Griffith Cash in the Attic

Welcome to the show that finds all those antiques

and collectables tucked away in people's homes.

We then sell them at auction to raise money for a family project.

You know what it's like when a family has

moved around from one country to another.

I'm always interested to know what sort of foreign artefacts

they've picked up.

Well, we'll find out more, later on, in Cash In The Attic.

Coming up on Cash In The Attic... we learn about a Hungarian tradition

for predicting a newborn's career...

Whichever one the baby reaches out to,

you're either going to be a businessman or a musician.

Could expert, Jonty, have found a necklace

with more to it than meets the eye?

On the inside here is the minutest compact you'll ever see.

At auction, could these early 20th century hat pins,

be a cause for concern?

I always think they look a bit like offensive weapons.

In the wrong hands!

Will they secure a good price when the hammer falls?

Today I'm in Warwickshire to meet Rucky and Mark,

who are hoping their antiques and collectables will fund

a trip for their son, Griff, to the other side of the world.

Rucky and Mark Griffith

love to travel and will be going on that trip too.

Rucky used to be an air hostess

and Mark would often join her on some of the long-haul stopovers.

But, since they had Griff, who's now 13,

they've haven't been able to do as much travelling.

They own a pub not far from their home near Rugby

which Rucky helps to manage.

Mark does all the maintenance

when he's not tinkering around with his old car, that is.

Rucky's from Holland and had a Hungarian father

and a mother who was half German and half Dutch.

She's inherited lots of their possessions and feels

it's time to let them go. To help me look through them is Jonty Hearnden.

His 30 years' experience in the antiques trade is going to be invaluable here.

-Good morning.

-BOTH: Good morning.

So, you're looking at your menus here.

I really appreciate you taking time off running the pub.

We thought we'd enjoy yourselves,

have a day off and enjoy it with you.

Right, OK. So what's the plan today? How much do you want to raise?

-About £500.

-500 quid.

-Is it all right if I get started?

-Absolutely.

-Good.

I'm having that one.

All right, then.

So what made you decide, to call us in then, to raise money this way?

-We want to go to Australia.

-Right.

We'd like some help with getting the fare together,

because it's not cheap for the three of us.

It's the wedding of the daughter of some very good friends of ours

and we've been honoured with an invitation,

and nice hot weather, black tie!

-Gosh, you'll need to take a fan with you or something, won't you?

-Yes.

So the stuff we're going to be looking at then,

where is that from, because I know you're both well travelled.

Does it come from your trips round the world or is it inherited?

Quite a bit of it is inherited. Rucky's parents were from Europe

and they brought a lot of stuff in with them.

Yeah, like you say, we've picked up a bit in our travels, as well.

We need to raise £500 so the three of you, cos Griff, your son, wants to go as well?

-Yeah.

-..can get on this trip to the wedding.

-Shall we get started?

-Great!

Both Rucky's parents were professional musicians

and travelled around the world to play in concerts.

They collected pieces from everywhere they went and apparently never threw anything away.

Good news for us then!

-Ah, Jonty...

-Ah-ha!

-Are you about to do a solo?

Yes, just about to. Where's the bow?

I have got the bow, I'm afraid.

-Oh, you haven't?

-That went a long time ago.

Right, it's a violin that really does seem to have seen better days.

-Yes, it was my father's first violin.

-OK.

Being that he was Hungarian,

when babies were born in those days, when he was born,

over the crib they get given a hand which has a coin in it

and a hand that has a musical instrument in it.

Whichever one the baby reaches out to, is you are either going to be a businessman or a musician.

That's interesting.

He reached out to the violin so that was his first violin

when he started playing at the age of four or five.

So did he follow that through, did he become a musician?

-He did, he became a professor of music and he played the violin.

-Wow!

It was rather nice but we did have another violin when he was alive.

-It was a Guadagnini.

-That's a good name, isn't it?

It is a very good name

and I believe the same one was sold a couple of years ago

-for about two million.

-What?

-It's a shame I haven't got it any more.

-You haven't got it here?

No, I'm sorry.

It wasn't mine to sell, unfortunately.

-So we were just left with this one.

-OK.

-I'm afraid we're not looking at £2 million here.

-No.

Not even one million. There's no makers label on here at all.

I could imagine this has been passed down from a few generations.

I would suspect this violin is well over 100 years old.

Second-hand violins, in this sort of condition,

the prices now seem to have fallen somewhat over recent years.

It's not hundreds of thousands, not thousands, not hundreds... You know.

-30 to 50.

-Oh, that's more than I would have thought. No, fab.

