0:00:43 > 0:00:46On the Antiques Roadshow we love an eccentric, and there were certainly
0:00:46 > 0:00:48a few of them here at Baddesley Clinton near Solihull,
0:00:48 > 0:00:50in the West Midlands.
0:00:50 > 0:00:53Welcome to a return visit of the Antiques Roadshow.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58Marmion Edward Ferrers lived in this picturesque moated house
0:00:58 > 0:01:02in the second half of the 19th century with his wife, Rebecca.
0:01:02 > 0:01:03Both were fascinated with the past.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07They dressed up in theatrical costume and lived an existence
0:01:07 > 0:01:11from another era, quite secluded from the pace of industrialisation
0:01:11 > 0:01:13in nearby Birmingham.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17Marmion's wife, Rebecca, was a keen painter, and she created
0:01:17 > 0:01:19dozens of images of life here.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21The couple never had much money,
0:01:21 > 0:01:24so they invited Rebecca's wealthy aunt, Lady Chatterton,
0:01:24 > 0:01:27and her husband, Edward Dearing, to come and live with them.
0:01:27 > 0:01:28They were quite a foursome.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32They became known as the Quartet.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34Marmion liked to wear a beard,
0:01:34 > 0:01:37intentionally styled into a Charles I style point,
0:01:37 > 0:01:41and had a penchant for 17th-century Cavalier-style clothing.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45In fact, they all loved dressing up, casting themselves into roles -
0:01:45 > 0:01:47the philosopher, the squire.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50Baddesley Clinton became a playground where they could live out
0:01:50 > 0:01:52their fantasies in privacy.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56The Quartet were all the company they needed.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58In the evenings, Rebecca would paint,
0:01:58 > 0:02:00Lady Chatterton would recite poetry,
0:02:00 > 0:02:03the gentlemen would sing or play instruments.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06They were true 19th-century romantics.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12After 1876, it all began to change when Lady Chatterton died.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15A few years later, Marmion also passed away.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18As soon as the official mourning period was over,
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Rebecca wasted no time and married her late aunt's husband.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27The story goes that years earlier, when Edward Dearing approached
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Lady Chatterton to ask for permission to wed Rebecca,
0:02:30 > 0:02:33she misheard, and thought he was proposing to her.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35And, being a gentleman, he was too polite to set her straight,
0:02:35 > 0:02:37and so he married her instead.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Now, I think that's taking chivalry a step too far.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48The Quartet's time here is recorded on almost every wall, thanks to
0:02:48 > 0:02:52Rebecca's paintings, and even on some of the stained-glass windows.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56Rebecca had new stained-glass panels in the style of the 16th century
0:02:56 > 0:02:59installed, featuring Edward and Marmion's names as a memorial
0:02:59 > 0:03:02to her two husbands. Their lives are literally etched
0:03:02 > 0:03:05into the very fabric of this building.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Our time at this National Trust house is more fleeting,
0:03:09 > 0:03:12so let's get a move on and discover what treasures have been unearthed
0:03:12 > 0:03:14at today's Antiques Roadshow.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20You've brought along a really pretty filigree box.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23Now, filigree was made all round Europe
0:03:23 > 0:03:27from the end of the 17th century, copying filigree made in China
0:03:27 > 0:03:29from a much earlier period.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Where did you get hold of this particular piece?
0:03:31 > 0:03:34Well, I bought it at a watch fair ten years ago,
0:03:34 > 0:03:39exactly ten years ago, and I was looking for a box
0:03:39 > 0:03:42that I could have as a 16th century watch movement.
0:03:42 > 0:03:46And I've been looking for a number of years, and it's fit the bill.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48It cost the princely sum of £20.
0:03:48 > 0:03:53When I got home, I was anxious to drill the back of the box
0:03:53 > 0:03:57for the winding square, only to be told by my wife that I'd promised
0:03:57 > 0:04:00to do something else, so it was postponed.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04And on the evening when we were sitting in bed I thought,
0:04:04 > 0:04:07"I'll just check those marks out," because I hadn't recognised them,
0:04:07 > 0:04:11and the book fell open, Jackson's book, which I'd got,
0:04:11 > 0:04:15at the page which was the Glasgow goldsmith's.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18- Right. - And there it was, the same marks.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22Now, if I tell you in 45 years of looking at silver,
0:04:22 > 0:04:26I don't think I've ever seen a piece of filigree from the 17th century
0:04:26 > 0:04:28that's had marks.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33In fact, I'm trying to think of a piece of the 18th century that's had
0:04:33 > 0:04:34British marks in.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38This is unbelievably rare.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43Not only are filigree boxes seldom marked,
0:04:43 > 0:04:48but to have one made in Glasgow, and we've got the mark WC,
0:04:48 > 0:04:54for William Clark, we've got the Glasgow town mark in the centre,
0:04:54 > 0:04:58and we've got the date letter, which I think is a Q, it's a bit obscured,
0:04:58 > 0:05:00for 1696.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06So, this has got practically everything you could wish to have
0:05:06 > 0:05:11in an early box, but particularly a filigree one.
0:05:11 > 0:05:17Filigree is simply a process of coiling lots of little bits of wire,
0:05:17 > 0:05:21and it produces this beautiful patterning on the top,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23and around the sides,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26which is really a stunning form of decoration.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29I love it, personally, and if we look at the base,
0:05:29 > 0:05:34rather unusually, it's got this rather scratchy decoration,
0:05:34 > 0:05:39which again is absolutely typical for the late 17th century.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Now, I've got to put a price on this.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46You paid...far too much, wasn't it?
0:05:46 > 0:05:48- £20. - £20.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54- I'm pretty comfortable in saying £3,000 to £5,000.- Oh!
0:05:57 > 0:06:00Well, I'm staggered. Absolutely staggered.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03It was so good that that book fell open at that page,
0:06:03 > 0:06:06because, in the morning, it would have been drilled.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08I'm a great believer in fate,
0:06:08 > 0:06:13because the value would have been quartered if you had.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17You've got an exceptionally rare museum object here.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20A massive pleasure to handle it and see it.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23Wonderful object. Thank you so much for bringing it along.
0:06:23 > 0:06:24Thank you very much. I'm delighted.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31Ever since Greek and Roman times,
0:06:31 > 0:06:36artists have looked for excuses to incorporate nudity in art,
0:06:36 > 0:06:41and in this instance, Fred Yates, the painter, has lucked out.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43What's the title of the painting?
0:06:43 > 0:06:45Well, the title is, as we think, anyway,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49The Nudist Colony Annual Dinner Dance.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52Hang on a moment, The Nudist Colony Annual Dinner Dance.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55- That's what it says. - OK, I've got to ask you,
0:06:55 > 0:06:57do you have a recreational interest in nudity?
0:06:57 > 0:07:00Personally, no, except in the bathroom, which is where it hangs.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02It hangs in the bathroom, does it?
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Very appropriately!
0:07:04 > 0:07:08So, the artist, Fred Yates, and of course when we look at it, I mean,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11let's put aside all this nudity for a moment, it looks like a Lowry,
0:07:11 > 0:07:13- doesn't it? - It does, very much so,
0:07:13 > 0:07:17and most of his stuff - that we've seen, anyway - is very Lowry-esque
0:07:17 > 0:07:21- in the figures that he's done. - So Yates and Lowry,
0:07:21 > 0:07:27- both Lancashire men.- Yup.- Lowry, of course, a little bit more sombre,
0:07:27 > 0:07:32a little bit more serious, and nothing like as frivolous as Yates.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35And this of course is... This is comedy, isn't it?
0:07:35 > 0:07:38It's hysterical. Every time I look at it I find all sorts of different
0:07:38 > 0:07:41- bits of comedy in there. - Different bits, certainly!
0:07:42 > 0:07:45So tell me, how do you know... How do you know about Yates?
0:07:45 > 0:07:49- I mean, how did he come into your life?- OK. Back in the '70s,
0:07:49 > 0:07:52my mum and my step-father, who was a picture framer,
0:07:52 > 0:07:56had a cottage, a little fisherman's cottage in Polruan in Cornwall,
0:07:56 > 0:08:01and Fred used to live in Fowey, which is just opposite Polruan,
0:08:01 > 0:08:04get the ferry over, and do these paintings in the streets.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07And I think he needed a coffee one day, and my mum was very bohemian
0:08:07 > 0:08:09and said, "Oh, come in for a coffee, no problem at all,"
0:08:09 > 0:08:11and they got very friendly ever since.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14He used to go there, do his painting, go in for a coffee,
0:08:14 > 0:08:18talk to the family, and I think he did this for us.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20Whether he did it specifically I have no idea,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23but I know that we acquired it from him, and he did lots of other
0:08:23 > 0:08:27silly little drawings or paintings on, for example,
0:08:27 > 0:08:30the back of a loo seat, which I've got at home.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32My sister's got that, actually, now.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35And then we've also got a breadboard with little drawings and figures on.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38So, he was just very amusing and he also looked like my father,
0:08:38 > 0:08:42very big beard, very eccentric, and together they just had great fun.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45So, as this painting demonstrates, he was up for a laugh.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48- Yeah, sure.- But also he knew how to craft a picture as well, and,
0:08:48 > 0:08:52compositionally, the painting is actually rather sophisticated,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54because... Look at the way it's structured.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56You've got these curtains on the right and the left,
0:08:56 > 0:09:01you're looking down upon this scene of cavorting flesh and nudity,
0:09:01 > 0:09:04and the subjects themselves set against this white background,
0:09:04 > 0:09:09almost evokes like mosaics or images on Etruscan vases.
