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One of the things I love about "Flog It!" | 0:00:09 | 0:00:11 | |
is seeing and hearing about the thousands of interesting, | 0:00:11 | 0:00:14 | |
beautiful and sometimes valuable items | 0:00:14 | 0:00:17 | |
you bring along to our valuation days. | 0:00:17 | 0:00:20 | |
Tell me the history. Where did you find it? | 0:00:20 | 0:00:22 | |
In a junk shop in Chingford. | 0:00:22 | 0:00:24 | |
-Where has it been for the last few years? -In a drawer upstairs. | 0:00:24 | 0:00:28 | |
Over the years, we've made hundreds of trips | 0:00:28 | 0:00:30 | |
to auction rooms all over the British Isles, | 0:00:30 | 0:00:32 | |
putting our experts' valuations to the test. | 0:00:32 | 0:00:36 | |
7,000. | 0:00:36 | 0:00:37 | |
7,001. | 0:00:37 | 0:00:38 | |
This is what auctions are all about. When it goes like this... | 0:00:38 | 0:00:42 | |
-£7,600. -Yes! | 0:00:42 | 0:00:44 | |
£7,600. | 0:00:44 | 0:00:45 | |
APPLAUSE | 0:00:45 | 0:00:46 | |
Now, in this series I want to share some of the knowledge | 0:00:48 | 0:00:51 | |
we have picked up with you to let you in on some of our trade secrets. | 0:00:51 | 0:00:55 | |
'Throughout the centuries the natural world has provided | 0:01:25 | 0:01:28 | |
'the impetus for all kinds of creative endeavour. | 0:01:28 | 0:01:32 | |
'And as a result, our valuation days almost always include several | 0:01:32 | 0:01:36 | |
'objects decorated with animal or plant motifs.' | 0:01:36 | 0:01:38 | |
So in today's programme, we're going to be looking at antiques | 0:01:41 | 0:01:44 | |
and collectables that have found their inspiration from the wonders of Mother Nature. | 0:01:44 | 0:01:48 | |
'Coming up on the show, | 0:01:51 | 0:01:52 | |
'we're bowled over by your collectables | 0:01:52 | 0:01:55 | |
'that have been inspired by nature.' | 0:01:55 | 0:01:57 | |
You've put a smile on my face today. | 0:01:57 | 0:02:00 | |
It's time to start clearing some junk out. | 0:02:00 | 0:02:03 | |
Junk?! Throw it my way! | 0:02:03 | 0:02:06 | |
'Thomas shares his tricks of the trade.' | 0:02:06 | 0:02:09 | |
It sinks. | 0:02:09 | 0:02:10 | |
The other floats. | 0:02:13 | 0:02:14 | |
'And I learn more about a gem with a fascinating past...' | 0:02:15 | 0:02:18 | |
People like them because they are a contact with pre-history. | 0:02:18 | 0:02:22 | |
'..and a promising future.' | 0:02:22 | 0:02:24 | |
It is literally worth its weight in gold. | 0:02:24 | 0:02:27 | |
As a predominantly urban society, | 0:02:33 | 0:02:35 | |
we have always tended to bring nature into our homes. | 0:02:35 | 0:02:38 | |
Not just real plants and flowers, but objects, and designs too, | 0:02:38 | 0:02:41 | |
that reflect the organic forms of Mother Nature. | 0:02:41 | 0:02:45 | |
There is a lot to choose from, so what deserves a closer look? | 0:02:45 | 0:02:49 | |
Nature inspires the human mind. | 0:02:53 | 0:02:57 | |
It inspires the artists and craftsmen | 0:02:57 | 0:03:00 | |
and we see it everywhere in their work. | 0:03:00 | 0:03:03 | |
You are in luck, really, because there is so much out there, | 0:03:03 | 0:03:05 | |
isn't there? You think of William Morris. | 0:03:05 | 0:03:09 | |
I think of William Kent-style side tables with lion's masks | 0:03:09 | 0:03:13 | |
and ball and claw feet. You can practically hear them roar. | 0:03:13 | 0:03:17 | |
Probably the greatest period that used it was the Art Nouveau period, | 0:03:17 | 0:03:21 | |
where you have this wonderful, | 0:03:21 | 0:03:23 | |
sinuous plant design and that's very collectable. | 0:03:23 | 0:03:27 | |
If you're not inspired by nature, | 0:03:27 | 0:03:29 | |
I think there's something severely wrong with you. | 0:03:29 | 0:03:32 | |
It is a constant delight on "Flog It!" valuation days to see | 0:03:35 | 0:03:39 | |
so many objects that are inspired by nature. | 0:03:39 | 0:03:42 | |
Artists the world over have celebrated | 0:03:42 | 0:03:44 | |
the beauty of the natural world for centuries. | 0:03:44 | 0:03:48 | |
And in Japan, it's been going on since ancient times. | 0:03:48 | 0:03:51 | |
And you won't just find nature in fine art. | 0:03:54 | 0:03:57 | |
It can turn up in everyday objects too, as James Lewis discovered. | 0:03:57 | 0:04:02 | |
When I first saw these, I thought | 0:04:02 | 0:04:04 | |
they were just a standard string of beads, | 0:04:04 | 0:04:06 | |