-So you're quite happy for that to go?

-Absolutely.

-OK, that's great.

But we need to raise £500, shall we see what else we can find?

Wow, what a fascinating story about that violin.

Rucky's father's music was to end up possibly saving his life

as he ended up in a German prisoner of war camp. We'll hear more about that later.

In their chalet room, Jonty's noticed a large collection of cutlery

which belonged to Rucky's parents.

In the 1960s and '70s they performed at concerts in the former East Germany, Poland and Russia.

At the time they weren't allowed to take any money out of the country so they bought cutlery instead.

All these are made of stainless steel and the estimate for auction

is £70-£100.

It looks like Rucky has struck gold.

-Wow! What, three rings?

-Three rings.

I forgot I had those.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Do they have stories, history?

That one Mark bought for me when we were in Chichester.

-I think it was just before I had Griff.

-What a romantic?

Very romantic, don't tell him that, though!

-Very modern in style as well, isn't it?

-It is, it reminded me of a belt.

Yes, I see where you're coming from.

So these sapphires are cut in lozenge form and then,

of course, around the edge of I suppose the buckle,

-you have these tiny little diamonds and they are quite dinky.

-Yes.

Having a closer look, this is 18 carat gold band

so that's very good news. What else have we got?

-We've got this one which was bought in South Africa.

-OK.

That was on one of my trips.

-Again, this has a modern feel to it, doesn't it?

-Mmm.

A solid gold band and then inset, right at the top,

we've got a platinum or white gold

and then you've got a pair of baguettes of diamonds

and then we have a single diamond at the top there.

We have an 18 carat gold band as well.

I'd suspect we've just under a carat's worth of diamonds there.

-Right.

-Which is good news.

-Yes.

-What else have they got?

This last one, it was my father's.

His name was Nicholas.

-He used to wear it on his little finger.

-A little signet ring.

-Yes.

Whenever I used to go home, I used to pretend I'd forgotten my ring so I could wear it.

I preferred it to mine at the time. I haven't worn that for a long time now.

Again, this is an 18 carat gold band and then, of course,

the ends are studded with two rows of tiny, little diamonds.

Definitely worth putting it into the auction sale.

I mean, you're easily looking at £300-£500 here. Very easily.

-Fantastic.

-That's good news.

-Yes.

-Shall we put that back.

-Lovely.

When the strings get to the saleroom,

will they excite the bidders?

I can start this in at 200.

Yes! Excellent.

At 250, at 260...

We'll have to wait a little longer to find out how much they like what they see.

As the search here in Warwickshire continues,

going by Jonty's lowest estimate so far,

we stand to make £400 when we take the things we found to the saleroom.

We've almost reached their target already

but I'll keep that to myself for now.

In the dining room, Mark finds a small, wooden frame

which doesn't seem to have a very clear picture inside.

There's a set of five.

They belonged to Rucky's Dutch grandfather

and it turns out the images inside are negatives of her grandparents.

They're not in very good condition so she's happy for these to go to auction.

There's an estimate of £20-£40.

Rucky gives no trace of her European background

with her perfect English accent, but I'm intrigued to know more about her background.

So tell me how long you've been in this country

and what made you come here in the first place?

I came here when I was 16 on a holiday and, erm,

decided I liked the country and decided to stay.

Did your parents come with you though?

They came over here after a couple of years

because they've already worked here at Trinity College

and they also travelled the world with their concerts.

It didn't matter where they lived so they followed me.

Tell me a little bit about your parents,

as musicians abroad because they were really at the top of their tree, weren't?

They were, yes. My father was born in Hungary

but he trained in England as a violinist.

He was a professor of music and worked at Trinity College

and did a lot of concerts.

He had the London Soloists Ensemble and the Budapest Trio.

He also did some conducting with the Bournemouth Sinfonietta.

Whereas, my mother was from Holland and she was a musician,

a pianist, also a professor of music

and worked at Trinity College, as well.

It all sounds very glamorous but your father had quite a hard time, especially during the war?

He did. He was living in Holland, so he spoke good Dutch

but he had lived in England and so he had been recruited by the British intelligence.

Unfortunately, he got caught and spent four years

in a Polish camp of war,

which was quite horrific with some of the stories I'd heard.

He didn't talk too much but when he did, it was really interesting.

One of the stories he did tell us, the commandant of the camp felt

that he would like a bit of class in his camp and wanted an orchestra.

My father said he needed 140 people for his orchestra

and those people would get extra rations

and, in fact, there was only 40 people who could play

but he made it look as if all 140 were playing in the orchestra

so that he could get the extra food for the extra people.