0:09:09 > 0:09:14But perhaps most potent of all is the humour achieved by these
0:09:14 > 0:09:18- figures in the foreground.- You know, I'd just love to see their faces,
0:09:18 > 0:09:22to see if they're approving or not approving of what's going on.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Because they're not just dressed, but they're in thick,
0:09:25 > 0:09:29- rather majestic looking coats with hats.- They are very conservative.
0:09:29 > 0:09:34Very conservative, so dressed, and what's in front of them is so nude.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Absolutely. It's highly amusing and every time you look at it,
0:09:37 > 0:09:39you laugh at something. So I've really enjoyed watching it
0:09:39 > 0:09:42when I'm in the bath, in the nude.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45In terms of value, on the basis of your connection with the artist,
0:09:45 > 0:09:47great provenance.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51Even though he's not made huge sums of money of late, you know,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54low thousands, I would put this in the upper echelons.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58I think... I think there's a lot of flesh on the bone with this one.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01I would put it around about £5,000 or £6,000.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04That's fine. It's going to stay in the bathroom.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09When I first saw this book with The Black List written on the front
0:10:09 > 0:10:11of it, its rather ragged state,
0:10:11 > 0:10:13I was just kind of hoping I wasn't going to be on your blacklist.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18But, obviously, opening it up, I discovered something very different
0:10:18 > 0:10:21to what I expected to find, to be honest with you,
0:10:21 > 0:10:26and here we've got a title which says Licensing Act 1902,
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Habitual Drunkards.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31It actually was issued to publicans, wasn't it?
0:10:31 > 0:10:33- Yes, yes.- And that's where it comes from in your family, I understand.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35That's right, yes.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39My uncle's father and his father before him ran the Brewer's Arm pub
0:10:39 > 0:10:41- in Highgate. - Right.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44So it would have been given to my uncle's grandad first,
0:10:44 > 0:10:48- and then it's been passed down. - Right, and what we actually have
0:10:48 > 0:10:52here is a document that was issued to licensees
0:10:52 > 0:10:56- for people who had been convicted of being drunkards.- Yes.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59And so publicans were issued with this, with photographs and a list of
0:10:59 > 0:11:04their attributes, basically, to forbid them from buying alcohol.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07Now, this is just after the Victorian period, obviously,
0:11:07 > 0:11:10so what we're doing is we're looking at people who,
0:11:10 > 0:11:12to all intents and purposes, look Victorian.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16- Yes.- It's well over 100 years ago, and do you know, it's funny,
0:11:16 > 0:11:19because I suppose, initially, I kind of started to snigger a bit
0:11:19 > 0:11:22about the idea of these drunkards rolling around and not being able
0:11:22 > 0:11:25to buy a drink and then, actually, when I started to look at it,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28I realised, actually, this is not a laughing matter.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30- No, it's really sad. - It is a sad document.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33- Yeah.- And I alighted on this gentleman, Charles Christian Page,
0:11:33 > 0:11:35who was a bit of a character, I thought,
0:11:35 > 0:11:36wearing his kind of quite tall hat,
0:11:36 > 0:11:40and I noticed that he was a photographer and commission agent.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43"Date and nature of conviction, 20th of January 1903,"
0:11:43 > 0:11:47so this is just after the 1902 date on here.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49"Drunk on licensed premises.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52"Convicted at Birmingham City Police Court."
0:11:52 > 0:11:57Now, it doesn't say that he served time or did anything there.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00Here he is without his hat on, and I presume they did that so that
0:12:00 > 0:12:02you could tell the difference, perhaps, to identify them.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05- That's right, yeah. - If we go on a little bit more...
0:12:07 > 0:12:12..pass by a few other people here, we come to this double page.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Now this really, really moved me because I found this gentleman
0:12:16 > 0:12:21called Richard Fleming, known as Dirty Dick or Dick the Devil.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Now, if we look at Richard, he is in a terrible,
0:12:24 > 0:12:27terrible state, and what this appears to be, really,
0:12:27 > 0:12:30is a catalogue almost, and I hate to use the expression,
0:12:30 > 0:12:33really, of the dregs of humanity, in many respects.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36- Yes.- These were people who were in a terrible state,
0:12:36 > 0:12:41perhaps had lost livelihoods, had gone, fallen into drunkenness.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45He was convicted at Birmingham City Police Court, drunk and disorderly,
0:12:45 > 0:12:49and served 21 days' hard labour for that offence.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53Really, this is a social document of the hardship that these people went
0:12:53 > 0:12:55through. They were in a terrible state, a lot of these people.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57And there was no help for them like there is today.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01No Social Security, no housing associations.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04And then to be given hard labour on top of everything else, you know.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06They were living hand to mouth, essentially.
0:13:06 > 0:13:07That's right, yeah, so it's very sad.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09It's a very difficult thing to put a price on.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12I mean, it's obviously an integral part of your family history,
0:13:12 > 0:13:15- in many respects.- Yeah, yes, yes.- I doubt you're ever going to sell it.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17- No.- But I suspect as a kind of social kind of document,
0:13:17 > 0:13:20and something that's of interest to people in that way,
0:13:20 > 0:13:24I suspect it would make £200 or £300 at auction.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27It's been of real interest and quite emotive for me to look at it.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29- Yes, yes. - Thank you.- You're welcome.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34Well, I'm always a bit of a sucker for a nice English landscape,
0:13:34 > 0:13:37but I kind of get the impression that's not an enthusiasm we share.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40Not really. No, Lawrence, no.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42It's never really caught my eye.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46- Why is that?- Well, it used to belong to my grandmother.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49It was given to her by a very good friend, in east London.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51She had it on a mantelpiece for many years.
0:13:51 > 0:13:52I hated it as a child.
0:13:52 > 0:13:54Really hated it, she passed away, passed it on to my mother.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58Unfortunately, she passed away, so it ended up with me,
0:13:58 > 0:14:00and it's sat in a cupboard for about ten years.
0:14:00 > 0:14:05And I was actually going to throw it away with the refuse one day,
0:14:05 > 0:14:09and decided to sort of check up on the name, Carel Weight,
0:14:09 > 0:14:10and here we are.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13The background story is, in many ways, just as interesting.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15It's sort of such a central part to what really excites me
0:14:15 > 0:14:18about this picture. On the back, this label, what does that say?
0:14:18 > 0:14:21It came from an exhibition in 1944, as you know,
0:14:21 > 0:14:22the Leicester Galleries.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25And it was an exhibition that was really staged.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27It was during the war, 1944, towards the end,
0:14:27 > 0:14:30during times of austerity, and it was this idea about
0:14:30 > 0:14:33artists of repute, but not necessarily big names,
0:14:33 > 0:14:36the idea that you come along, they were mixed in there with names
0:14:36 > 0:14:38that probably no-one had ever heard of.
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Buy something, put it on your wall, take a bit of a punt.
0:14:40 > 0:14:44Now, plenty of artists working at this date who sort of came to
0:14:44 > 0:14:47release nothing, but Carel Weight is actually a very interesting artist,
0:14:47 > 0:14:52I think. The title of this work is Mill Hill, and obviously we know
0:14:52 > 0:14:55Mill Hill at that date, which is now a borough of London,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58was where a lot of army barracks were, and we know he also served
0:14:58 > 0:15:00during the Second World War, so it's possible that's why he was
0:15:00 > 0:15:03drawn out to this area. You know, and Carel Weight is a very
0:15:03 > 0:15:06- well-respected modern British artist now.- Right, OK.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09I mean, his works can sell for up to £60,000 at auction.
0:15:09 > 0:15:10- Really? - And this...
0:15:10 > 0:15:13- Not this one, though. - Not this one!
0:15:13 > 0:15:17But this is kind of a rather unusual work in the sense that
0:15:17 > 0:15:19it's quite small compared to the other works you see by him.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21- Sure.- But again, this would have been taken out on
0:15:21 > 0:15:24a bright summer's day, sketched, and then off it went.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27It sort of would have been a, not a sort of a pot-boiler,
0:15:27 > 0:15:29but a small work compared to what he was probably used to
0:15:29 > 0:15:32before and after the war. But I really like it,
0:15:32 > 0:15:35and I like the fact it's sort of moody, quite sort of atmospheric.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39- Sure, OK.- Now, so you said you were going to throw it away.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43- Yes.- So, presumably you don't think it has any value whatsoever?