but they are actually a lot more interesting than that, aren't they? | 0:04:06 | 0:04:10 | |
Well, so I believe. I've been told that they may be Japanese. | 0:04:10 | 0:04:13 | |
Ojime are tiny little beads, | 0:04:13 | 0:04:17 | |
normally either cylindrical or spherical, | 0:04:17 | 0:04:21 | |
but they come in squares and rectangles and different forms. | 0:04:21 | 0:04:25 | |
The ones that we saw, I have never seen anything like it. | 0:04:25 | 0:04:27 | |
A whole string of beads like a necklace. | 0:04:27 | 0:04:30 | |
Each one of these would never have been anywhere near the others. | 0:04:30 | 0:04:34 | |
They are normally made from bronze and they are part of a Japanese dress | 0:04:34 | 0:04:37 | |
because, of course, in a kimono, you don't have pockets. | 0:04:37 | 0:04:42 | |
That's a very plain ojime bead, there. And this is known as an inro. | 0:04:42 | 0:04:49 | |
And this bead could go down to hold the pieces in place, | 0:04:49 | 0:04:54 | |
to stop them falling apart, like that, and at the top | 0:04:54 | 0:04:56 | |
would be a toggle called the netsuke | 0:04:56 | 0:04:58 | |
that we have seen a lot of times on "Flog It!". | 0:04:58 | 0:05:00 | |
That's basically the use of it. | 0:05:00 | 0:05:03 | |
These are all individually cast out of bronze. | 0:05:03 | 0:05:06 | |
Some have got little silver flowers on them. | 0:05:06 | 0:05:09 | |
So they are all wonderful little individual works of art. | 0:05:09 | 0:05:13 | |
There we go - there is a little frog on that one. | 0:05:13 | 0:05:16 | |
-Super, aren't they? -They're lovely. | 0:05:16 | 0:05:19 | |
I love looking at them, | 0:05:19 | 0:05:21 | |
but it's time to start clearing some junk out. | 0:05:21 | 0:05:23 | |
Junk! Throw it my way. | 0:05:23 | 0:05:26 | |
Because I think these are great. | 0:05:26 | 0:05:28 | |
We have four commission bids and a telephone bid. | 0:05:31 | 0:05:33 | |
I shall start the bidding at... | 0:05:33 | 0:05:37 | |
-£450. -Ooh! -Is there 470 in the room? | 0:05:37 | 0:05:41 | |
470. Commission bid is out. 470 in the room. 500. | 0:05:41 | 0:05:46 | |
500. 520. | 0:05:46 | 0:05:48 | |
550. 570. | 0:05:48 | 0:05:51 | |
-600. -It's incredible. -And 20. 650. 670. | 0:05:53 | 0:05:59 | |
700. | 0:06:01 | 0:06:03 | |
-And 20. -720 quid! -At £720. | 0:06:03 | 0:06:06 | |
GAVEL BANGS | 0:06:06 | 0:06:07 | |
-Bang! That is a big sold sound. £720, Janet. -Wonderful! | 0:06:07 | 0:06:12 | |
With such a strong Oriental market, I wouldn't be surprised | 0:06:16 | 0:06:19 | |
if some of those phone bids weren't international. | 0:06:19 | 0:06:22 | |
I would like to think that Janet's nature-inspired ojime beads | 0:06:22 | 0:06:27 | |
made it back to Japan. | 0:06:27 | 0:06:30 | |
Artistic interpretations of nature can be found in the earliest | 0:06:30 | 0:06:34 | |
of cultures and the most recent. | 0:06:34 | 0:06:36 | |
The dawn of the 20th century saw the flowering of Art Nouveau, | 0:06:36 | 0:06:40 | |
with its desire to bring natural forms into art. | 0:06:40 | 0:06:43 | |
This was famously interpreted in ceramics by William Moorcroft, | 0:06:44 | 0:06:48 | |
whose organic designs flowed over the curves of his pots. | 0:06:48 | 0:06:52 | |
It also inspired Morris Ware, | 0:06:54 | 0:06:56 | |
which was developed in 1918 by George Cartlidge, | 0:06:56 | 0:07:00 | |
and Catherine Southon was quick to spot one of his collectable pieces. | 0:07:00 | 0:07:04 | |
Now, when I first saw you, | 0:07:06 | 0:07:08 | |
you said, "This is a piece of Moorcroft that I have got." | 0:07:08 | 0:07:11 | |
But it is actually Morris Ware. | 0:07:11 | 0:07:13 | |
They do look very similar. | 0:07:13 | 0:07:16 | |
But Morris Ware was actually produced over a much shorter | 0:07:16 | 0:07:20 | |
period of time. | 0:07:20 | 0:07:21 | |
It is actually stamped here "Morris Ware", | 0:07:21 | 0:07:24 | |
which is a type of style that was done by Hancock & Sons. | 0:07:24 | 0:07:27 | |
This particular piece will date to probably early 20th century, | 0:07:27 | 0:07:31 | |
sort of 1910, something like that. | 0:07:31 | 0:07:33 | |
I don't know if you can see, but that is actually the signature | 0:07:33 | 0:07:36 | |
there of the designer, which was George Cartlidge. | 0:07:36 | 0:07:39 | |
It is a really beautiful piece. I just love the colours. | 0:07:39 | 0:07:43 | |
Wonderful stylised tulip design. | 0:07:43 | 0:07:46 | |