-So really he was responsible for saving a lot of people's lives, wasn't he?

-I believe he did, yes.

He told me some stories about it and he was quite pleased

and proud that he managed to do that.

Now Rucky is quite an unusual name.

Apparently her mother had the same name

and it was completely invented by her mother.

Rucky's found something that belonged to her grandmother.

It's a cushion filled with a collection of hat pins from the early 20th century.

Rucky remembers this always being close to the front door,

ready for securing the hat before heading outside.

Hat pins can be collectable and their estimate for auction is £20-£40.

Meanwhile, Mark's invited Jonty out to the workshop

to look at something from his side of the family.

These are pub signs manufactured by my family

in the middle '80s, '85, '86 on the Isle of Wight.

Are they hand made?

Yes, all hand made by a chap called Jim West

who was based in Whitstable.

These would be used as the originals,

copies would be made of these

and then sold to the pub business.

They were in our pub for a while but are no longer in vogue.

Yet, it's interesting, pub signs have been around for centuries.

It was in the 12th century that the king at the time

decreed that all alehouses,

all alehouses that produced beer had some form of sign on the outside.

I suppose it was a form of quality control because in the 12th century

the best job in the world has to have been an ale taster.

In fact, Shakespeare's father was an ale taster.

Which signs do you want to sell now?

Probably sell the ones that went on to be mass produced.

These three, these four really.

So three here and the Whitbread one down the bottom? OK.

We'll send those into auction.

In the 1980s, all pubs were decorated in this way.

There was a big market for it then.

That's really interesting because the market has obviously changed.

I think, individually, you're looking at between 40 and £80...

-That's fair enough.

-All right?

As a group, I would put £150-£250 on them.

OK, that's fine.

-Are you happy about that?

-Yes, let's get them gone.

Rucky's giving the bedroom a good going over

and I'm doing the same downstairs where I've spotted some tankards.

One of them is actually a Toby jug made by Royal Doulton

in the form of Winston Churchill.

I come across another three tankards

that have all been passed down from Mark's grandfather.

The estimate for this little lot is £40-£60.

-Oh, you've found the apple.

-Yes, isn't it beautiful?

A little necklace here and down below, of course as you say,

-a little apple.

-Yes.

-Which is wonderful. Where is this from?

It's from Germany, it was my grandmother's.

From what I was told, she used to wear it around her neck when she went out

and, of course, when it's opened it was a little powder-puff.

Yes, because it's not just an apple as well you know.

On the inside here is the minutest compact you'll ever see.

-I know, it's fascinating, isn't it?

-Look at that.

With a little handle here on the puff itself. Isn't that so dinky?

It absolutely super with a little mirror so you can just do your nose.

Yes, oh yes, and it's a shaped mirror insofar

you can see your whole face and not just the end of your nose.

-Yes, I know it's been in the family for years.

-Right.

So it must be very precious to you. What about selling?

I don't wear it, it's a shame.

It'd be nice if somebody else could possibly wear it

but I'm quite happy to sell that one.

Right, I think this is great fun. The market loves unusual things just like this.

I've been looking for a hallmark on there.

Well a mark to say it's silver because this is not British.

I do believe this to be silver,

even though it doesn't have any markings on there at all.

The other giveaway that it's not British is the actual design, the linkage of the chain.

This is not necessarily what we produced.

I suppose this would be dated, the early part of the 20th century.

I think it's well worth putting it into the auction sale.

I would imagine we're looking at £40-£60, that sort of ballpark.

-OK.

-That sort of region.

Who knows, somebody might love it as much as I do

and want to pay more for it. I think this is absolutely fabulous.

I've noticed some old pistols which I need to look at in more detail.

Mark's come across a set of three late Victorian encyclopaedias.

The subject matter is Amateur Gardening For The Town And City.

They belonged to a tenant of theirs who left in a hurry.

He never came back so they've had the books ever since

and they're happy for them to go and hopefully to raise £30-£50.

Now I found these. There's yours, Jonty. There you are, Mark.

-Where were they from?

-They are from my grandfather.

-Please don't point it at me.

-I'm sorry.

-Yes.

He's had done, well, he bought them as pure decoration

with a friend in the mid-50s.

As a child, my brother and I would always play with them,

when we were allowed, and then when my grandmother passed away,

I inherited them.

Are you fond of them?

Yes, they are. A lot of memories, good memories.

The pistols are roughly the same sort of age.

They are percussion, hand pistols.

Percussion pistols were invented really in the 1830s.