0:15:43 > 0:15:45There's certainly no emotional value.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49I wish I could say there was, but unfortunately there isn't.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53So, if it's worth anything, it would be a surprise.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55Well, actually, I think it's...
0:15:55 > 0:15:58I can give you a pretty accurate idea with this, because there was
0:15:58 > 0:16:02a similar work that was at auction five or six years ago,
0:16:02 > 0:16:06of a similar dimension, same date, Mill Hill as the subject as well.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09- Right.- So actually I think if this were to be sold at auction,
0:16:09 > 0:16:14I think it would sell for somewhere in the region of £2,000.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16Get out!
0:16:16 > 0:16:18£2,000?
0:16:18 > 0:16:19Would you like to buy it?
0:16:21 > 0:16:241,500 for you!
0:16:24 > 0:16:26That's incredible. Fantastic.
0:16:26 > 0:16:28I'm really surprised. Thank you very much.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32- Thank for bringing it in. - You're welcome. You're welcome.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40We live locally, and my husband said,
0:16:40 > 0:16:43"It'd be nice to go to the Antiques Roadshow, see what happens.
0:16:43 > 0:16:44"Have you got anything to take"?
0:16:44 > 0:16:47And I said, "Well, no."
0:16:47 > 0:16:49Then I said, "Well, the only thing I could slip in my pocket
0:16:49 > 0:16:51"is that medal." It belonged to my father.
0:16:55 > 0:17:02This is the South Africa campaign, the Zulu Wars, which was 1877-79.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05Obviously, there will be collectors for the Zulu campaign,
0:17:05 > 0:17:07and also to that regiment, etc.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09So, it's nice. It sort of ticks all the boxes.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15If I told you that you're likely to get at auction between
0:17:15 > 0:17:20- £600 and £700, how would you feel about that?- Staggered!
0:17:21 > 0:17:25I'm just glad I didn't throw it out with the other bits and pieces
0:17:25 > 0:17:26I thought was junk.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34Well, they say that the sun brings out the flowers,
0:17:34 > 0:17:36and what a stunning flower. So, tell me,
0:17:36 > 0:17:38how do you come to be the lucky owner of this?
0:17:38 > 0:17:40It was my mother's.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43A present from somebody that she played bridge with,
0:17:43 > 0:17:46and she probably won a very good game,
0:17:46 > 0:17:49because he invited her to his house.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53His name was Bill Weedon, and he had a huge collection of paperweights,
0:17:53 > 0:17:55and she picked that one out, and he said
0:17:55 > 0:17:58"Very good choice," but that's all he said.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02- Oh, really?- And I think he was a great admirer, as well,
0:18:02 > 0:18:04of my mother, so he allowed her to keep
0:18:04 > 0:18:07probably his best paperweight, I don't know.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10But I don't know much about it. Maybe it's French.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13So this is a token not only of maybe a win in a good hand of bridge...
0:18:13 > 0:18:17It might well have been, it might well have been. I hope so.
0:18:17 > 0:18:20Or possibly a slight element of unrequited love as well?
0:18:20 > 0:18:21Who knows?
0:18:21 > 0:18:25Well, that, I think, is charming, and the sentiment in that actually
0:18:25 > 0:18:29does roll itself beautifully in what you quite correctly assumed was
0:18:29 > 0:18:33a French paperweight. Not only a French paperweight,
0:18:33 > 0:18:36but made by one of the greatest French glass houses.
0:18:36 > 0:18:41And whilst there is no markings, no signature within it,
0:18:41 > 0:18:44the piece itself is its signature.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47The moment I saw this, I knew who it was by.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49This is by the great glass house, Baccarat.
0:18:49 > 0:18:56They made beautiful weights, and this weight dates from around 1850.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59We're talking about what we call the classic period of paperweights,
0:18:59 > 0:19:02where the French were absolutely in their element.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06There were various factories creating - St Louis, Clichy,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09and Baccarat, who were producing the most beautiful weights.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13This one in particular is what we call a clematis weight.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16It's actually a clematis, double flower.
0:19:16 > 0:19:20You have right to the very centre a beautiful complex millefiori,
0:19:20 > 0:19:24or star dust cane, and then all around the outside,
0:19:24 > 0:19:26this millefiori garland.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29The quality of the crystal, the quality of the manufacture,
0:19:29 > 0:19:32the finish, the style, the finesse.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34- All of it's there.- Gorgeous.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37Your mother... Your mother had a wonderful eye.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40- Oh, good.- It also sounds like she had a lovely admirer.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42She did, yeah.
0:19:42 > 0:19:43And the value of that gesture?
0:19:43 > 0:19:46The value of that moment today?
0:19:46 > 0:19:48£1,000 to £1,500.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50Oh, wow. I said if it was worth 100,
0:19:50 > 0:19:53it would have been good, so 1,000's brilliant.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57But I shall look after it, because it's got nice memories.
0:19:57 > 0:19:59- It's a beautiful thing. Thank you very much.- Thank you.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05I'm sure I've seen this particular chair somewhere before.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07- Where? - You probably have, actually.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10It's kept here at Baddesley Clinton, in the chapel.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13It looks beautiful in there, as you can well imagine.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15- But it's your chair? - It is, it's my chair.
0:20:15 > 0:20:17I see. But on loan to the National Trust, presumably?
0:20:17 > 0:20:20It is, that's right, yes.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22When we acquired it, we had young children,
0:20:22 > 0:20:24- and there was always a risk of it getting damaged.- OK.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29So we contacted Baddesley Clinton 14 years ago and said
0:20:29 > 0:20:31"Would you be interested in having it here on loan?",
0:20:31 > 0:20:33and they were quite glad to have it, and of course,
0:20:33 > 0:20:36it means that lots of other people can see it as well.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39Well, thank you, because these are quite rare chairs.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41Well, let's go to what this is first.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43I'm sure you know what sort of chair it is.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45- A Glastonbury chair. - Of course.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48It was one of the most popular chairs of the 19th century.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51Copying the famous chair at Glastonbury.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54The original one was late 16th century,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57and we've got to look at this in a minute to decide what date
0:20:57 > 0:21:00this one is, and the original one was in the collection of
0:21:00 > 0:21:05Sir Horace Walpole at Strawberry Hill, and when that collection
0:21:05 > 0:21:07was sold, the vicar - or I'm not sure what status he was -
0:21:07 > 0:21:11at Glastonbury, said "Please can we have it back?"
0:21:11 > 0:21:13So nobody bid against him, and that chair is now at Glastonbury.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17Just to explain, I'm sure that people looking at it will think
0:21:17 > 0:21:19- it's a folding chair. Of course, it's not.- No.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21You and I know that it's actually the early flat-pack.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25- Yes, yes.- It all comes apart and can be laid flat for, presumably,
0:21:25 > 0:21:27travelling around at the time.
0:21:27 > 0:21:28- Yes. - So from one cathedral to another.
0:21:28 > 0:21:33- Yeah.- There are hundreds, as I said, of the 19th-century ones.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35There is a small handful of the early ones.
0:21:35 > 0:21:40This, to me, looks like a really nice 17th-century chair.
0:21:40 > 0:21:42What's your...? Do you have a feeling about it?
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Have you researched it at all?
0:21:44 > 0:21:46Er... Only a little bit.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51I mean, we acquired it originally from our local church.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55I'm an antique furniture restorer, and they were having a sale
0:21:55 > 0:21:58of various items, including pews.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01When I walked in and saw this, I thought, "That's an early chair."
0:22:01 > 0:22:05What we found out from the church is that it originally came from
0:22:05 > 0:22:09Barbara Cartland's family, who were the local family to the church.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11- The novelist? - That's right, that's correct.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14- The famous Barbara Cartland? - That's the one.- Wow!- Yes, yes.
0:22:14 > 0:22:15Right, OK.
0:22:15 > 0:22:21But it's quite sad because in May 1940, on the 29th of May,
0:22:21 > 0:22:23her brother John was...
0:22:23 > 0:22:26He died, actually, of wounds received on the battlefield,
0:22:26 > 0:22:30and then a day later, his brother, James, was also killed.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32At that point, they had to make a decision, so they decided to sell
0:22:32 > 0:22:35what was the Priory, which was the family home
0:22:35 > 0:22:36in the area that it was in.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39- Right. - And somebody bought this at auction,
0:22:39 > 0:22:42I believe on the second day,
0:22:42 > 0:22:46for the church and there it was until we bought it 15 years ago.
0:22:46 > 0:22:47It's a lovely oak chair.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50It really is. I mean, this carving is clearly 17th-century.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Shall we say the early part of the 17th-century,
0:22:52 > 0:22:54which is consistent with this small handful?
0:22:54 > 0:22:57I only have heard of about 15 or 20 of them myself, personally,
0:22:57 > 0:22:58that are old.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00What a super chair. It's a rare bird.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02So, valuation. Hmm.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06I'm going to have to be conservative to start with,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09- and say £2,000 to £3,000. - Yeah, yeah.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12Which is, for what we paid for it, is wonderful.
0:23:12 > 0:23:14What, it's more than you paid for it?