It is very much in keeping with sort of Arts and Crafts and William Morris. | 0:07:46 | 0:07:50 | |
One of the most popular motifs of Morris Ware was the tulip pattern | 0:07:50 | 0:07:56 | |
and I think because it was so simple, | 0:07:56 | 0:07:58 | |
it was so stylised, | 0:07:58 | 0:08:00 | |
and I think the way that it's actually used, these red, vibrant | 0:08:00 | 0:08:04 | |
colours, that is probably one of the reasons that makes it so popular. | 0:08:04 | 0:08:09 | |
Why do you want to sell such a lovely item? | 0:08:09 | 0:08:11 | |
I don't want to take it with me because of a breakage or... | 0:08:11 | 0:08:14 | |
-Because I'm going away. -Right. Where are you going? -I'm going to Sri Lanka. | 0:08:14 | 0:08:18 | |
-Not something that you want to take with you. -No. -It can break very easily. | 0:08:18 | 0:08:22 | |
I would probably put an estimate on of about £300-£400, | 0:08:22 | 0:08:25 | |
but I really hope that there are a lot of people like me in the | 0:08:25 | 0:08:28 | |
crowd at the auction that just go mad for it and it makes a lot more. | 0:08:28 | 0:08:32 | |
500 I'm bid, then. 500 bid. | 0:08:36 | 0:08:38 | |
520. 550 bid. 580, is it? 580. | 0:08:38 | 0:08:43 | |
600 we're bid now. | 0:08:43 | 0:08:45 | |
It's like a game of Ping-Pong, isn't it? Backwards and forwards. | 0:08:45 | 0:08:49 | |
-Come on. -This is getting exciting. -At 620... | 0:08:49 | 0:08:51 | |
650. Give them time. | 0:08:51 | 0:08:54 | |
No? At 650. 650. 680, I've got it. | 0:08:54 | 0:08:59 | |
-680 is left. -He's missing a bid over here. | 0:08:59 | 0:09:03 | |
At 720 I am bid. 750... | 0:09:03 | 0:09:06 | |
780... At 780, on the right. £780, then. I'm selling in the room. | 0:09:08 | 0:09:13 | |
-780, it's going. 790. -That's fantastic. | 0:09:13 | 0:09:17 | |
-That is a lot more than what you were expecting. -Yes. | 0:09:18 | 0:09:21 | |
So look out for the name George Cartlidge. | 0:09:21 | 0:09:24 | |
His richly coloured designs, | 0:09:24 | 0:09:26 | |
which formed the core of the Morris Ware range, are highly sought-after. | 0:09:26 | 0:09:31 | |
At the end of the 19th century, | 0:09:36 | 0:09:38 | |
another movement was emerging in Cornwall. | 0:09:38 | 0:09:41 | |
The Newlyn School was a colony of artists who | 0:09:41 | 0:09:44 | |
settled near Penzance, taking advantage of the fantastic | 0:09:44 | 0:09:49 | |
light and rugged beauty of their surroundings. | 0:09:49 | 0:09:51 | |
As Antonia discovered, it's a subject close to my heart. | 0:09:53 | 0:09:56 | |
I absolutely love this. | 0:09:57 | 0:09:58 | |
You have brought this to the right guy as well | 0:09:58 | 0:10:01 | |
because I am from Cornwall and I just love the Newlyn School. | 0:10:01 | 0:10:04 | |
I really do. I think it's one of the best art movements. | 0:10:04 | 0:10:07 | |
Right, let's start with Lamorna Birch. | 0:10:07 | 0:10:09 | |
Really, his name is Samuel John Birch, OK? | 0:10:09 | 0:10:12 | |
He is born in Cheshire and he is really known as a northern artist, | 0:10:12 | 0:10:15 | |
but he did move to Cornwall. | 0:10:15 | 0:10:16 | |
Which is where he did some of his best work. | 0:10:16 | 0:10:19 | |
Something auctioneer Claire Rawle was quick to spot. | 0:10:19 | 0:10:23 | |
The light in it, the quality, the impressionistic style, | 0:10:23 | 0:10:26 | |
was beautiful because I have sold a few of his in the past and they | 0:10:26 | 0:10:29 | |
tended to be rather sombre woodland views, but this was just delightful. | 0:10:29 | 0:10:33 | |
-Really, he adopted the name Lamorna after Lamorna Cove. -Oh, right. | 0:10:33 | 0:10:38 | |
It's a beautiful little spot in Cornwall. | 0:10:38 | 0:10:40 | |
-And it is signed in the corner. -Yes, it is. -SJ Lamorna Birch. | 0:10:40 | 0:10:44 | |
There you are. Samuel John Lamorna Birch. It's absolutely beautiful. | 0:10:44 | 0:10:48 | |
I personally like this a lot. | 0:10:48 | 0:10:50 | |
I'd like to put it into auction with a value of £300-£500 | 0:10:50 | 0:10:53 | |
-with a fixed reserve at £300. -Well, that sounds wonderful. | 0:10:53 | 0:10:56 | |
-So you won't get a penny less. -Yes, well, thank you so much. -OK? | 0:10:56 | 0:10:59 | |
You've put a smile on my face today. | 0:10:59 | 0:11:00 | |
As we ran up to the sale, | 0:11:00 | 0:11:02 | |
I had a feeling it was going to do quite well. | 0:11:02 | 0:11:04 | |