Percussion is how the gun is fired

because before that it would be flintlock.

The flintlock had a spark that went into a pan which was external

and the spark had to jump into the base of the barrel.

You can imagine that would not be very efficient in damp conditions.

That's the reason why a percussion pistol was invented

so it allowed a weapon like this to be fired in damp conditions.

Have you been able to spot any signs of a manufacturer at all?

I've got a maker's name here, Murray Stonehaven.

What have you got there?

Wold is the last five letters but whatever that is at the beginning.

It's a bit difficult... I've not recognise these names

but there were a lot of gunsmiths up and down the country.

What about value?

I think these are worth between £400 and £600 each.

An estimate for auction, £800-£1,200.

-What do you think, boss?

-It's very good.

I had no idea they would be worth that sort of money.

They've got a lot of memories,

we would have to give it considerable thought.

There are strict laws governing ownership of such weapons

and Mark would need to make sure he has a deactivation licence

before they can be sold.

It goes without saying that such items should always be kept out of the reach of children.

How long have you two been together?

Erm, 28 years, isn't it?

-Yes, dear.

-Yes.

That's a long time. How did you meet?

We met at work with the airport.

It was just at a party and we started talking.

-You went looking for the best looking bloke there.

-Oh, well never mind.

He was a very...

-You set yourself up for that one, didn't you?

-It was my line.

I was going to come back with that.

No, we met through friends and started talking

and it just went on from there. We found out that we liked the same things

and we kept bumping into each other and the relationship went on from there.

For many years, it wasn't a daily thing

because I think we worked it out once

for the first six years that we were married we saw each other for about two.

-That could explain the longevity of the relationship!

-Absolutely!

Rucky would be away on three-week trips and then when she came home, I'd be away.

We understood that each other, with shift work and with me

flying away, that you weren't always there.

What made you decide to settle down back here?

We thought we'd just retire. We'd done a lot.

We hadn't spent a huge amount of time together,

although a lot of time had gone past.

We quite naively retired and bought a pub.

Right, which bit was naive, the retirement bit or buying a pub?

-The fact that we thought we'd retired.

-Both, yes.

You want to raise the money to go to this wedding in Australia

and you've already been to Australia once.

Is this the start of a bigger, travelling bug for you again

or have you really put those days behind you?

No, I think, we still like to travel.

We still want to see lots of new places

and especially with Griff having got to the age where he can appreciate it.

Now that you're thinking of taking Griff along,

is that a bit of a change?

-You weren't really expecting Griff at all, at one point?

-No.

We'd been told that it was really unlikely that we would ever have children.

Especially with her being in the Seychelles and me being...

I was thinking, I could have told you that!

Yes, that was the difficult part.

Never mind, we did try.

So we forged out a life for ourselves without, which we were quite happy about.

When Griff did come along, it was the icing on the cake.

It was a real surprise but it was a fantastic surprise.

Well if we're to help this family satisfy their travel bug and get to Australia,

we need to find a few more things before we finish here.

Jonty's come across an intriguing little envelope which contains

a large set of Japanese, silk prints.

It was given to Rucky's father from a Japanese student

when he taught a masterclass at Trinity College of Music.

They're very delicately painted masks

but our expert recognises they were made for the export market

and gives them a valuation of £30-£50.

These are some pictures my father had and they were done

by a friend of my father's in the actual concentration camp.

Which, you can see by the subject, they are very macabre, very eerie.

To be honest, I don't really look at them.

OK, I think the best thing to do is see what Jonty thinks.

Jonty, Mark, are you there? We've got some pictures to show you.

These are from the time that Rucky's father

spent in the concentration camps.

So, they're clearly quite disturbing images.

But, by someone very talented.

Oh, yes, I see what you mean.

Look at that.

Real sort of the grim reaper-esque.

Initially, this would have been done by probably a heavy leaded pencil.

I don't think it's charcoal.

We are looking at prints, rather than original art forms.

This one here, for instance,

the artist has originally signed it in the charcoal/dark lead

and then signed it again underneath in pencil.

Another indication to say they're prints rather than originals.

Which is a pity, really, because everyone wants to get

their hands on original art form rather than prints.

When it comes to valuing objects like this,

you want to put a very high figure on them somehow.

There's an awful lot of emotion that runs through all of these pictures.

My hunch is that we're looking at £30-£50.

It will be very interesting to see

what happens in the auction room

because I don't believe they are to everyone's taste.

I can see clearly that you would want to get rid of them.

Maybe getting rid of them this way into turning them

into something so positive is a positive thing to do itself.

-OK.