0:23:14 > 0:23:15Oh, it's a lot more than we paid for it.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18But you see, it should be worth much more than that.
0:23:18 > 0:23:19It really should be worth more.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23It's a rare item, and it's an icon against all the thousands, hundreds,
0:23:23 > 0:23:24of the 19th-century copies.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26- Thank you. - Thank you very much indeed.
0:23:26 > 0:23:27Thank you.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33Well, two spectacular icons blazing in the sunshine in silver
0:23:33 > 0:23:36and silver gilt. But tell me about them with you.
0:23:36 > 0:23:41They came into our family as a gift from the fiancee of our son,
0:23:41 > 0:23:47from her parents as a gift when they got married here in this country.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51- And the parents came over from Ukraine.- Yes, yes.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54And we were flab... Absolutely amazed.
0:23:54 > 0:24:00I knew immediately what they were, and I understood the emotional value
0:24:00 > 0:24:04of them, so we cherish them, very much so.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07They have pride of place in our living room.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10Our Lady with candles and flowers,
0:24:10 > 0:24:13and we say our morning prayers in front of her,
0:24:13 > 0:24:16and Saint Nicholas by the door of the living room
0:24:16 > 0:24:19and he gets special flowers at Christmas time,
0:24:19 > 0:24:22because Saint Nicholas is the original Father Christmas.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25- Wonderful.- Yes.- Well, I should think there are very few icons
0:24:25 > 0:24:28in the United Kingdom that would be honoured and venerated in that way,
0:24:28 > 0:24:32and it's exactly what happened in the Orthodox tradition,
0:24:32 > 0:24:35and Saint Nicholas is desperately important in that tradition.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39Rather conveniently he's labelled here in Cyrillic, isn't he?
0:24:39 > 0:24:40- Yes.- Have you noticed that?
0:24:40 > 0:24:44But he's accompanied by Christ Pantocrator,
0:24:44 > 0:24:48the Christ in blessing, and Mary the mother of God here...
0:24:48 > 0:24:51- Yes.- ..who's ascended into heaven.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53There are other references to... Well, here are the Gospels,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55with Matthew, Mark, Luke and John here.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58- Right.- And another image of Christ Pantocrator as well.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00Yes, that's very Orthodox.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04Yes, very Orthodox, but also, of course, very Christian
0:25:04 > 0:25:07- in the strictest sense of the word. - Yes, yes.
0:25:07 > 0:25:12The thing about icons is they're not representations of the divine,
0:25:12 > 0:25:15they ARE divine in the Orthodox tradition, that these are...
0:25:15 > 0:25:20Have a sanctity all of their own and they're a window into heaven itself.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23And beneath this silver gilt mount, called the oklad,
0:25:23 > 0:25:25is the full icon.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28It's hiding behind here, and it's probably never been seen.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31And there's a sense, too, of touching icons is terribly important
0:25:31 > 0:25:33because if they are divine objects,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37the touch of them imbued you with some spiritual beneficence.
0:25:37 > 0:25:38I didn't know that, Geoffrey.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40That's interesting.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43This one is, I feel, almost certainly Russian.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46It's slightly different, isn't it, in the engraving?
0:25:46 > 0:25:49And it has an earlier feel to it than this one.
0:25:49 > 0:25:50Here are the blazing halos.
0:25:50 > 0:25:55- Yeah, yeah.- Anyway, what an amazing story to have you venerating icons
0:25:55 > 0:25:58in the United Kingdom, and they were venerated in middle Europe
0:25:58 > 0:26:01in the 19th century, which is when they were made.
0:26:01 > 0:26:02This one probably 1870.
0:26:02 > 0:26:06- Wow.- This one, I think, just before the Russian Revolution took place,
0:26:06 > 0:26:08maybe 20th century.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12Perhaps this one may be £400 or £500.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15- Wow!- And, ironically, even though this is larger,
0:26:15 > 0:26:19I think just a tiny bit less, maybe only £200 or £300.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21- Yeah.- You don't care,
0:26:21 > 0:26:25and I certainly don't care, and here we look at something
0:26:25 > 0:26:28that's not a representation of the divine,
0:26:28 > 0:26:31they ARE divine, and thank you very much for bringing them.
0:26:31 > 0:26:32Oh, thank you for the valuation.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34- Thank you.- Wonderful.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40You've brought along what looks like, at first sight,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43a silver mounted wooden bowl.
0:26:44 > 0:26:45How did it come into your life?
0:26:45 > 0:26:51Well, it belonged to my late father, and he will have acquired it
0:26:51 > 0:26:54during the course of his work. He was an antique dealer in London
0:26:54 > 0:26:58in the '50s, '60s and '70s, and he kept certain things
0:26:58 > 0:27:02that appealed to him back, they didn't go into the showroom,
0:27:02 > 0:27:04and that's how it comes to me.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07It is, in fact, a tumbler cup,
0:27:07 > 0:27:11which was a common drinking vessel from the 17th century,
0:27:11 > 0:27:13throughout the 18th century.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15Supposedly, you weren't meant to spill anything with it,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18- it was always meant to right itself. - Yes.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22It's made out of treen, but the interesting thing about it is that
0:27:22 > 0:27:26- it has this very special inscription around it, doesn't it?- It does.
0:27:27 > 0:27:33"Bought at ye fair upon ye ice on ye River Thames in ye great frost,
0:27:33 > 0:27:39"January 26 1683, for Priscilla Tavener."
0:27:39 > 0:27:40Now, is she any relation of yours?
0:27:40 > 0:27:42No. I'd love to know who she was.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44I picture her as a very small child, but I don't know.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47- She might well have been.- Mm.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Your tumbler cup has a bit of damage to it.
0:27:51 > 0:27:56There's cracks on the sides here, held together by Sellotape.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00So that will have a detrimental value to the piece.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03But, still, 3,000-4,000.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05Wow. Thank you.
0:28:05 > 0:28:09So your father knew what he was buying.
0:28:09 > 0:28:10He did. He did.
0:28:10 > 0:28:11Thank you very much indeed.
0:28:11 > 0:28:13- Thank you. - Thank you very much.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19Right. These are firearms as a fashion statement.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22- Yeah. Beautiful. - I mean, yeah.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24We're not really interested in their use as a firearm.
0:28:24 > 0:28:29It's just, they're so beautifully put together.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32I can't think of a reason why I wouldn't buy them.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35What was your specific reason for acquiring them?
0:28:35 > 0:28:38Well, I'd collected a few other firearms.
0:28:38 > 0:28:43- Yes.- Flintlock pistols, and I was at an antique fair
0:28:43 > 0:28:47just over 20 years ago, and I saw this pair and was blown over,
0:28:47 > 0:28:50like you, with the beauty, rather than anything else.
0:28:50 > 0:28:54Unfortunately, the person that was selling them was going through
0:28:54 > 0:28:56a divorce and he had to sell all his firearms,
0:28:56 > 0:28:59which was unfortunate for him, but good for me.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02Every cloud has a silver lining.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05When I said fashion statement, I mean, if we look at these,
0:29:05 > 0:29:09I doubt if these have actually been shot.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13They're by Parker of Holborn, who's a very good maker.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17I'm of the opinion somebody went in to Mr Parker and said,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20"Mr Parker, a pair of your finest pocket pistols,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23"and don't spare the expense". And he was obviously a dandy.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25I mean, nowadays he'd be the sort of bloke wearing, I don't know,
0:29:25 > 0:29:28a ridiculous shirt and... Oh.
0:29:28 > 0:29:30Trousers like this.
0:29:30 > 0:29:34Yeah, a gentleman would carry these and he'd be down in the tavern and
0:29:34 > 0:29:38say, "Look chaps, I've just got this new pair of pistols from Parker".
0:29:38 > 0:29:39I mean, can we have a look at one?
0:29:39 > 0:29:43- Yes, sure. - So, flintlock, turn-off barrel.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45So barrel unscrews,
0:29:45 > 0:29:49fill, as you know, that's the top with powder, then a ball...
0:29:51 > 0:29:54..screw it back on,
0:29:54 > 0:29:57prime the pan, and we're good to go.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00- Yeah.- And, of course, lovely little touch,
0:30:00 > 0:30:01safety catch to keep it all there.
0:30:01 > 0:30:06These are just top, top, top quality pistols.
0:30:06 > 0:30:08You bought them because you could see they were top quality.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10Absolutely.
0:30:10 > 0:30:12And, period,
0:30:12 > 0:30:14late 1700s, early 1800s.
0:30:16 > 0:30:19They're just wonderful, wonderful pistols.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21And now we have to address the question,
0:30:21 > 0:30:24if you wanted to be a dandy again and go and buy them,
0:30:24 > 0:30:26what would they cost?
0:30:26 > 0:30:29They are SUCH good quality.
0:30:30 > 0:30:36I can see them making minimum of £2,000, the pair.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39- That's a lot more than I paid for them.- You astound me.
0:30:39 > 0:30:42They are really one of the nicest pair of pocket pistols I've seen,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45- and thanks so much for bringing them in.- It's my pleasure.