I was really hoping it would. | 0:11:04 | 0:11:06 | |
Unfortunately, Antonia was unable to join us for the auction day. | 0:11:07 | 0:11:12 | |
She didn't see the packed house | 0:11:12 | 0:11:14 | |
-and the expectant bidders waiting on the phones. -420 on the telephone. | 0:11:14 | 0:11:18 | |
-450. -Good. We have got a phone bid. | 0:11:18 | 0:11:20 | |
-We've got interest in the room. -480. 500. | 0:11:20 | 0:11:24 | |
520. 550. | 0:11:24 | 0:11:26 | |
580. 600. | 0:11:26 | 0:11:29 | |
-This is great. -620. 650. | 0:11:29 | 0:11:31 | |
-At 650, the bid still in the room at 650. -Top money for his work. | 0:11:31 | 0:11:36 | |
At £650, then. You all sure? Selling, then, at £650. | 0:11:36 | 0:11:40 | |
I'm very pleased with that. | 0:11:40 | 0:11:42 | |
£650, the hammer has gone down. Antonia, enjoy this moment. | 0:11:42 | 0:11:46 | |
That was good money and it was a lovely painting. | 0:11:46 | 0:11:49 | |
It was the sort of thing I would love to have had on my wall. Absolutely lovely. | 0:11:49 | 0:11:53 | |
And you are not the only one, Claire. | 0:11:53 | 0:11:56 | |
Paintings from the Newlyn School do fetch large sums of money at auction. | 0:11:56 | 0:12:00 | |
But many are still proudly kept on the walls of local Cornish families. | 0:12:00 | 0:12:06 | |
Some of these were originally used by the artists as payment | 0:12:06 | 0:12:09 | |
for board and lodging. | 0:12:09 | 0:12:11 | |
Not a bad exchange, as it turns out! | 0:12:11 | 0:12:13 | |
Now, from the southwest to the far north. | 0:12:16 | 0:12:20 | |
Wemyss Ware, famous for its free-flowing hand-painting, | 0:12:20 | 0:12:23 | |
was born in Scotland in 1882 | 0:12:23 | 0:12:27 | |
and this unusual set, featuring an earthy profusion of nature's harvest, | 0:12:27 | 0:12:32 | |
caught the eye of Thomas Plant. | 0:12:32 | 0:12:34 | |
Wemyss is so collectable. | 0:12:35 | 0:12:38 | |
I mean, because it has got this Scottish pull, and anything Scottish | 0:12:38 | 0:12:43 | |
goes back home, and this dressing table set was really special. | 0:12:43 | 0:12:49 | |
-Where has it come from? -Originally it was from my grandmother's house. | 0:12:49 | 0:12:53 | |
-It was on display there for many years. -It is great. | 0:12:53 | 0:12:57 | |
I mean, it's a lovely, lovely set. | 0:12:57 | 0:12:59 | |
You are missing one item. | 0:12:59 | 0:13:00 | |
-Yes. -Which is the cover to the buckets, the water bucket here. | 0:13:00 | 0:13:04 | |
This dressing table set was so unusual. | 0:13:04 | 0:13:06 | |
I've not seen the like before or since this filming. | 0:13:06 | 0:13:11 | |
The black ground and the grape and the vine design. | 0:13:11 | 0:13:15 | |
They are very bacchanalian, really. | 0:13:15 | 0:13:18 | |
On here we've got the Wemyss stamp, and this T Goode & Co, London. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:22 | |
Now, that is the retailer. | 0:13:22 | 0:13:25 | |
-I would like to put this in at about £400-£600 for the set. -Right. | 0:13:25 | 0:13:30 | |
-How does that grab you? -Yes, that's lovely. | 0:13:30 | 0:13:35 | |
They'd really looked after it, so it was in brilliant condition, | 0:13:35 | 0:13:38 | |
so that's why it made so much money. | 0:13:38 | 0:13:40 | |
Wemyss, rare, perfect. | 0:13:40 | 0:13:43 | |
320 I'm bid for it. 350 bid. | 0:13:43 | 0:13:45 | |
380 bid, £100 bid. | 0:13:45 | 0:13:47 | |
420 I'm bid. 450. | 0:13:47 | 0:13:49 | |
480, 500. | 0:13:49 | 0:13:51 | |
A rapid climb. | 0:13:51 | 0:13:54 | |
700...and 50. 800 and 50. | 0:13:54 | 0:13:58 | |
-900. -I love these moments. | 0:13:58 | 0:14:00 | |
1,050, no? | 0:14:00 | 0:14:02 | |
1,050 I'm bid for it. | 0:14:02 | 0:14:04 | |
1,050. | 0:14:04 | 0:14:06 | |
-£1,100. -Come on. | 0:14:07 | 0:14:10 | |
-At £1,100. -It's quite comical, isn't it? | 0:14:10 | 0:14:12 | |
At £1,100. | 0:14:12 | 0:14:14 | |
For £1,100. | 0:14:14 | 0:14:16 | |
-Thank you. -Debbie, it's gone. 1,100. Hammer's gone down. | 0:14:16 | 0:14:19 | |
-Fantastic. -That's great, isn't it? | 0:14:20 | 0:14:22 | |
-Twice what you were expecting. -Yes. | 0:14:22 | 0:14:24 | |
Wemyss Ware has to be the most highly collectable | 0:14:27 | 0:14:30 | |
and sought-after Scottish pottery. | 0:14:30 | 0:14:33 | |
I was confident that set would smash Thomas' conservative estimate. | 0:14:33 | 0:14:37 | |
A great result for Debbie. | 0:14:37 | 0:14:39 | |