-Are you happy to put them in the auction sale?

-Oh, definitely.

Yes, that's fine. I just want them sold, to be honest.

Well the value of everything going to auction, excluding the guns,

-comes to £760.

-Wow!

That's amazing!

But, of course, if you did put the guns into the auction

that would take it to £1,560.

-Wow!

-Which would be a big dent in your fund, wouldn't it?

It would. Definitely.

What a fascinating day we've had here and I'm really keen

to see how well all Rucky and Mark's possessions do,

including that early 20th century silver necklace

with the apple shaped pendant, which is a very discreet compact,

complete with powder-puff. We hope it exceeds Jonty's £40 estimate.

There's the three gold rings, two are Rucky's and one, her father's.

They're all 18 carat gold and their estimate is £300-£500.

And, will they be taking those two early 19th century

percussion pistols, which were given to Mark's grandfather in the 1950s?

If they do, they could easily break through their target,

even if they only achieve their lower estimate of £800.

Still to come on Cash In The Attic,

what on earth is Jonty talking about here?

I really like it, I wanted to do the end of my nose.

That's just about the right size.

I don't know either! And Mark's keen to keep us all in good spirits.

It's got the ashes of mother-in-law's favourite budgie in there.

Has it, I don't care! I still think it's lovely.

Let's hope we can keep these spirits up.

Well, we had a lovely time with Mark and Rucky at their gorgeous house

and we found plenty of antiques and collectables

which we've brought here to Cuttlestones auction rooms.

Now remember they're looking to raise £500 towards a trip to Australia to a friend's wedding.

Let's just hope their antiques and collectables that

go under the hammer here today get them to the church on time.

Based in the historic Staffordshire market town of Penkridge,

Cuttlestones attracts individuals and dealers from right across the county and beyond,

all looking for a bargain. Let's hope the market's buoyant today

for Rucky and Mark's vintage signs.

-Good morning.

-Morning.

-Good morning.

Your pub memorabilia, how is the pub?

It's busy, good. Yes, very good.

You've got someone looking after it today, have you?

-Yes.

-Absolutely.

-What does it feel like now seeing your stuff here?

Completely different. It's nice, it's different than at home.

-Is this a positive experience, letting everything go?

-Very positive.

And you're quite pleased about everything that's in,

there's nothing you've had second thoughts about at all?

I've let everything go, other than the pistols.

The pistols hold too many memories, they'll stay at home with us.

-I think you're quite pleased with the valuation?

-Very pleased.

Very, very pleased.

-So are they just go to be handed down in years to come?

-Yes.

-Just kept for a little longer.

-They'll be handed down, I think.

-All right then.

Now, you want to make this money for Australia and you are staying with friends out there.

We are, yes, most of the time.

I knew they were handy for something!

-OK, shall we go and sell some stuff then?

-Yes.

-Come on, let's get you to Australia.

-OK.

The first of their lots to come up is the set of early 20th-century framed negatives

with images of Rucky's grandparents.

-Where were they from?

-They were from a house in Holland that my grandparents used to live in

and somebody moved in and found the door behind some wallpaper

and inside there were all the bits from belonging to my grandparents.

-I love stories like that, it's great, isn't it?

-Yes.

I think they're great fun and really quite old, too.

Are they going to get a bid, I'm not sure. I put £20-£40 as a speculative bid

-but I'm not quite sure where they're going to go with this.

-Let's find out.

At 12, 14, 16,

-£18 with me.

-Come on.

20, sir. 22? Says, "no".

22 with me.

At 22, any advance on £22.

-I'm more positive than negative.

-Yes.

34. The bidding's out off the book, £24 right-hand side. At 24.

Selling then for £24.

£24, that's basically a fiver each. Are you pleased with that?

-Yeah, I am actually.

-Are you happy?

-Yes, very happy.

Not bad for something found behind a bit of wallpaper, behind a door.

No, I think that's very good.

It's a great start for us

and maybe a sign that the bidders here are interested

in Rucky's European family heirlooms.

Right now our next lot is the continental violin,

not a Stradivarius, unfortunately.

-No.

-Which I guess is why it's only £30-£50.

-It's also in such poor condition, really.

-It is.

-Jonty!

-Overloved and overplayed, really, isn't it?

-And very old, yes.

There's always a market for violin,

that's a reason why put £30-£50 on it.

£10 in on the violin, at 10.

At £10. 10, 12, 14, 16,

18, 20, 22, 24, 26.

Keep going, keep going.

£26. 28, 30, 32,

34, 36, 38, 40.

Keep going.

46, 48, 50,

-Yes!