0:30:45 > 0:30:47- They're really great.- My pleasure. - Thanks a lot.
0:30:49 > 0:30:53So what we have here is a fascinating
0:30:53 > 0:30:54early 19th-century
0:30:54 > 0:30:57English table clock.
0:30:57 > 0:31:02But as soon as I see it, I notice an instantaneous theme about it.
0:31:04 > 0:31:05Can you tell me more about what that is?
0:31:05 > 0:31:09Well, we call it an Egyptian clock.
0:31:09 > 0:31:15I inherited it after my aunt died and her father, my grandfather,
0:31:15 > 0:31:19apparently, according to some people in the family, bought it in Egypt.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22So we call it an Egyptian clock, because he was in the
0:31:22 > 0:31:26First World War in Egypt, and we think he bought it there.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29Or is it because of the logo on the front?
0:31:29 > 0:31:32And was it sent to Egypt, he brought it back?
0:31:32 > 0:31:33We don't really know.
0:31:33 > 0:31:35But we certainly call it the Egyptian clock.
0:31:36 > 0:31:40Let's have a look at it. We see it's signed "Benson Higgs" on the dial.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44I do know the company Bensons, and I do know the company Higgs,
0:31:44 > 0:31:46and at some point, they must have joined together.
0:31:46 > 0:31:50I do know that, from the shape and the style of the clock,
0:31:50 > 0:31:53that it was made around 1835 to 1840,
0:31:53 > 0:31:57which is in a period of time where the English and the French
0:31:57 > 0:32:00- were mad about Egyptiana. - Oh, right.
0:32:01 > 0:32:03Yes, it's got Egyptian themes to it.
0:32:03 > 0:32:09It's got lovely sweeping volutes to the case, which are made in ebony.
0:32:09 > 0:32:14It has lovely brass inlay to the front, and you're absolutely right,
0:32:14 > 0:32:17we've got this lioness chaise longue on the front,
0:32:17 > 0:32:20and the whole thing is very Egyptian-styled.
0:32:22 > 0:32:27I think it's highly unlikely that it was brought back from travels
0:32:27 > 0:32:29in Egypt in the First World War.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33I can't imagine why it would be in Egypt at that time,
0:32:33 > 0:32:36because they had plenty of these things, not clocks like this,
0:32:36 > 0:32:39but they were surrounded by Egyptiana,
0:32:39 > 0:32:41because that's where it all comes from.
0:32:41 > 0:32:44It's the English and the French that were obsessed by
0:32:44 > 0:32:48Egyptian style, the whole mythology about the whole thing.
0:32:48 > 0:32:50Because they were so obsessed by it,
0:32:50 > 0:32:54they copied this style, and often using mahogany, in this case,
0:32:54 > 0:32:58mixed with ebony and brass inlay,
0:32:58 > 0:33:00in beautiful shapes and forms.
0:33:00 > 0:33:04What I like about the clock particularly is its shape, its form.
0:33:04 > 0:33:08I like the fact that it's shaped on the top in a very elegant way,
0:33:08 > 0:33:11and then it has much more masculine volutes at the front,
0:33:11 > 0:33:14and it's finished off with these rather large, outsized
0:33:14 > 0:33:18what I would call almost acorn, inverted acorn feet.
0:33:18 > 0:33:19And it's very appealing.
0:33:19 > 0:33:23I hinted that this style isn't the flavour of the month at the moment
0:33:23 > 0:33:25in the market, and it isn't.
0:33:25 > 0:33:30In the 1990s, it was... They were flying high.
0:33:31 > 0:33:33Today, they're a little bit less than they were.
0:33:33 > 0:33:35I love it to bits, I think it's a fabulous clock,
0:33:35 > 0:33:37I'd love to have it in my house.
0:33:38 > 0:33:41Would I buy it because it was a great investment?
0:33:41 > 0:33:45I think that, at the moment, the value at auction would tell me
0:33:45 > 0:33:47that it's a good time to buy it.
0:33:47 > 0:33:51And today, at auction, between 1,500 and £2,000.
0:33:52 > 0:33:54Probably not going to shock you.
0:33:54 > 0:33:55No, no.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00And ten years ago, probably 2,500 to £4,000.
0:34:00 > 0:34:01Oh, interesting.
0:34:01 > 0:34:04Yes, yeah, that would have shocked me, then.
0:34:04 > 0:34:07- Yes, yeah. Very interesting.- Yeah.
0:34:08 > 0:34:13Now, how has this survived in such amazing condition,
0:34:13 > 0:34:14considering its age?
0:34:14 > 0:34:16Because it hasn't been used that much.
0:34:16 > 0:34:19I don't know what the origin is,
0:34:19 > 0:34:22I don't know whether my father acquired it.
0:34:22 > 0:34:26I mean, he was a farmer, so why he would acquire an engine like this,
0:34:26 > 0:34:28I don't know.
0:34:28 > 0:34:31Whether it was something that was handed down to him or whether
0:34:31 > 0:34:34it came down from my mother's side of the family, I don't know.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36But did you play with it?
0:34:36 > 0:34:40I played with it a few times, and in fact, when I got it out
0:34:40 > 0:34:44to bring it here, I found a note inside that said
0:34:44 > 0:34:47I had last played with it in 1963.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49- So it's untouched. - Yes, basically.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52Well, that answers part of my question.
0:34:52 > 0:34:56You know, it's lived a lot of its life in very careful conditions,
0:34:56 > 0:34:59- probably by mistake, rather than by intent.- Yeah.
0:34:59 > 0:35:04Because it is a wonderful thing, and it's a wondrous thing to see.
0:35:04 > 0:35:06Did you enjoy playing with it?
0:35:06 > 0:35:10Oh, I loved it. Yes, because it goes in a circle, in fact.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13- And you could make it do that? - So that was great fun.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16- Yeah.- Yeah. Well, I did fiddle about a bit, and I got the key.
0:35:16 > 0:35:18- Right.- And I did wind it up, and it does go.
0:35:18 > 0:35:20Yes. And you can brake it, can't you?
0:35:20 > 0:35:21- You can change gear.- Yes.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24You can make it go forwards and backwards, and there's a brake.
0:35:24 > 0:35:26- Yeah. - And everything is as it should be.
0:35:26 > 0:35:32- OK.- We're looking at a train which is now - it goes back to about 1900.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35- OK.- So it's very old indeed.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38The box is hardly ever seen for a train of that period,
0:35:38 > 0:35:41because they didn't survive. This box is in pieces.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44- Yes. - But it has kept the train intact.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48- Yeah.- For 40 years or whatever it's been sitting there, dust free,
0:35:48 > 0:35:52dirt free, uncared for, but untouched.
0:35:52 > 0:35:54- OK.- We don't know the origins, so we go back to 1900.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58- It's made by a German company called Ernst Plank.- Yeah.
0:35:58 > 0:36:02At that point, we didn't really make trains in Britain, we imported ones
0:36:02 > 0:36:05from Germany, and they dominated the market completely.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08- Names like Bassett-Lowke and Hornby would come a bit later.- Oh, yeah.
0:36:08 > 0:36:11- Yeah.- And so what we've got here is a sort of generic train,
0:36:11 > 0:36:14it's not particularly British, it's not particularly German,
0:36:14 > 0:36:17and you can see on the side of the tender the initials G N R.
0:36:17 > 0:36:19- Yeah. - Now that is Great Northern Railway.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22Well, that's what I thought, and yet you said it's German.
0:36:22 > 0:36:24Yes, but it was made for the British market.
0:36:24 > 0:36:26- Ah.- And so they've branded it as a British train,
0:36:26 > 0:36:29- and in fact the colours are relating to that.- Yeah.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32So you could buy ones that appeared to be British trains...
0:36:32 > 0:36:35- Yeah.- ..in various companies but they were always German-made.
0:36:35 > 0:36:37- Oh, I see. - So you've got this great story.
0:36:37 > 0:36:42- It's what's called gauge 1, which is bigger than O gauge.- Yeah.
0:36:42 > 0:36:46And what, to me, is miraculous is the condition.
0:36:46 > 0:36:49You know, it hasn't been repainted, which would be really bad news.
0:36:49 > 0:36:51It is as presented in the box.
0:36:51 > 0:36:53- It's had a bash at the front. - Mm.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56There's bits and pieces of wear, but essentially,
0:36:56 > 0:37:00it is a remarkable survival from its time.
0:37:00 > 0:37:03- You are very lucky to have it. - Really?
0:37:03 > 0:37:06Yeah, cos even... It was rare by the time you were playing with it
0:37:06 > 0:37:07- in the- '60s. Right.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10Well, it was by chance, because I'm one of four sisters,
0:37:10 > 0:37:13- and just things were distributed. - You got the train?
0:37:13 > 0:37:15- Yeah.- Well, where does it go now?
0:37:16 > 0:37:18I don't know, we'll have to discuss that.
0:37:18 > 0:37:20Will we? That sounds ominous.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24If you're coming up with something interesting...
0:37:24 > 0:37:25Oh, I see, you're talking about value.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27Well, I don't know.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29Could be. OK, let's do value.
0:37:29 > 0:37:32And so we are going to look at 1,500, £2,000.
0:37:32 > 0:37:34Really?
0:37:34 > 0:37:36They're very, very rare things.
0:37:36 > 0:37:37I had no idea.
0:37:37 > 0:37:39It was a last-minute decision to bring it along.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43- Well, I'm jolly glad you did. - Yes, so am I. Thank you.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47This is a model, as it says on the side,
0:37:47 > 0:37:51- of the Rolls-Royce Supermarine, the S.6.- Yes.
0:37:51 > 0:37:54Which won the Schneider Trophy in 1929.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57- Yes.- Now, the Schneider Trophy was a race,
0:37:57 > 0:38:01specifically for aircraft that could land on the sea.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03- Yes.- And, obviously, this model is one of those.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06So, I've never seen this particular trophy before,
0:38:06 > 0:38:09although I've seen similar models.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12So, tell me how you came by it.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16Right. The model came into our possession through my grandfather,
0:38:16 > 0:38:19who at the time was the chief designer at Rolls-Royce.
0:38:19 > 0:38:23And designed the engine that powered the seaplane that won the race
0:38:23 > 0:38:30in 1929. That engine was then developed further in 1931 and then,
0:38:30 > 0:38:35after the 1931 race, it won the speed record for 407.5 mph.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38And that then was further developed, with a Merlin engine,
0:38:38 > 0:38:40which powered the Spitfire.
0:38:40 > 0:38:45- So, this was the start of the innovation for the Spitfire?- Yes.
0:38:45 > 0:38:49And in 1929, at the end of the race, they gave three of these models,
0:38:49 > 0:38:53one to my grandfather, one to Mr Mitchell, the designer,
0:38:53 > 0:38:54and one to the pilot.
0:38:54 > 0:38:56So this is one of only three known?
0:38:56 > 0:38:58That is, as far as I'm aware, that is correct, yes.
0:38:58 > 0:39:01- No wonder I've never seen it. - Yes. There we are.
0:39:01 > 0:39:04And that was a race over the Solent.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06- Yes.- Just off the coast of the Isle of Wight.
0:39:06 > 0:39:10- Yes, that's right.- And because it was way up there in the sky and
0:39:10 > 0:39:13everybody could view from the beach, and also from their yachts,
0:39:13 > 0:39:16apparently there were hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people
0:39:16 > 0:39:18- who used to go and watch. - I can believe it, yes.
0:39:18 > 0:39:19So it was very, very popular.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22- Started in 1913, I believe... - Correct, yes.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25..and it went all the way through to about 1931.
0:39:25 > 0:39:29- Correct, that is right. Yes. - This aircraft beat the
0:39:29 > 0:39:33- world speed record at 357 mph, which was incredible.- Yes.
0:39:33 > 0:39:35What a wonderful tribute to your... It was your grandfather?
0:39:35 > 0:39:38Grandfather, yes. Yep.
0:39:38 > 0:39:41Well, it is what it says, it's got all the information on it.
0:39:41 > 0:39:45It's not silver, it's silver-plated bronze, I think.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47Oh, right. I thought it was silver-plated, yes.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50It's got the silversmith's mark on the front, but no hallmarks,
0:39:50 > 0:39:52- so that's what I think it is. Very heavy.- Yes, yes.
0:39:52 > 0:39:54But an exquisite model.
0:39:54 > 0:39:55And being Rolls-Royce,
0:39:55 > 0:39:57they would have made it to perfection and gave it to
0:39:57 > 0:40:00- the three most important people involved.- Yes.
0:40:00 > 0:40:01One being your grandfather.
0:40:01 > 0:40:04- That's right, yes. - What a wonderful thing to own.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07Yes. It is, actually, yes.
0:40:07 > 0:40:09Now you're going to ask me what it's worth. When we value things,
0:40:09 > 0:40:12we compare directly with similar things we've sold in the past.
0:40:12 > 0:40:15- Yes.- One has never, ever appeared at auction.- Yep.
0:40:15 > 0:40:19So whatever I say is not based on knowledge of a similar one,
0:40:19 > 0:40:21it's just on how important I think this is.
0:40:21 > 0:40:27And I think people are interested in aviation, world records, high speed.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29It has all those elements, and let alone,
0:40:29 > 0:40:31- it is a beautiful, beautiful model. - Yeah.
0:40:31 > 0:40:34I wouldn't be surprised, should you ever decide to sell it at auction,
0:40:34 > 0:40:37it would fetch between £5,000 and £8,000.
0:40:37 > 0:40:40Really? I AM surprised.
0:40:41 > 0:40:44I thought it would just be the historical sort of story
0:40:44 > 0:40:46that would be important, not the actual item itself.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48- The piece comes with the story. - Gosh.
0:40:48 > 0:40:51Without the story, the piece is worth a few hundred pounds.
0:40:51 > 0:40:54With the story that you've just told me, it becomes really important.
0:40:54 > 0:40:56Gosh, I'm surprised. Yes. Thank you.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59Write it down, put it with it, in future generations,
0:40:59 > 0:41:01- they need to know. - Yes. Yes.
0:41:01 > 0:41:03- I certainly will. Thank you very much.- Thank you.
0:41:07 > 0:41:10You may remember at our Antiques Roadshow at Harrogate
0:41:10 > 0:41:13that we showed you the FA Cup. Splendid piece of silver,
0:41:13 > 0:41:15and Alastair Dickenson, our silver specialist, valued it
0:41:15 > 0:41:20as the most valuable piece of silver we'd ever seen on the Roadshow.
0:41:20 > 0:41:21It was a thrilling moment for all of us.
0:41:21 > 0:41:24Now, Clive, you were watching this, and you win the prize for
0:41:24 > 0:41:26eagle-eyed viewer, because you noticed that
0:41:26 > 0:41:29something that Alastair said about the cup wasn't quite right.
0:41:29 > 0:41:34I suspect this might have been an off-the-shelf piece.
0:41:34 > 0:41:36That it was not specifically made.
0:41:36 > 0:41:40I cannot see why it should have fruiting vines on it.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42Although the marks are completely worn,
0:41:42 > 0:41:46we know it was made by Fattorini and Sons.
0:41:46 > 0:41:49Alistair thought that because of the design on it,
0:41:49 > 0:41:50the grapes and vine leaves,
0:41:50 > 0:41:51it was bought off-the-shelf,
0:41:51 > 0:41:53and it wasn't specially made for the FA Cup.
0:41:53 > 0:41:55But you know that's not the case,
0:41:55 > 0:41:57because you've got the design for the FA Cup.
0:41:57 > 0:42:01Well, I collect sporting memorabilia from approximately 100 years ago.
0:42:01 > 0:42:06And amongst my collection I have a photograph of the original design
0:42:06 > 0:42:10of the FA Cup. And also a letter from a Fattorini member
0:42:10 > 0:42:13to another collector, saying so.
0:42:13 > 0:42:15And, Tom, you're from Fattorini...
0:42:15 > 0:42:17- I am, I'm Tom Fattorini. - ..who made the cup.
0:42:17 > 0:42:20Indeed. That was in 1911.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23And, in fact, 150 designs were submitted to the FA
0:42:23 > 0:42:28for the new challenge cup, and we were fortunate enough to be chosen
0:42:28 > 0:42:29as the winning design.
0:42:29 > 0:42:33And that design is in our managing director's office,
0:42:33 > 0:42:35and I stare at it every single day.
0:42:35 > 0:42:36- And this is it. - And this is it.
0:42:36 > 0:42:38- This is the design for the cup. - Absolutely.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42Well, Alastair doesn't know that either of you are here.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44So I thought we might go and surprise him and tell him
0:42:44 > 0:42:47just a little bit more about the FA Cup, and how it was, in fact,
0:42:47 > 0:42:48specially made for the competition.
0:42:48 > 0:42:51I'm looking forward to seeing his face.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53- That should be a bit of fun.- Yes.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59I like your eye. You've brought this lot out,
0:42:59 > 0:43:02and you are seriously into antique glass, aren't you?
0:43:02 > 0:43:04Yes, I definitely am, yes.
0:43:04 > 0:43:05Go on, tell us about it.
0:43:05 > 0:43:08Well, I started in 1990. I've been collecting ever since.
0:43:08 > 0:43:12I've just got this passion for the Georgian and Regency periods.
0:43:12 > 0:43:16I did eventually have about 1,800 pieces.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19- Wow.- I did gradually downsize and just kept all
0:43:19 > 0:43:23- what I would call museum quality. - OK.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25So, what is the appeal?
0:43:25 > 0:43:30I just love the shapes and things, with blown glass, basically.
0:43:30 > 0:43:32What sort of money are you spending on these things?
0:43:32 > 0:43:35Well, some I paid good money, like the Milchglass,
0:43:35 > 0:43:39one at the front there, I think I paid about £103 for that one.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42- £103? - An odd figure, but, yeah.
