

They don't fit into modern life.

0:50:200:50:21

Who drinks wine by the single mouthful before filling it up again?

0:50:210:50:26

This one has an amazing asset, doesn't it?

0:50:260:50:29

-Which is...

-A huge bowl.

0:50:290:50:31

-It's huge.

-Lovely.

0:50:310:50:33

This is, kind of, a third of a glass, isn't it?

0:50:330:50:36

-Yes.

-So have you never used it?

0:50:360:50:38

No. I'm a bit clumsy. I daren't use it.

0:50:380:50:40

I didn't actually wash it before I came here

0:50:400:50:42

because I didn't want to break it or anything.

0:50:420:50:45

It's just stayed in the cupboard out the way, safe.

0:50:450:50:47

GLASS RINGS

0:50:470:50:49

Lovely! 270 years old.

0:50:490:50:53

It's got an OXO-engraved border.

0:50:530:50:56

OXO, OXO, OXO.

0:50:560:50:58

-You see how that goes round.

-Yes.

0:50:580:51:00

It has a faceted stem.

0:51:000:51:02

1760 to 1765 is the date.

0:51:020:51:05

It fits into the modern drinking habit of big glasses.

0:51:050:51:09

So your nice, little legacy is,

0:51:090:51:15

um...

0:51:150:51:17

350, 400 quid.

0:51:170:51:19

Ah! £350, £400 for that?

0:51:190:51:22

Wow! I'd better not drop it now.

0:51:220:51:25

Gosh! Thank you ever so much.

0:51:270:51:29

I didn't realise it was as much as that. That is amazing.

0:51:290:51:32

Well, we're filming in the cricket season,

0:51:330:51:36

when you will hear the sound of leather on willow.

0:51:360:51:39

And you've come today with the most incredibly

0:51:390:51:42

early-looking cricket bat.

0:51:420:51:43

-Tell me about it.

-It's a bat that we believe is made by William Pett,

0:51:430:51:48

a local bat maker in Sevenoaks.

0:51:480:51:51

It's owned by Sevenoaks Vine Cricket Club,

0:51:510:51:53

and we can trace history of cricket on the Vine

0:51:530:51:56

back to the 6th of September 1734.

0:51:560:51:58

Gosh! How fantastic!

0:51:580:52:00

So wuite an illustrious cricket club.

0:52:000:52:03

Well, a bat of this age makes us speculate

0:52:030:52:06

on how old the game of cricket actually is.

0:52:060:52:09

It certainly stretches back many centuries

0:52:090:52:12

and, like many games, has undergone different changes.

0:52:120:52:15

From a distance, you'd think it was a hockey club, or hockey stick,

0:52:150:52:20

because... Look at the sweep of it!

0:52:200:52:23

No shoulders.

0:52:230:52:24

We all get used to the modern, more modern, cricket bat shape.

0:52:240:52:27

This was just made from one piece of willow from top to bottom.

0:52:270:52:31

It's a lovely, curvaceous form.

0:52:310:52:34

The name, "Pett", with the initials RT, appear on the top of the handle.

0:52:340:52:40

And it's seen some action.

0:52:400:52:41

We don't know who the owner was,

0:52:410:52:43

but it is signed on the back there in 1745.

0:52:430:52:47

So that gives some sort of a dating to it as well.

0:52:470:52:50

This is clearly legible.

0:52:500:52:52

-Richard Mitchell.

-Yes.

0:52:520:52:53

1745.

0:52:530:52:55

I mean...Jacobite rebellion and all that.

0:52:550:52:59

It really does go back to the reign of George II.

0:52:590:53:03

But it's a real, tactile thing.

0:53:030:53:06

Now, what about the ball?

0:53:060:53:08

The ball is a silver snuff box, used at club dinners.

0:53:080:53:12

After dinner, it would be filled with snuff

0:53:120:53:14

and then thrown around amongst the members.

0:53:140:53:16

Anybody who dropped it had to buy either a round of drinks

0:53:160:53:19

-or a bottle of port.

-Oh!

-So it's a bit knocked about.

0:53:190:53:23

That's absolutely marvellous.

0:53:230:53:24

Let's have a look! Are you aware of how old is?

0:53:240:53:26

That dates, we believe, from the early 1800s.

0:53:260:53:30

We can trace sort of comment to it back to 1818.

0:53:300:53:33

Sadly, there's everything there except the date letter.

0:53:330:53:37

We have the duty head mark of George III.

0:53:370:53:40

I think it's circa 1800.

0:53:400:53:43

That's really quite a scarce piece as well.

0:53:430:53:45

Well, having seen your bat,

0:53:470:53:49

I just thought this could never be bettered on the Antiques Roadshow.

0:53:490:53:52

But, ten minutes later, along comes another cricket bat.

0:53:520:53:56

-Hello.

-Hello.

-And here is the offending bat.

0:53:580:54:01

This is a family piece, I understand.

0:54:010:54:03

This has been in my family for 100... exactly 100 years.

0:54:030:54:07

Fantastic. To the year.

0:54:070:54:08

-To the year.

-Great.

0:54:080:54:10

-Great.

-1916.

0:54:100:54:11

Yeah. And it carries the signature

0:54:110:54:13

of perhaps one of the best-known cricketers of all time, WG Grace.

0:54:130:54:18

-Yes.

-What was his connection with you and your family?

0:54:180:54:21

My great-grandfather, Charles Blundell, who lived at Halstead,

0:54:210:54:25

was a farmer at Halstead near Sevenoaks.

0:54:250:54:27

He became a friend of Grace in his later years.

0:54:270:54:32

Grace used to come down from Eltham to play...

0:54:320:54:35

-Either to go shooting or hunting with beagles.

-Yeah.

0:54:350:54:40

That's, um, Grace.

0:54:400:54:42

Yes, and wasn't he a big chap?

0:54:420:54:44

That's my grandfather there. Well, he was huge.

0:54:440:54:46

But my family were absolutely tiny.

0:54:460:54:49

-So the contrast is quite extreme.

-Yes.

0:54:490:54:53

My aunt said you would expect him to have a voice like thunder,

0:54:530:54:57

but actually he had a rather high voice.

0:54:570:55:00

We mustn't forget just what a celebrity WG Grace was at the time.

0:55:000:55:04

There wasn't a newspaper in the British colonial world

0:55:040:55:07

-that didn't have his photograph in on a regular basis.

-That's right.

0:55:070:55:10

So quite an honour for your family

0:55:100:55:12

to have been associated with the great man.

0:55:120:55:14

WG Grace has signed it,

0:55:140:55:16

-but do we know whether he actually played with it?

-We do.

0:55:160:55:20

He apparently played with it in 1912.

0:55:200:55:23

-Right.

-Because, after his death, his widow, Agnes Grace,

0:55:230:55:29

donated it to a sale in Sevenoaks.

0:55:290:55:32

In the letter, she says he played with it in 1912.

0:55:320:55:35

Fantastic! You have a letter in the family.

0:55:350:55:37

We've got the letter, yes -

0:55:370:55:38

with the black border, of course, because she was still in mourning.

0:55:380:55:42

What I love is the fact there's impressions

0:55:420:55:44

-of where balls have been hit.

-I love that, too.

0:55:440:55:46

To think that Grace himself perhaps took a six with this.

0:55:460:55:53

So, really, the question is, what are they worth?

0:55:530:55:56

Which is the most valuable?

0:55:560:55:59

Who thinks the early one is worth the most?

0:55:590:56:04

-Yes.

-So, obviously, it leaves all the rest of you with the Grace.

0:56:040:56:08

You think that's... OK.

0:56:080:56:11

Well...

0:56:110:56:12

This is an early one.

0:56:140:56:16

They do turn up at sales.

0:56:160:56:18

In an auction, that would carry...

0:56:180:56:20

..an estimate of £3,000 to £5,000.

0:56:210:56:25

Turning swiftly to the Wisden bat, with the Grace connections,

0:56:250:56:31

this one's worth between £4,000 and £6,000.

0:56:310:56:35

But, look, what's dividing the two bats is the toss-your-snuffbox ball.

0:56:350:56:42

I might be putting my neck out on the line a little bit...

0:56:420:56:45

£3,000 to £5,000.

0:56:450:56:48

-Don't want to drop it.

-LAUGHTER

0:56:480:56:51

So, howzat?

0:56:510:56:52

Thank you.

0:56:520:56:54

So, not one, not two, but three sporting treasures in one hit.

0:56:550:57:00

Before we go, here at Ightham Mote,

0:57:000:57:02

I just wanted to show you this bottle of champagne.

0:57:020:57:05

It's a 1921 vintage.

0:57:050:57:08

It was bought by the parents of a young Alan Lundy in 1943

0:57:080:57:12

for his 21st birthday the following year.

0:57:120:57:15

He flew with the RAF

0:57:150:57:18

and, sadly, he was killed

0:57:180:57:20

before he managed to reach that important birthday.

0:57:200:57:23

And his family have kept it and treasured it ever since.

0:57:230:57:28

I don't know about you, but I find that really moving.

0:57:280:57:31

From Ightham Mote and the whole Roadshow team, bye-bye.

0:57:310:57:34

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