-That's good.

55, 60. At five, says "no".

65, on my right-hand side.

-That's really good.

-It's brilliant.

At £65, then.

-Oh, yes!

-65, I'm sure it wasn't a Stradivarius.

-Add a few noughts behind it.

-Absolutely!

-That's good.

-It is really good. Someone's got to do quite a lot of work on that.

-Yes, I know.

-Fantastic.

-I'm pleased with that, very pleased.

And who knows, maybe it will be going to another young,

Vanessa Mae or Nigel Kennedy in the making.

Next up it's the early 20th century hat pins and cushion

which belonged to Rucky's grandmother.

How much do we want for this, Jonty?

I put £20-£40 on it

because there's always collectors for these really stylish hat pins.

-I mean, they're all so different, really?

-Yes, they are lovely.

I was think they look like offensive weapons! In the wrong hands!

Pin cushion, and a small collection of hat pins, always popular.

£10 in on that.

At 10, 12, 14, 16, 18.

With me? Says "no". £18. At 18.

Any advance on £18?

I shall sell then for £18.

-JONTY: 18...

-That's a shame.

-Yeah, disappointing, really.

-It is.

That's all it boils down to, there's not enough interest in the room.

If there had been two people bidding for them,

I'm sure the price would have gone up. I think there was only one bidder in the room.

What a shame, still we've got lots of lots to go.

Our next lot is that amazing artwork which you had to admire

in artistic terms but, of course, the subject matter was quite dark

because of the artist's experience in the concentration camp.

Yes, I think, that they are interesting documents.

I believe them to be historical documents

-but I still fear they're going to struggle at auction.

-Mmm.

-This is... It's the awful...

-Limited market, I think.

-It's a dreadfully limited market.

-So your estimate on these was?

-I put £30-£50 on them.

-Right.

Where they go, I don't know.

AUCTIONEER: I can start this in at a tenner, at £10.

Oh, come on.

At ten, at 12, 14, 16, 18.

Says, "no". £18 with me.

At £18, any advance on £18?

And selling for £18.

Oh, well, crikey that is really low, isn't it?

It's hardly any money.

I think, unfortunately, it's just indicative of the sort of things people are looking for.

Well it's disappointing but we all knew the artwork

might be difficult to sell given the subject matter.

Our next lot, the three late Victorian Britannica books,

Gardens, volumes 9 to 11 from 1893.

There's a bit of a story to this, isn't there, Mark?

Yes, inasmuch as

we rent out a house

and the tenant disappeared.

After being missing for 12 months, we were lawfully allowed

to empty the house and everything was in the house.

He had literally just walked away.

He's never been seen again.

Volumes 9 to 11, Lot 101C and I can start this straight in at £22.

At £22 on the books, at 22. At 22, any advance on 22?

At £22 then on commission bid. 24, sir, takes the bidding out.

£24, right-hand side. At £24. Any advance then on £24?

I shall sell for 24.

-JONTY: Just one bidder again.

-£24. Mind you, they didn't cost you anything.

-No.

-Happy?

-Yes, they're gone.

-Good.

Quite a lot of commission bids seem to have been left

but with little competition from the room,

it means Rucky and Mark's items are still struggling here.

Will their luck change with the silver?

I have to say the next lot is my favourite out of all your items

-because that lovely, little, silver apple.

-It's beautiful.

Which, of course, opens up to reveal that lovely little mirror and puff.

-They just don't make things like that any more.

-No. No, they don't.

-It's so miniature. It's still got the powder on it.

-I know!

Maybe it's a bit of a girly thing. Do you like it?

I do, really, because I wanted to do the end of my nose.

It's just about the right size.

I put £40-£60 on it.

-I hope it does very well for you.

-OK.

I can start this in at £20. At £20...

We want more than that.

At 22, 24, 26, 28, 30,

£32 with me. At £32, at 32.

I shall sell for £32 on the commission. £32.

-That is...

-A real shame.

-Sorry about that.

-No, it's not your fault.

Do you know what, what annoys me about it, apart from anything else,

is if you went to a high street jeweller you wouldn't be able to buy

that amount of silver for £32 because the price of silver is so high!

-Yes.

-Let alone the fact that it's a lovely piece.

That is a shame.

It's got the ashes of mother-in-law's favourite budgie in there.

I don't care! I still think it's lovely.

I'm really disappointed with that result

but Rucky and Mark seem to be taking it on the chin.

Let's see how much we've made for them so far.

OK, now it's been a bit of a rollercoaster ride that.

We've got a bit of a break until your next lots come up,

which includes the pub signs amongst other things.