The most collectable pieces of Wemyss are pigs, cats, thistles... | 0:14:39 | 0:14:44 | |
Anything really Scottish, really, makes it very collectable. | 0:14:44 | 0:14:47 | |
Of course, this dressing table set or toilet set... | 0:14:47 | 0:14:50 | |
it was its rarity value, the background | 0:14:50 | 0:14:53 | |
and having something unusual to it. | 0:14:53 | 0:14:55 | |
If a piece of Art Nouveau pottery appeals, | 0:14:58 | 0:15:00 | |
bear in mind that for both Moorcroft and Morris Ware, | 0:15:00 | 0:15:04 | |
simple but stylistically interesting flower patterns are more | 0:15:04 | 0:15:08 | |
collectable. Look out for designs that feature tulips or lilies. | 0:15:08 | 0:15:12 | |
Some Newlyn School artists are more desirable than others. | 0:15:14 | 0:15:17 | |
One of the greatest is Walter Langley, | 0:15:17 | 0:15:20 | |
the first of the painters to settle in the town. | 0:15:20 | 0:15:23 | |
But do your research and see which artist's style appeals. | 0:15:23 | 0:15:26 | |
Before you know it, you might own a work that really captures | 0:15:26 | 0:15:30 | |
something special about the great Cornish outdoors. | 0:15:30 | 0:15:34 | |
There are many ways in which nature has inspired | 0:15:50 | 0:15:52 | |
the makers of beautiful things. | 0:15:52 | 0:15:55 | |
Take these two 17th-century Italian collector's cabinets on stands, | 0:15:55 | 0:15:59 | |
for instance. They were the height of fashion | 0:15:59 | 0:16:02 | |
for the connoisseur back in the 1680s, | 0:16:02 | 0:16:04 | |
but it's not the construction we're interested in. It's the artwork. | 0:16:04 | 0:16:09 | |
The cabinets themselves are constructed of mahogany, | 0:16:09 | 0:16:11 | |
which has been ebonised so it looks like it's a dark black, | 0:16:11 | 0:16:14 | |
which contrasts beautifully with the gilding that picks out | 0:16:14 | 0:16:17 | |
all the mouldings and the architectural detail. | 0:16:17 | 0:16:20 | |
But it's the exotic birds that we're interested in. | 0:16:20 | 0:16:23 | |
This technique is known as pietra dura, | 0:16:23 | 0:16:25 | |
which literally translates from Italian meaning "hard stone". | 0:16:25 | 0:16:29 | |
What you have here is a craftsman at the very top of his genre. | 0:16:29 | 0:16:33 | |
It looks like these birds have been painted on, but they're not. | 0:16:33 | 0:16:37 | |
This has been inset into the wood... | 0:16:37 | 0:16:39 | |
with little pieces of stone. | 0:16:39 | 0:16:41 | |
You've got agate, quartzes, jaspers, marbles, granites. | 0:16:41 | 0:16:45 | |
You've even got fossilised petrified wood. | 0:16:45 | 0:16:49 | |
In fact, all of these stones have such varying degrees of hew, | 0:16:49 | 0:16:54 | |
you have an almost limitless supply of colour. | 0:16:54 | 0:16:57 | |
Now, that is the beautiful thing about it. | 0:16:57 | 0:17:00 | |
This technique was around in Rome in the early 16th century, | 0:17:00 | 0:17:03 | |
but it flourished in Florence towards the end of the 1600s, | 0:17:03 | 0:17:05 | |
where these cabinets were made. | 0:17:05 | 0:17:08 | |
Circa 1680. | 0:17:08 | 0:17:10 | |
This is one of the nicest cabinets I've ever come across in my life. | 0:17:10 | 0:17:13 | |
Not only has it got architectural proportion and detail | 0:17:13 | 0:17:16 | |
but it is so decorative and it's all down to nature. | 0:17:16 | 0:17:19 | |
Look at that lovely bluebell wood. | 0:17:23 | 0:17:27 | |
'When you come to our valuation days across the country, | 0:17:27 | 0:17:29 | |
'sometimes the items you bring aren't just inspired by nature... | 0:17:29 | 0:17:34 | |
'they are formed by nature itself.' | 0:17:34 | 0:17:36 | |
Ooh, look at that. Wonderful amber necklace. | 0:17:38 | 0:17:41 | |
This is timeless. This is amber and it's millions of years old. | 0:17:41 | 0:17:46 | |
Let's see what it looks like. Shall we put it on? | 0:17:46 | 0:17:48 | |
Yes, there we go. Look at that. | 0:17:48 | 0:17:52 | |
Amber is one of these magical mystery stones. | 0:17:53 | 0:17:57 | |
It's from nature, carved by man. | 0:17:57 | 0:17:59 | |
Amber is actually fossilised tree resin | 0:18:01 | 0:18:04 | |
which oozed out of the cracks in the bark millions of years ago. | 0:18:04 | 0:18:07 | |
It was used for decoration in the Stone Age... | 0:18:08 | 0:18:12 | |
and has been transformed into jewellery for thousands of years. | 0:18:12 | 0:18:16 | |
Although most of the world's amber comes from the Baltic | 0:18:16 | 0:18:19 | |
regions of northern Europe... | 0:18:19 | 0:18:22 | |
it can also be washed up on the British coast, | 0:18:22 | 0:18:24 | |
including the beaches of Suffolk. | 0:18:24 | 0:18:26 | |
And it was there, in Southwold, that I visited the Amber Museum | 0:18:27 | 0:18:31 | |
back in 2004 to chat to the owner, Robin Fournal. | 0:18:31 | 0:18:35 | |
Look at this crown. | 0:18:38 | 0:18:39 | |
Well, it's probably the most popular piece in the museum. | 0:18:39 | 0:18:43 | |
Everybody mentions it. | 0:18:43 | 0:18:45 | |
It's beautiful. It was made in about 1920. | 0:18:45 | 0:18:49 | |
This is actually insured for £20,000, | 0:18:49 | 0:18:52 | |
but it is... It's a wonderful piece. | 0:18:52 | 0:18:55 | |
There are many factors affecting the value of amber... | 0:18:55 | 0:18:58 | |
including the presence of animal life inside. | 0:18:58 | 0:19:01 | |
As a sticky resin, it often trapped insects and other organic matter, | 0:19:03 | 0:19:07 | |
and these pieces are especially sought-after. | 0:19:07 | 0:19:11 | |
This is a stunning piece | 0:19:11 | 0:19:12 | |
because the insect is quite large. | 0:19:12 | 0:19:15 | |
The smaller insects were the ones that usually got trapped | 0:19:15 | 0:19:18 | |
because the bigger ones could usually fight their way free. | 0:19:18 | 0:19:21 | |
-Yeah, or lose a leg. -BOTH LAUGH | 0:19:21 | 0:19:24 | |
That's about 50 million years old. | 0:19:24 | 0:19:27 | |
That has been identified by the Natural History Museum in London. | 0:19:27 | 0:19:31 | |
And people like them because they are a contact with pre-history. | 0:19:31 | 0:19:34 | |
Before man walked the Earth, | 0:19:34 | 0:19:36 | |
some of these tiny insects were trapped in the amber. | 0:19:36 | 0:19:39 | |
Amber is a wonderful substance. | 0:19:39 | 0:19:42 | |
It's got a warmth and a quality about it. | 0:19:42 | 0:19:45 | |
But be careful. | 0:19:45 | 0:19:47 | |
There's an awful lot of stuff about on the market today that's | 0:19:47 | 0:19:50 | |
modern and they push interesting insects and things into it, | 0:19:50 | 0:19:53 | |
so be careful if you're buying it as an investment. | 0:19:53 | 0:19:56 | |
There are many forms of imitation, | 0:19:56 | 0:19:58 | |
with fakes being made out of anything from glass to plastic. | 0:19:58 | 0:20:02 | |
It can be very hard to distinguish the real deal, | 0:20:02 | 0:20:05 | |
but Thomas Plant has a handy trick to share. | 0:20:05 | 0:20:07 | |
What I have here are two amber coloured beads. | 0:20:09 | 0:20:14 | |
It could be plastic. It could be amber. | 0:20:14 | 0:20:17 | |
How does one tell the difference? | 0:20:17 | 0:20:19 | |
The easiest way is to use this cola | 0:20:19 | 0:20:22 | |
and drop one in. | 0:20:22 | 0:20:24 | |
It sinks. | 0:20:24 | 0:20:25 | |
The other floats. | 0:20:27 | 0:20:29 | |
The one which floats is amber. | 0:20:29 | 0:20:32 | |
The cola is the same consistency to sea water | 0:20:32 | 0:20:35 | |
and amber floats on sea water, | 0:20:35 | 0:20:38 | |
and therefore all amber floats in cola. | 0:20:38 | 0:20:41 | |
And if you're fortunate enough to own a piece of genuine amber, | 0:20:42 | 0:20:46 | |
there's some good news. | 0:20:46 | 0:20:49 | |
We have seen the price of amber rise dramatically within the salerooms... | 0:20:49 | 0:20:54 | |
and it is literally worth its weight in gold. | 0:20:54 | 0:20:58 | |
So with the market clearly on the up, | 0:21:00 | 0:21:02 | |
what should you bear in mind? | 0:21:02 | 0:21:04 | |
Large, completely clear pieces are very collectable. | 0:21:05 | 0:21:08 | |
But amber containing ancient bugs is very sought-after too. | 0:21:10 | 0:21:14 | |
This rare necklace with a collection of mosquitoes, ants and spiders | 0:21:15 | 0:21:19 | |
encased inside each bead recently sold at auction for £11,500. | 0:21:19 | 0:21:25 | |
But watch out for imitations. | 0:21:28 | 0:21:30 | |
Buy from reputable sources | 0:21:30 | 0:21:33 | |
and check with your local auction house for advice. | 0:21:33 | 0:21:36 | |
If you follow these tips, | 0:21:36 | 0:21:38 | |
you could soon have in your hand nature's very own time capsule. | 0:21:38 | 0:21:42 | |
An item that we frequently see on the show is treen, small | 0:21:48 | 0:21:51 | |
household objects that have been turned out of wood. | 0:21:51 | 0:21:55 | |
Now, normally these wonderful little items | 0:21:55 | 0:21:57 | |
are made from fruit woods grown | 0:21:57 | 0:21:59 | |
here in this country, but every now and then | 0:21:59 | 0:22:01 | |
they turn up with exotic hardwoods from overseas, and I love them all. | 0:22:01 | 0:22:06 | |
You've made my day. You really have made my day. | 0:22:06 | 0:22:10 | |
This is absolutely stunning. | 0:22:10 | 0:22:12 | |
-Collectors really go for these. -Oh, good. | 0:22:12 | 0:22:16 | |
So, how do these exotic hardwoods find their way to our shores? | 0:22:16 | 0:22:19 | |
And how do you identify them all? | 0:22:19 | 0:22:22 | |
Well, expert David Fletcher shares my passion for all things wooden | 0:22:22 | 0:22:25 | |
and he went to investigate. | 0:22:25 | 0:22:27 | |
David's meeting Adam Bowett, a friend and wood historian, | 0:22:28 | 0:22:31 | |
at Tennant's Auction Rooms in Leyburn... | 0:22:31 | 0:22:33 | |
..where they're at a preview day for a furniture sale. | 0:22:35 | 0:22:38 | |
It can be extremely difficult to identify wood. | 0:22:43 | 0:22:45 | |
I hope we're going to crack some of the conundrums today | 0:22:45 | 0:22:48 | |
and make it easier for people, | 0:22:48 | 0:22:49 | |
but it is difficult. But it's important that we know. | 0:22:49 | 0:22:51 | |
Any piece of furniture is more than itself. | 0:22:52 | 0:22:56 | |
It's more than somewhere where you hang your clothes. | 0:22:56 | 0:22:59 | |
It's more than somewhere where you write your letters. | 0:22:59 | 0:23:01 | |
It tells us about the people who made it. | 0:23:01 | 0:23:03 | |
It tells us about the time it was made. | 0:23:03 | 0:23:05 | |
What's going on in the world at that time and how interesting is that? | 0:23:05 | 0:23:09 | |
We start here with a piece of oak furniture. | 0:23:15 | 0:23:19 | |
Now, oak, for many people, is typically English, isn't it? | 0:23:19 | 0:23:23 | |
What can you tell me about this? | 0:23:23 | 0:23:25 | |
Well, oak is really the default wood for any British furniture maker | 0:23:25 | 0:23:29 | |
because it's a great all-rounder. | 0:23:29 | 0:23:31 | |
It's commonly available. It's relatively cheap. | 0:23:31 | 0:23:34 | |
We can tell where this chest comes from | 0:23:34 | 0:23:37 | |
because it's of a style associated with the Lancashire Pennines | 0:23:37 | 0:23:41 | |
and, actually, this one is dated. | 0:23:41 | 0:23:43 | |
So, we've got the owner's initials here, IB, | 0:23:43 | 0:23:45 | |
and then the date, 1706. | 0:23:45 | 0:23:48 | |
If we look inside, the first thing you notice is that it's very | 0:23:48 | 0:23:51 | |
dark, and that's because it's high in tannin. | 0:23:51 | 0:23:53 | |
The second thing is that the grain is very wild. | 0:23:53 | 0:23:56 | |
And you can bet that the joiner only used this | 0:23:56 | 0:23:58 | |
-because he didn't have any choice. -So, what you're saying, really, | 0:23:58 | 0:24:01 | |
is although this is quintessentially English, | 0:24:01 | 0:24:04 | |
the maker is making the best of a bad job, really. | 0:24:04 | 0:24:07 | |
In a sense, yes, because he wouldn't use this wood | 0:24:07 | 0:24:10 | |
if he could get anything better. | 0:24:10 | 0:24:12 | |
At the same time as these more primitive pieces were being made, | 0:24:12 | 0:24:16 | |
for those with deeper pockets, | 0:24:16 | 0:24:17 | |
oak was being used in quite a different fashion - | 0:24:17 | 0:24:21 | |
as a carcass for a more expensive veneer. | 0:24:21 | 0:24:24 | |
You use a good, stable wood like oak | 0:24:25 | 0:24:27 | |
and you lay the veneers onto it, which is what they've done here. | 0:24:27 | 0:24:30 | |
-And this is walnut? -Yeah, absolutely. | 0:24:30 | 0:24:32 | |
This is figured walnut. What you've got is a... | 0:24:32 | 0:24:35 | |
a sort of a pale brown ground with the smoky dark grey streaks | 0:24:35 | 0:24:39 | |
running through it. | 0:24:39 | 0:24:41 | |
Almost certainly at this stage, we're thinking about 1700. | 0:24:41 | 0:24:44 | |
This is going to be imported from France. | 0:24:44 | 0:24:47 | |
And this is a gentlemen's piece of furniture. | 0:24:47 | 0:24:49 | |
Yes, absolutely. I mean, this is quite an expensive object, | 0:24:49 | 0:24:52 | |
probably between £10 and £12 in 1700, something like that. | 0:24:52 | 0:24:57 | |
100 years later, it was a gentlemen | 0:25:00 | 0:25:02 | |
of an entirely different sort who was | 0:25:02 | 0:25:04 | |
responsible for a new species of wood | 0:25:04 | 0:25:06 | |
arriving at these shores - Napoleon. | 0:25:06 | 0:25:09 | |
It's rosewood. | 0:25:10 | 0:25:12 | |
Nothing to do with roses, of course, but nevertheless called rosewood. | 0:25:12 | 0:25:15 | |
That's right. This is a Brazilian hardwood. | 0:25:15 | 0:25:19 | |
It has a deep purple-ish brown heartwood | 0:25:19 | 0:25:21 | |
and then you get this very strong, very black, marking in it... | 0:25:21 | 0:25:26 | |
and it's really almost unmistakable. | 0:25:26 | 0:25:29 | |
And it suddenly arrives in Britain at the beginning of the 19th century | 0:25:29 | 0:25:33 | |
and becomes the quintessential Regency and early Victorian wood. | 0:25:33 | 0:25:38 | |
And, really, if there's one person we have to | 0:25:38 | 0:25:41 | |
thank for the advent of this wood, it's Napoleon Bonaparte. | 0:25:41 | 0:25:44 | |
Until the early 19th century, Brazil was a Portuguese colony | 0:25:44 | 0:25:48 | |
and nobody could trade with Brazil except the Portuguese. | 0:25:48 | 0:25:51 | |
But when Napoleon invaded Spain and Portugal, | 0:25:51 | 0:25:53 | |
the British, in return for military help, | 0:25:53 | 0:25:55 | |
extracted a concession from the Portuguese, | 0:25:55 | 0:25:58 | |
which was that they would allow British ships to Brazil, | 0:25:58 | 0:26:00 | |
so we brought back wood. | 0:26:00 | 0:26:02 | |
World events were also responsible for introducing the defining | 0:26:03 | 0:26:07 | |
wood of English furniture making in the 18th and 19th centuries. | 0:26:07 | 0:26:13 | |
Mahogany was a product of colonisation | 0:26:13 | 0:26:16 | |
and of the infamous triangular trade. | 0:26:16 | 0:26:18 | |
Under terrible conditions, enslaved Africans in Jamaica harvested | 0:26:18 | 0:26:23 | |
the wood to satisfy the high demand in Europe. | 0:26:23 | 0:26:27 | |
When do we first find mahogany in English cabinet making? | 0:26:30 | 0:26:33 | |
It begins to come in in the 1720s, | 0:26:33 | 0:26:36 | |
and from that period on to the 20th century, | 0:26:36 | 0:26:40 | |
it was not only Britain, but probably the world's cabinet wood. | 0:26:40 | 0:26:44 | |
What would this have cost? | 0:26:44 | 0:26:46 | |
When this was made, probably around £25, £30. | 0:26:46 | 0:26:49 | |
Certainly, you know, | 0:26:49 | 0:26:50 | |
perfectly affordable for a middle-class professional. | 0:26:50 | 0:26:54 | |
But if you are looking to invest in a piece of antique furniture today, | 0:26:54 | 0:26:58 | |
here's a tip from David. | 0:26:58 | 0:27:00 | |
It's all down to quality, | 0:27:00 | 0:27:02 | |
so you might find a fine quality piece of mahogany furniture | 0:27:02 | 0:27:05 | |
and you might find an indifferent piece of rosewood furniture, | 0:27:05 | 0:27:08 | |
so look for quality. But if you can identify your timbers, | 0:27:08 | 0:27:11 | |
this can make it easier for you to make that quality judgment. | 0:27:11 | 0:27:13 | |
Why not take David's advice and be brave? Visit the salerooms. | 0:27:15 | 0:27:20 | |
Antique wood furniture is generally better quality than new | 0:27:20 | 0:27:23 | |
pieces on the high street. | 0:27:23 | 0:27:25 | |
It can be picked up for a reasonable sum | 0:27:25 | 0:27:27 | |
and you could be buying yourself a slice of British history. | 0:27:27 | 0:27:32 | |
Bang! | 0:27:39 | 0:27:40 | |
I love it! | 0:27:41 | 0:27:42 | |
Thank you! | 0:27:42 | 0:27:44 | |
'The natural world will always be a catalyst for creativity, | 0:27:44 | 0:27:47 | |
'and thank goodness for that, | 0:27:47 | 0:27:48 | |
'because the results have been brightening up | 0:27:48 | 0:27:51 | |
'our valuation days for years now. | 0:27:51 | 0:27:53 | |
'If it's an area of collecting that holds a particular | 0:27:55 | 0:27:58 | |
'appeal for you, you'll soon discover | 0:27:58 | 0:28:00 | |
'there are plenty to choose from. | 0:28:00 | 0:28:03 | |
'Pieces displaying the simplest yet stylish patterns of the | 0:28:03 | 0:28:06 | |
Art Nouveau period tend to be a good investment.' | 0:28:06 | 0:28:09 | |
-At 780, it's going for... -That's fantastic. -..£780, then. | 0:28:11 | 0:28:15 | |
'But of course nature is a source of inspiration in all cultures, | 0:28:17 | 0:28:20 | |
'so do look out for collectables from beyond our own shores.' | 0:28:20 | 0:28:24 | |
That's it for today's show. | 0:28:27 | 0:28:28 | |
Join me again soon for more Trade Secrets. | 0:28:28 | 0:28:31 |