0:43:42 > 0:43:45- That was bought on an online site. - Yes.
0:43:45 > 0:43:48And this one here was bought from a charity shop for £3.50.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50So what do you want to know about them?
0:43:50 > 0:43:54- Well, basically, I just wondered about this piece in particular.- OK.
0:43:54 > 0:43:59Whether you thought it might be the last quarter of the 17th century.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01- No.- No?- No, I don't.
0:44:01 > 0:44:06Late 17th-century glass is rarer than Leyton Orient winning the cup.
0:44:06 > 0:44:09- Yeah.- So this is 1730.
0:44:09 > 0:44:11- Right. - 1730.
0:44:12 > 0:44:17This baluster glass is 1720.
0:44:17 > 0:44:19That was a good buy.
0:44:19 > 0:44:25This decanter, 1765, 1770.
0:44:26 > 0:44:34This extremely rare bobbin meets King's Lynn tumbler, 1750.
0:44:35 > 0:44:39- This one, completely fish out of water, 1860.- Yeah.
0:44:40 > 0:44:42There are a couple of 19th-centuries over here,
0:44:42 > 0:44:44but I've concentrated here.
0:44:44 > 0:44:48- This one, because it is so atypical of what you've got.- Right.
0:44:48 > 0:44:51So if we move that out of the way,
0:44:51 > 0:44:56you have a very nice collection of early Georgian glass.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59And bearing in mind you paid three quid for that,
0:44:59 > 0:45:01so that's 200 quid for that, auction.
0:45:01 > 0:45:04- I'm giving you auction values, right?- Right.
0:45:04 > 0:45:06Which is the fair. If you were to sell them,
0:45:06 > 0:45:07how much would you get for them?
0:45:07 > 0:45:09Lynn glass.
0:45:09 > 0:45:11How much did you pay for that one?
0:45:11 > 0:45:13- £15. - 15 quid. Erm...
0:45:14 > 0:45:15450.
0:45:17 > 0:45:21- How much did you pay for the...? - £1.25.
0:45:21 > 0:45:23- BLOWS RASPBERRY - Car boot, that one.
0:45:25 > 0:45:271730 - 400 quid.
0:45:29 > 0:45:30That's surprised me.
0:45:30 > 0:45:33This is really good, you've got a good eye.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36There's very little I don't actually like in what you've brought.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39But my favourite, of course, is the decanter,
0:45:39 > 0:45:43because it just seems to symbolise the act of sharing, really.
0:45:43 > 0:45:46It makes wine work, it makes wine taste better,
0:45:46 > 0:45:49and we are going to share this,
0:45:49 > 0:45:54this is the fountain of the social intercourse,
0:45:54 > 0:45:57where you come to mine, and we pour and we drink.
0:45:57 > 0:45:59And I love that sharing thing.
0:45:59 > 0:46:01- How much did you pay for that? - That was £8.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04- Eight quid. There's 400 quid there. - Yeah.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08So how much have you spent on this whole lot?
0:46:08 > 0:46:12Oh, on both tables there, I bet we're talking about
0:46:12 > 0:46:15probably about £200 with that other decanter.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18Well, if you multiply auction, this is the lowest valuation
0:46:18 > 0:46:21I can possibly give you, is 2,000 to 3,000,
0:46:21 > 0:46:24and in a shop, it's five.
0:46:24 > 0:46:26I'm going to have to send you packing, cos I am dead jealous.
0:46:26 > 0:46:29Thanks a lot. This is a really nice collection.
0:46:29 > 0:46:30- Congratulations.- Thank you.
0:46:33 > 0:46:35- Next.- Alastair, it's us next.
0:46:36 > 0:46:38Can I introduce you to Tom Fattorini?
0:46:38 > 0:46:40- How do you do? - That name rings a bell.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43- Do you remember the FA Cup item we saw at Harrogate?- I certainly do.
0:46:43 > 0:46:47- Now, Tom's got some information about it for you.- Right.
0:46:47 > 0:46:51- Have a look.- I'm bringing you the original design from 1911.
0:46:51 > 0:46:54Isn't that fantastic?
0:46:54 > 0:46:56Do you remember, you were conjecturing whether it was bespoke
0:46:56 > 0:47:00- or off-the-shelf?- Yes, I was saying I was going to be banned from every
0:47:00 > 0:47:04football ground in the country for saying it was not specifically made
0:47:04 > 0:47:07as a football trophy. How wrong could I be?
0:47:07 > 0:47:08But where did this come from?
0:47:08 > 0:47:12- This is owned by us, Fattorini. - In Birmingham.- In Birmingham.
0:47:12 > 0:47:15And we got this original design,
0:47:15 > 0:47:18since it was returned to us by the FA.
0:47:18 > 0:47:22There were 250, or thereabouts, submissions, if you like.
0:47:22 > 0:47:24Design submissions for the new challenge cup.
0:47:24 > 0:47:26- This is in 1911. - 1911.- Yeah.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30And this was the one they chose, so it was very deeply thought of,
0:47:30 > 0:47:32at the time, in the sense the bacchanalia
0:47:32 > 0:47:34- - I think that's the right word - - Yes.
0:47:34 > 0:47:36That's the fruiting vines.
0:47:36 > 0:47:39This is the sort of evidence that experts like me
0:47:39 > 0:47:41absolutely love to see.
0:47:41 > 0:47:45It's all here. I can't refute the evidence.
0:47:45 > 0:47:46What value did you put on it?
0:47:46 > 0:47:48- Over a million, I said.- And you're still standing by that?
0:47:48 > 0:47:52Absolutely. And this can only add to its value.
0:47:53 > 0:47:57So whether it's one million or two million, who knows?
0:47:57 > 0:48:01But I grew up watching this being lifted aloft
0:48:01 > 0:48:05by all the great captains of all the great teams that won it.
0:48:05 > 0:48:10And I think most people that watch this show probably agree with me.
0:48:10 > 0:48:11I absolutely agree with that, yes.
0:48:29 > 0:48:31So here we are, quite appropriately,
0:48:31 > 0:48:34shoehorned in, and this is the object you've brought us along.
0:48:34 > 0:48:36- It is. - What can you tell me about it?
0:48:36 > 0:48:40Well, this is a shoemaker's measure.
0:48:40 > 0:48:44And it was bequeathed into my family in the 19th century
0:48:44 > 0:48:49from a Stratford family, who, legend has it,
0:48:49 > 0:48:51were contemporaneous with Shakespeare,
0:48:51 > 0:48:54and this may have been used to measure Shakespeare's feet.
0:48:54 > 0:48:55So my great-grandfather believed.
0:48:55 > 0:48:58So, I'm going to slightly debunk that story
0:48:58 > 0:49:01because, stylistically, when I look at this shoe,
0:49:01 > 0:49:04it's a lady's shoe dating from the late 17th century.
0:49:04 > 0:49:08And, of course, Shakespeare would have been 100 years or so earlier.
0:49:08 > 0:49:09Right.
0:49:09 > 0:49:12That's a pity. My grandfather had a card printed to say,
0:49:12 > 0:49:14"As used by Shakespeare."
0:49:14 > 0:49:17- Oh, really? - Yes. We'd better tear that up.
0:49:17 > 0:49:19You're absolutely right, it's a boot measure, a shoe measure.
0:49:19 > 0:49:23Made in a fruit wood in England.
0:49:23 > 0:49:24In the late 17th, early 18th century.
0:49:24 > 0:49:28These sort of treen objects, one of the things treen collectors look for
0:49:28 > 0:49:32is great colour, patination and I think this has it in spades.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35It's absolutely just a fantastic colour.
0:49:35 > 0:49:38It's been used, a lot of happy hands have held that over the years.
0:49:38 > 0:49:42- Yeah.- I mean, it's just a wonderful, rewarding thing to hold.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45I've never seen one like this before,
0:49:45 > 0:49:50so I'm going to say this is a one-off, a unique thing, possibly.
0:49:50 > 0:49:53And because it's so unique, and because it's got great colour,
0:49:53 > 0:49:59I think if that came up for auction, it is worth around 1,000 to £1,500.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02- Really? - Yeah. It's a very, very nice thing.
0:50:02 > 0:50:04I'd better have a word with the insurance.
0:50:06 > 0:50:08Now, it's lovely to see these working.
0:50:10 > 0:50:13And here we've got a knitting automaton.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16- Indeed.- When I first got her started, I thought, actually,
0:50:16 > 0:50:17is she just twiddling her thumbs?
0:50:17 > 0:50:19But, no, she has got knitting needles there,
0:50:19 > 0:50:22she wasn't just tired of waiting to see us.
0:50:22 > 0:50:27She knits, and I understand, being from France, and a French doll,
0:50:27 > 0:50:32I recall seeing written somewhere when we first got it, "tricoteur,"
0:50:32 > 0:50:36or something like that, which was French for knitter.
0:50:36 > 0:50:39Ah, well, that makes a lot of sense, because these would have been
0:50:39 > 0:50:41marketed in a catalogue from the maker,
0:50:41 > 0:50:44and it would have been marketed with that French name under it.
0:50:44 > 0:50:51And these lovely automated dolls, they were very popular in France.
0:50:51 > 0:50:54A few French makers, there was Gustave Vichy,
0:50:54 > 0:50:56there was Rouellet et Decamps, there was Phalibois,
0:50:56 > 0:50:59there was Bataille, there were a number of makers
0:50:59 > 0:51:03that were thriving in Paris at the end of the 19th century,
0:51:03 > 0:51:05and, in fact, Rouellet et Decamps, one of the big makers,
0:51:05 > 0:51:08only went out of business in the 1990s,
0:51:08 > 0:51:12so an incredible long run of success.
0:51:12 > 0:51:17Now, I have to say that you are not the obvious owner for a pair
0:51:17 > 0:51:21of very, very pretty French automaton dolls.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24- Probably not. - Tell me the story.
0:51:24 > 0:51:29Very briefly, my late wife, Sally, she was extremely interested
0:51:29 > 0:51:31in collecting dolls through a friend of hers.
0:51:31 > 0:51:33Sally, unfortunately, passed away many years ago.
0:51:33 > 0:51:37- Oh, I'm sorry. - And there was a collection of dolls.
0:51:37 > 0:51:39There's three automata. I've brought two here today.
0:51:39 > 0:51:41There's another one, a boy playing the fiddle.
0:51:41 > 0:51:43And there was other dolls as well.
0:51:43 > 0:51:46And they have been at my home for 25 years or more.
0:51:46 > 0:51:48I found out you were here,
0:51:48 > 0:51:51so I thought I'd bring them down to have a look at them.
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Fantastic. Well, we're very privileged, aren't we?
0:51:53 > 0:51:55Thank you very much for doing that.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59And the reason doll lovers, really, are attracted to automata
0:51:59 > 0:52:04is, of course, because the makers use really top-quality heads.
0:52:04 > 0:52:09And here, in fact, we've got a head made by the Jumeau factory,
0:52:09 > 0:52:10which is certainly a name...
0:52:10 > 0:52:14- I'm well aware of that. - Oh, you would have been.
0:52:14 > 0:52:16That also looks like a Jumeau head,
0:52:16 > 0:52:21these big, wide eyes, and rather thick eyebrows.
0:52:21 > 0:52:23This is unique. This is why I brought it first.
0:52:23 > 0:52:25- Go on, tell us what happens. - Well...
0:52:25 > 0:52:27- Describe it.- I have wound it up and pressed the button.
0:52:27 > 0:52:31What happens - the lady brings her head up,
0:52:31 > 0:52:36the trap opens, she brings the stick up, and wallops the rat.
0:52:36 > 0:52:39The rat runs out of the trap, gets hit by the stick,
0:52:39 > 0:52:42and runs back again. It's great.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45I turned it on for the first time for 20 years.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48Of course, it's got dusty or something.
0:52:48 > 0:52:50It's just seized up.
0:52:50 > 0:52:55Put yourself into that atmosphere in France in the latter part
0:52:55 > 0:52:57of the 19th century.
0:52:57 > 0:53:01Here are these incredibly expensive
0:53:01 > 0:53:04and opulent adult toys.
0:53:04 > 0:53:05And they're created by?
0:53:06 > 0:53:08Little children.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11- Really? - They were sweatshop made.
0:53:11 > 0:53:13- I feel guilty now. - Don't feel guilty.
0:53:13 > 0:53:17This is... One has to say, that is how manufacturing was.
0:53:17 > 0:53:23What we have are great objects, and this one here,
0:53:23 > 0:53:27I would put at, perhaps, £800 to £1,200.
0:53:27 > 0:53:31And actually, although that's a much more complicated and interesting
0:53:31 > 0:53:34- automaton, it's broken.- Yep.
0:53:34 > 0:53:38So I think I would put perhaps 1,000 to 1,500 on it,
0:53:38 > 0:53:43knowing you've got to spend some money on getting it restored.
0:53:43 > 0:53:46- Thank goodness I'm not looking to sell them.- Exactly.
0:53:46 > 0:53:49I've got two daughters, and they'll have the rest of the collection.
0:53:49 > 0:53:53- Thank you very much.- Thank you very much for bringing them in.
0:53:54 > 0:53:57Well, they say that gold is the colour of the sun. It's an element,
0:53:57 > 0:54:00it does come from the sun at the foundation of the world. And then,
0:54:00 > 0:54:04craftsman comes along and makes something utterly sublime like this.
0:54:04 > 0:54:06- Yes.- But they're family things, aren't they?
0:54:06 > 0:54:08They are. It's my husband's family.
0:54:08 > 0:54:12And there were seven generations, all surgeons, from Oxford.
0:54:12 > 0:54:14Goodness.
0:54:14 > 0:54:18And the First World War stopped the run,
0:54:18 > 0:54:20like it did for a lot of professional people.
0:54:20 > 0:54:25Indeed. But these date from 100 years before then, don't they?
0:54:25 > 0:54:27- And more. Yes, that's right. - But the thing is,
0:54:27 > 0:54:29not everybody might understand that these are snuff boxes,
0:54:29 > 0:54:32and they're to be carried by people in their pockets,
0:54:32 > 0:54:36and every part of their arrangements would have been at this
0:54:36 > 0:54:39level of luxury and superlative craftsmanship.
0:54:39 > 0:54:42- Yes.- And I had a little sneak preview earlier,
0:54:42 > 0:54:46and I discovered this one is made by a very famous craftsman
0:54:46 > 0:54:49- called "Straughan," who is actually spelled Strachan.- Yes.
0:54:49 > 0:54:52And he's a famous goldsmith in his own right.
0:54:52 > 0:54:54And this one is 1818.
0:54:54 > 0:54:57And this one is French, and about the same period.
0:54:57 > 0:54:58And snuffing was everything.
0:54:58 > 0:55:01There was a huge ritual associated with this.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04You'd open your snuff box, offer snuff to all your friends.
0:55:04 > 0:55:06I'm very intrigued at the coloration there.
0:55:06 > 0:55:09- Yes, well... - And what it is.
0:55:09 > 0:55:11This, we call four colours of gold.
0:55:11 > 0:55:14The way to tint it, to colour it, is to alloy it with other metals,
0:55:14 > 0:55:17and here we can see roses picked out in pink gold,
0:55:17 > 0:55:19which is alloyed with copper.
0:55:19 > 0:55:23And then leaves of the roses in tin, to make it green gold,
0:55:23 > 0:55:25and then even white gold here,
0:55:25 > 0:55:30which is probably zinc or silver for the heads of the little thistles.
0:55:30 > 0:55:34- Yes, yes.- And it's a fantastically time-consuming job to accommodate
0:55:34 > 0:55:38all these colours. And then to chase them up and to work them.
0:55:38 > 0:55:40So, let's look inside and see a hint of the provenance here.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43And yet more gleaming gold, polished gold here.
0:55:43 > 0:55:49"To Frederick Symons, from Chermside's grateful children."
0:55:49 > 0:55:53And then an inscription below in French, saying that they hoped
0:55:53 > 0:55:56that this small gesture would meet their gratitude to him
0:55:56 > 0:56:00for his kindness to their father. But they're treasures, aren't they?
0:56:00 > 0:56:04And they take us straight back into an atmosphere of a slightly
0:56:04 > 0:56:09claustrophobic social milieu, but in a way, something that these
0:56:09 > 0:56:11evoke perfectly, and the gentleman would have carried it,
0:56:11 > 0:56:14he would have a silk waistcoat and a silk coat, and he'd be a surgeon
0:56:14 > 0:56:17and he would demand hefty fees for doing all kinds of
0:56:17 > 0:56:21unimaginable things without anaesthetic to his patients.
0:56:21 > 0:56:23And then they were grateful and gave him a gold box.
0:56:25 > 0:56:29But stunning stuff, and I'm utterly thrilled to see them,
0:56:29 > 0:56:32and so I'm going to say that this one is worth
0:56:32 > 0:56:34£5,000 to £7,000.
0:56:34 > 0:56:38And I think this one is worth £6,000.
0:56:38 > 0:56:39Which is virtually the same.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42Well, I'm 85, so my girls will enjoy them, I'm sure.
0:56:42 > 0:56:45Nonsense, you'll have to wait another 100 years.
0:56:47 > 0:56:48And they're quite right, too.
0:56:48 > 0:56:51No, utterly marvellous, and thank you for bringing
0:56:51 > 0:56:53sunshine into our day today with your gold.
0:56:53 > 0:56:55Wonderful, thank you.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01One of our visitors brought this along to the Roadshow earlier today,
0:57:01 > 0:57:03and I'm told it's an ancient contraption
0:57:03 > 0:57:06for measuring feet, yards and miles.
0:57:06 > 0:57:09And I'm told it's 123 miles to our next venue,
0:57:09 > 0:57:12so I'm off, and I'm going to see if this works.
0:57:12 > 0:57:14Until the next Roadshow, bye-bye.