-Now, so far, we've made £181.

-Right, OK.

Are there any items that you're really pleased to see go,

any disappointments?

-The paintings, drawings, I'm pleased they've gone.

-Right.

I was very happy with how much the violin got.

-I'm a bit disappointed about the necklace.

-I think we all are!

That's the way auctions go, sometimes you win,

sometimes you lose.

-Let's make sure we win by the end of the day. Come on!

-Absolutely!

If you'd like to have a go selling at auction yourself, do bear in mind

that fees, such as commission, will be added to your bill.

This charge varies from one saleroom to another so it's always worth enquiring in advance.

Auction houses are ideal places to find a variety of remarkable antiques at very reasonable prices.

Our expert likes to keep his eye on the selling trends

and he's spotted one or two pieces that are well worth a punt.

Not that he's buying, of course!

-Hi, Jonty.

-Hello.

-They're a bit modern for you, aren't they?

It just reminded me of Mark and all his fabulous pub signs

that were made by his family.

Here we've got something else that's related to pubs, Breweriana, they call it. Very collectable.

People trade with these, they put them on their walls.

It's all part of that pub scene, really.

-Presumably in pubs rather than in their houses?

-Yes.

-We've got a collection of water jugs.

-Right.

A lot of them are whiskey-based, which all makes sense.

What happened was that the breweries, the distilleries,

they produced their own jugs to actually place these on the bar

so that people could see the advertising.

Are any of them made by Wade, because that can help, can't it?

No, these aren't made by Wade.

There is no makers stamps on most of these, actually.

-Does that make a difference?

-Sometimes it does, yes.

It's quite interesting really.

These will always sell within the parameters of £5-£10 a pop.

If you've got a water jug that is of a local distillery

to sometimes an auction house like this,

all of a sudden, boom, that won't sell for five or 10 quid,

that might be £40-£60, just like that.

-I suppose it's great if you fancy a tipple.

-Absolutely.

Which we haven't got time for! Come on.

That little lot went for the absolute bargain price of just £5,

so it's not only Rucky and Mark's collectables that are struggling to raise top prices here today.

We all gather together in time to see the next of their lots come up.

Our next lot is the set of Japanese hand coloured

and cut paper images of Japanese characters, a bit of a mouthful!

-I was going to say, a bit difficult, isn't it?

-It is, isn't it?

The history of these?

They were given to my father by one of his Japanese students as a thank you.

That's sweet, isn't it? What do we want for these, Jonty?

I think they're really decorative, unusual. The big question mark is what do you do with them?

I think there's enough art in there to put £30-£50 on them.

AUCTIONEER: Start these in at £10, 126C. At £10.

At £10, any interest at £10?

No? No interest there.

-No, move on, then.

-Oh dear.

-Unsold.

At least he didn't sell them for £10.

No, he didn't, we'll just take them home.

Not a good start to the second half

and with just four lots left, we really need these to do well

if they are going to reach their target.

Obviously, you run the pub, it's good to see pub memorabilia in here.

The next lot is five tankards, including a Royal Doulton,

in the form of Winston Churchill.

They'll came from my grandfather, he had them in his bar.

-And you're not tempted to put them in your bar?

-No.

I put £40-£60 on these. The big star is Winston Churchill.

He alone is worth that sort of money

so I hope we should be there or thereabouts.

AUCTIONEER: I can start this in at 20.

Oh, come on.

22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32,

34, 36, 38, 40,

42, 44?

Says, "no". £44 with me then.

At 44, any advance on £44?

I shall sell for £44.

Sold.

-44.

-It's what you got.

-I said 40 to 60, the low-end of the estimate.

-OK.

That's more like it, could this be the turning point for us today?

Now the four reproduction painted pub signs.

Have you literally lifted these off the wall of the pub?

Yes, we had them in our pub in the Isle of Wight.

They were actually produced by family members. That used to be their business.

Oh! Nothing like keeping it all in the family!

-I hope you got a good discount when you bought them.

-No.

Oh dear, right, OK.

I think, really given that trend is dying out a bit

for these reproduction signs, we've got quite a good estimate on there of £150.

It's because they're all hand made.

There's a lot of work gone into these I hope the auctioneer sells that fact.

AUCTIONEER: Lot 146, we've got the four pub signs.

I'll start these in at £50 on 146.

At £50, at 50, 50.

Any interest at £50?

-Oh, my God.

-Come on.

-Oh, no, no, no.

50 with you, 55?

Says, "no". £55 then at 55.

No interest at 55.

No, not sold then.

-Right, I think that answers that question, doesn't it, really?

-Just a bit.

-They're coming home with you.

-They are, absolutely.

-No place in the pub for them?

-No.

-Back to the garage.

-Back to the garage.

-Yes.

Well at least the auctioneer didn't let them go for a silly price

and Mark and Rucky can always try and sell them another day.

Hiding in a cabinet I discovered a bag full of flatware cutlery.

Where is it from?

When my parents used to play a concert in Eastern Europe,

you weren't allowed to bring the money out with you

so they used to buy bits of silver can bring that out.

-So it's all Continental silver?

-It's all Continental, yes.

-Yes, interesting.

In the catalogue it says stainless steel.

So is there any silver in amongst this flatware?

-No, I couldn't see any silver in there at all.

-OK.

What do we want for it?

I put £70-£100 but at this rate, I'm not quite sure.

AUCTIONEER: I can start this at £25.

-Whey! £25!

-Gosh.

30, 32, 35,

38, 40...

Keep going.

45, 48, 50 and five.

60, and five.

At £65 then.

Go on...

70, new money.

At 70. 75, 80.

-Yes.

-That's good.

-Yes.

85, 90.

At 90, at £90, says "no".

£90 and I shall sell for 90. 90.

-That was a lot for stainless steel, wasn't it?

-That's really good.

-It's funny how something you weren't expecting to make that money has gone for it.

-Yeah.

How fascinating that there should be such interest

in a mixed collection of cutlery from Eastern European countries.

Now next lot is a fantastic combination.

We got the 18 carat gold sapphire and diamond dress ring,

a South African 18 carat ring, with two baguette-shaped diamonds,

a continental dress ring...

It's just an amazing collection and 18 carat as well,

which is selling very well just in terms of scrap value.

-Jonty, what sort of valuation have we on this?

-This lot I am confident with.

£300-£500, should be a lot of interest.

-Have we protected it with reserves at all?

-The auctioneer will use his discretion.

-Yes, he's done that before.

-I think we should be OK.

-OK.

-I can start this in at £250.

-Yes, excellent.

At 250, 260, 270,

280, 290,

300, 310.

Much better.

320, 330, with me. Says, "no", 330.

Any advance on £330, then?

At 330.

With me, and selling for £330.

330, are you OK with that?

Yes, that was the bottom end but at least it did hit there.

We got there.

Absolutely. Well, that's all our lots now.

We've sold everything that we can sell today.

-So what's been the highlights for you?

-Erm...

Presumably not taking the pub signs back!

THEY LAUGH

I think, to be honest, the violin and also the pin cushion.

-I wasn't expecting that to sell.

-Right.

-To me, they've done really well.

-What about you, Mark?

A bit disappointed I'm taking the pub signs home.

Right, obviously, you wanted £500 towards your trip to Australia, didn't you?

How do you think you've done today? Do think we've made that amount?

With the rings, I think we might just have hit the 500.

Right, Mark?

With the sale of the rings, the last lot, I should think.

Who does your adding up at the pub?

THEY LAUGH

-Oh, dearie me.

-I haven't been adding up today!

OK, well that's probably a good thing because I have good news.

You've made £645.

-Oh, fantastic.

-Well done, guys.

-Oh, wow, that's really good. Thank you ever so much.

-Not at all.

-That's super.

-Have you enjoyed the journey?

-Very much.

Not as much as we're going to enjoy the journey home, all down the pub, I think!

Good idea!

Well Mark and Rucky will be putting the money they raised

towards that family holiday, down under later in the year

but, in the meantime, they've brought their son, Griff,

to an Australian restaurant to get themselves in the mood.

-We loved the food in Australia, didn't we?

-Yeah.

We really like nice, fresh food and out there it's nothing but fresh.

-It's beautiful.

-And a tremendous amount of choice, not just for us but also for Griff.

It looks fantastic.

You would love it, if you tried it. You would.

It's the outside life, the weather means you can spend a lot

more time outside, eating outside and family time as well.

Do you think you prefer to do knee-boarding or jet ski-ing?

Knee-boarding.

We've had an absolutely fabulous time. We've thoroughly enjoyed it.

Erm, the money has been extremely helpful

but it was just the whole experience was fantastic.

It was good fun, good fun.

Well Rucky and Mark certainly made enough money

to make a contribution to that fantastic trip to Australia.

Now, if you've got a project in mind that you'd like to raise the money for

by selling antiques and collectables at auction, then why not get in touch with Cash In The Attic.

You'll find more details at our website.

I'll see you again next time!

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd