Birmingham 4 Flog It!

This beautiful stately home surrounded by parkland

is Hagley Hall, situated just south of Birmingham.

It's the seat of the Lyttelton family,

an aristocratic dynasty stretching back well over 600 years

and later on in the programme, we'll be meeting the current viscount.

Welcome to "Flog It!"

Birmingham's manufacturing history goes back to the mid-16th century,

when the city was described as "swarming with inhabitants and echoing to the sound of anvils".

This industriousness only brought more people and, by the 1900s,

it was described as the City of 1,000 Trades.

Our venue today is the city's Museum and Art Gallery.

It's a beautiful building in its own right,

but it looks particularly special today

with this fantastic queue wrapped around its foundations

and they're here to get their antiques and collectibles valued.

And if they're one of the lucky ones chosen to go through to auction,

-what are you going to do?

-CROWD: Flog It!

'And doing the job of valuing our items today,

'we have a fine pair of experts - the reflective Thomas Plant...'

It's rather nice. Do you look at it and say, "Mirror, mirror, on the wall"?

'Sorry, Thomas, you're not the fairest expert of them all.

'That title has to go to our second expert for the day,

'Christina Trevanion.'

Why hasn't it ever been worn?

-I couldn't find the right girl at the time.

-Awww!

'So that's the perfect cue to propose we move our wonderful queue

'from outside the museum to the comfort inside,

'where our off-screen experts can take a closer look

'at what they've brought along today.

'And later on in the show, I'm unnerved by a local ghost story.'

He was visited by a bird in his room who told him

that if he didn't mend his ways, three days hence at midnight, he'd die.

Gosh.

'And on a lighter note, Thomas once again proves his worth.'

-We didn't know it was THAT good, did we?

-Well, I had an inkling.

'Ha! And I know for a fact we have got a great show for you.'

That is the museum's motto.

But that could easily be applied to our experts,

working hard away at the valuation tables, looking for items to take off to auction

and I've just been told Thomas has spotted a real gem.

Let's take a closer look. He's just over there.

So, Adam, you've brought along a Georg Jensen christening set.

Tell me, how did you come by it?

Well, I went to a flea market

and this chap wanted to sell it for £155 but he sold it to me for £55.

What's intriguing for me is what attracted you to it in the first place?

I thought it looked pretty.

I've not seen anything like it before and it's silver.

I was already into silver and I thought it's pretty

and the design, you can see the beads.

And also this hammered effect on the bowl of the spoon, can you see that?

We call that planished when it's hammered.

I mean, it is Danish, being Georg Jensen, quality silversmithing.

It's got a real heavy gauge, but it's the pureness of design

-which attracts me to it and it must have attracted you.

-Absolutely.

Why did he sell it to you so cheap?

He said he was moving to Australia

and he said £55 for a quick sale and I just bought it.

I didn't think you could buy a piece for £55.

I didn't know it was that valuable, to be honest,

until I went home and I saw them going for...

-Good money.

-Yeah, good money.

-Yeah, hundreds, really.

-Hundreds, yeah.

That would be probably £150-£200.

He said to me that it's very rare

that you'll come across something with the original box.

With the box.

It's come from Liverpool. This has a date on it here, an import date.

So it has the Danish hallmark,

but it has our British hallmark

cos every time something was imported from Europe or the Americas,

we would have to assay it and stamp it ourselves

cos obviously in Britain, we've been hallmarking and producing silver since 1300.

We're quite difficult about having things come in to Britain which is silver.

We need to make sure that they've been tested

and make sure they're the same purity as our sterling standard, which is 925.

So this goes off, gets assayed so that means we can date it

and these came in in 1939 and this beaded design

-was actually designed in 1916.

-Really?

-Isn't that mad?

-That's mad.

Cos it looks so modern, doesn't it?

It does, and that's one of the things that really attracted me is the design of it.

-It does seem really modern.

-Are you into design?

I am into design. I studied product design and I really liked the...

Do you have a favourite chair?

Cos everybody who's into design always has a favourite chair.

I like the Scandinavian ones.

-Scandinavian, yeah.

-Like Arne Jacobsen.

I like all things Scandinavian

and I have to say they have this amazing ability

to produce line and form with a crisp production

and it doesn't look out of place.

It doesn't look too flashy,

it just looks pure class.

-I think you've had a really good buy, Adam.

-Thank you.

You must be pinching yourself. Why have you come to "Flog It!"?

Hopefully I can sell it

and I'll have enough money to buy a washing machine.

-You need to wash your clothes.

-I need to wash my clothes!

Now, we're going to work hard at this for you.

I think if we put it in at £120-£180,

-so you sort of double your money.

-Absolutely.

-Fix the reserve at £100.

-Are you happy with that?

-I'm very happy with that.

With the box, it could really do well.

They are really popular things. You've obviously got a natural eye.

Thank you.

'And someone else with a good eye -

'very handy in the antiques business - is Christina.'

So, Roger, we're here in the Industrial Gallery

and we're surrounded by all this beautiful ornate metalwork here.

-Isn't it gorgeous?

-Yes, it's tremendous.

And how appropriate that you've brought this beautiful piece of metalwork in to show me!

Where's it come from?

Well, I acquired it off somebody's house where the lady had passed away

and I got the family's permission to take it and keep it.

-Aw, that's nice, OK.

-And I've had it about six years.

-So relatively recently, really, then.

-Yeah.

So, what attracted you to it?

The enamel and the candle still in the holder,

-which I think makes it more attractive.

-It does.

I think it's not British. I think it came from France.

It probably dates to the late 19th century

and I think this enamelwork on it is really particularly lovely.

I see a lot of silver-plated chambersticks which frankly are a bit dull.

Before we had electricity, before we had electric light,

obviously you needed chambersticks to be able to see.

We didn't have the convenience

of just being able to flip on a light switch, did we?

-This one is like a shining light in the chambersticks of chambersticks, isn't it?

-Yes.

To have this enamel on it is really beautiful

and I think the thing that really attracted me to it

is not only has it got its candleholder here,

the sconce, we've also got the Vesta holder here,

so you would have had your matches in there and the strike on there

so that when you were carrying around your chamberstick in the dark,

if it went out, you'd have your supply of Vestas on there.

I've often seen mantel clocks

with this sort of champleve enamel technique on.

You don't often see chambersticks.

The technique of champleve enamelling is very, very similar to what we call cloisonne enamel

and that's made basically like a stained glass window

so you'd have wirework separating the different pools of enamel,

whereas champleve enamel, they would hollow out wells

and then fill them with enamel and then fire them.

So, similar techniques, different names. I think it's a lovely thing.

If you can imagine it being used,

it wouldn't just be your standard chamberstick.

If we say "upstairs and downstairs",

it would have been an upstairs item rather than a downstairs item.

It's a really beautiful thing

and originally it would have cost a lot of money.

How much do you think it's worth?

I haven't a clue,

but what I've thought about is something like at least £30.

£30, yeah, I think that's about fair.

I would put somewhere in the region of £40-£60,

-maybe £50-£70 on a good day.

-Yes.

-So, are we happy at £40-£60, reserve of £40?

-Yes.

We'll put it forwards for auction

and hopefully we'll get a really good result for you.

OK, thank you!

'We're conjuring up Tales From The Arabian Nights

'with that charming chamberstick

'and now for something a little bit closer to home.'

Look what I have just found!

I love it to bits, a jumping Jack, and it belongs to Sheila,

who is right next to me.

I want to know its whole family history,

where it's come from and how you came by it.

My grandfather bought it for my mother

when she was two years old in the early 1900s.

It came from Spurn Head, near Hull, and he was called Mr Spurn

and he lived in an ottoman in my mother's bedroom and then

when she died, I took it over from her and it's lived in my wardrobe.

-It's never been on display, to my knowledge.

-Oh, bless him!

-And that's the way it's stayed.

-Mr Spurn!

Because he's been kept away, I think he's retained that lovely,

bright colour, but it is a wonderful piece of traditional folk art,

-made by a sailor.

-Yes.

-A jumping Jack, Jacks were sailors.

-That's right.

-And you even know where he came from - Spurn Head.

-Yes.

I think this is fantastic.

Folk art traditionally was made by people that were really good with their hands,

but weren't necessarily professionals.

They didn't make this to actually sell,

they made it to give to somebody - a loved one, a child, maybe.

So it's been made by a rigger, a sailor, maybe,

and I would say he's late Victorian, around 1880/1890,

which coincides with when you came by it.

He's articulated in a rather splendid fashion

because, as you can see, he's double-sided

and if I do that, you can see just two tufts of string.

That would hang down with a bobble on it and if you pulled that,

that would make the Jack jump

and it would also pull his arms up in the air.

He's got one hand eaten away with a bit of rot and woodworm,

which is a sign of the fact that he's got the age, he's genuine.

What I also like about it is somewhere along the line in your family,

one of his legs probably came off

-and he's been mended with a really crude rusty nail.

-Right, yes.

Now, because that nail has softened over the years and darkened

and it's not sharp at all, it's actually quite tactile.

-Isn't he great?

-Yes.

It's quite hard to put a value on folk art, it really is,

because there's no academic account of things.

You can't do your comparables, they literally are one-offs.

-That's why I love this. Have you any idea of its value?

-No, none at all.

I think if he was in exceptionally good condition,

without the big rusty nail, I think you'd be looking at £200-£300.

But with the damage, it's going to hold it back slightly.

He now becomes a decorator's item.

-Yes.

-And a rather tasteful decorator's item

because when you touch him, you actually want to hug him, don't you?

-Yes.

-He's very tactile and I think that's the chemistry there.

When we put him up for sale in auction,

when he's being viewed, people will pick him up

and they will caress him and they will fall in love with him.

I think if we pitch this at £80-£120,

the standard auctioneer fare, really, with a reserve at £60,

I think we'll get him away.

Now, that's a really low price to put on.

Could we put a reserve on of £100?

OK, we'll value him at £100 with a reserve of £100.

Thank you very much indeed.

I can't wait to see you in the auction room anyway cos I love this.

'We'll soon see how this toy story goes a little later on

'as we head off for our first trip to the auction room

'and here's a quick reminder of the items we're taking with us.

'First up is the delicious Danish design,

'but will the cutlery set be to the bidders' taste?

'Christina lit up Roger's day

'with the history of his enamel chamberstick,

'but will it have the same effect in the saleroom?

'And let's hope Sheila's wooden toy jumps to infinity and beyond!'

We've travelled across counties today to Fielding's Auction Rooms

where we're always assured of a warm welcome

from our expert Nick Davies, who today is on the rostrum.

Fingers crossed everything will fly!

'And with a packed auction house,

'hopefully we won't need to cross a thing.

'But do remember - the seller's commission here today is 18%.'

Going under the hammer right now,

we've got a boxed silver christening set.

Doesn't sound too exciting, does it? Shall I rephrase that?

Going under the hammer right now,

we've got a boxed silver Georg Jensen christening set.

Yes, that's got you going, hasn't it? A bit of 20th century modern.

Adam, tell us the story. How did you come by it?

I came by it in a flea market. I bought it for 55 quid...

Did you know it was Georg Jensen, the Danish designer?

-I did, actually, but I didn't know it was really that good.

-No, no.

And obviously you did some research.

That's the great thing about buying something -

it takes you on a journey of discovery

and this is what antiques is all about.

Absolutely, and what I like is that Adam spotted it

and he liked the simplicity of design.

-It has a quality to it which most things don't.

-No.

So fingers crossed we'll get the top of Thomas's estimate.

You will definitely make a profit, put it that way.

-Won't he?

-Yeah!

-Big profit! That's what it's all about.

Anyway, let's put it to the test. Good luck, Adam.

A Georg Jensen knife, spoon and fork christening set in a little box.

-Really sweet thing, I like this.

-This is very good, Adam.

100 I'm bid. 110 now.

120, 130?

120 with the gentleman now.

130, fresh bid. 140, 150?

140 standing still.

-150 now anywhere else?

-Come on.

-150 anywhere else?

At £140, I'm going to sell. Last chance...

-That's good.

-It's a very good profit.

I'm going to finish at 140...

The hammer's gone down. £140, well done! Well done.

Now, listen to this, guess where the money's going.

What are you going to spend that on?

I'm going to spend it on a washing machine.

It's the last thing you buy but, the older you get,

you realise it's the first thing you should have bought. Well done!

-It's essential, you're going to need it.

-Thank you very much.

'Sometimes we just have to be practical,

'but I hope Adam continues to visit the antique fairs.'

Right now, we're just about to light up the saleroom with Roger's little chamberstick.

I absolutely love this. It's the enamelwork that caught your eye.

-That's right.

-Roger, why are you selling this?

-Well, I don't need it.

-OK.

-I was lucky.

I told you it was given to me about five years ago.

If we get the estimate, it's worth every penny of that.

Well, it's difficult.

The enamel has got really beautiful colours, hasn't it, Roger?

It's a nice thing. How useful it is, I don't know.

Good luck, both of you. It's going under the hammer right now.

Enamel candle holder, there we are.

It's got a stamp compartment underneath, a sweet little thing.

£40 for it? Quickly, for this one.

35 then, no interest at 35?

-Oh, come on, bid, bid, bid!

-There's a guy down the front he's missed.

40. 42? £40 on the second row, at £40 it'll be.

42 anywhere else?

-At £40...

-Oh, I think that's it, Roger.

-We've done it, Roger, well done!

-Thank you! We've done it.

Gosh, that was close. I was getting really worried.

It would have been awfully sad if that didn't sell for 40 quid.

-Absolutely.

-Cos of all the work that involved.

-Very good.

-You pleased?

-Yes, I am, thank you.

-Good for you. Thank you for bringing that in.

-OK, goodbye.

'As Roger says goodbye to his old flame, now it's my turn.'

Going under the hammer,

we've got an exquisite piece of sailors' folk art.

It belongs to Sheila and you know I like this.

I think this is a hard thing for you to sell,

I would personally keep it as we've discussed,

but we've fixed it with a £100 reserve.

-That's right.

-If we don't get that, it's going back home.

-It is.

-That's for sure and we're surrounded by people.

-Oh, yes.

-Surely someone can fall in love with this.

-You just don't know.

This is your lot. Here we go.

We move on to the carved wooden double-sided jumping Jack,

as he's known. Bids with me at £80, £90 and £100.

I look in the room, 100, the paddle is aloft, the lady's bid at £100.

-It's gone.

-It's out of my hands. Do I see 110 anywhere else?

At £100, maiden bid towards the back of the room at £100.

First and last, anybody else jumping in for Jack? At £100, all done?

-It's gone.

-It has, yes.

-Brilliant, I'm happy.

There was just no competition.

-There was one bidder that wanted it at 100.

-Uh-huh.

-No-one else to push him.

-No.

-But we've sold it so I'm ever so pleased.

-Oh, yes.

Thank you for bringing him in.

Not at all, it's been a pleasure and I've enjoyed being here.

-Thank you, Sheila.

-I've had a lovely day.

MUSIC: "Lovely Day" by Bill Withers

That's our first visit to the auction room done and dusted.

So far, so good.

OK, it was touch and go in places, but we're coming back here later on,

Now, most of us know who our parents are, who our grandparents are

and who our great-grandparents were.

But what about your great-great- great-great-great-great-great...?

That's seven generations back. Do we know who they were? Not many of us.

While we were in the area filming,

I went off to investigate a house that can do just that -

trace their family history back seven generations

and they've even got the family portraits.

Situated just outside of Birmingham,

perfectly set in its own Grade 1 grounds, is Hagley Hall.

Complete with its own church and cricket pitch,

it's a world unto its own.

The Hagley estate has been in the same family

for an astonishing 15 generations ever since 1558,

when Sir John Lyttelton purchased the land.

For the next 450 years

and for all the momentous events in the country's history during that time,

this green and pleasant patch of England

has been home to this ancient family.

The present house as we see it today

was built in the 1750s by George, first Lord Lyttelton,

who was secretary to the Prince of Wales

and briefly Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Now, this was the era of the Grand Tour -

where young men finished their education in Europe,

returning back to England with a passion for all things Classical.

And in architecture, that meant the Palladian style,

of which Hagley is the perfect example.

In fact, Hagley was the last great Palladian house

to be built in this country.

George and his family were among the elite of British aristocracy

and, as such, held privileged positions

in the royal courts of the ruling monarchy.

Hagley's austere, almost plain exterior

couldn't be more opposite to what greets you when you enter the house.

It's a riot of decorative ornamentation everywhere you look.

It's like walking into a confectionery box of architectural detail.

The bas relief panel above this magnificent chimneypiece

is something to behold.

That's a copy of a baroque oil painting,

but all of that panel has been achieved with plaster casts

and carving in that plaster as it's setting.

It's quite an incredible technique

and that's been done by the Italian stuccadore Francesco Vassalli.

We know he did it because it's signed, which is very rare.

Little is known about Vassalli,

but he must have been at the top of his game -

well known throughout Italy,

well known enough to be brought over here to do that one panel

which cost 50 quid back in 1759.

We know it cost £50

because there's an inventory for it in Lord Lyttelton's accounts.

It is quite incredible.

I'll take a closer look because to appreciate this sort of thing,

you have to see the light and shade,

the undercuts in the plaster,

which depicts Pan winning the love of Diana

with this snow-white fleece.

Look at the fleece! The whole thing's almost moving.

Can you see it? It just makes it look real.

It comes alive, that whole panel jumps out to you. Very impressive.

Something else that grabs your attention,

on the opposite wall to the fireplace, is this large roundel.

If you have a look at the figure, that's Cybele,

the goddess of fertility.

But she's been crowned with a castle on her head.

I didn't know what that was about,

but apparently she's the protector of the house.

And it would have been this room

where Lord Lyttelton first greeted his guests

and to celebrate the completion of the house in 1760,

he held a three-day house-warming party

and it seemed like the whole county was invited.

You could imagine the scene, arriving here,

glittering evening gowns full of silver and gold thread

sparkling in the candlelight, fine wine and conversation

as if you've been transported to a different realm.

And you enter the saloon,

this is where all the entertaining would have taken place.

The decoration has been stepped up a gear.

All the family portraits

have been framed with these garlands and swags,

dripping down the wall with architectural detail.

And the ceiling with the putti flying around in the clouds.

This is more free-flowing rococo,

some of the finest plaster relief work I have ever seen in any country house in England.

'This is the drawing room,

'unaltered since Lord Lyttelton's original design,

'and enjoying the sumptuous surroundings is the current custodian,

'the 12th Viscount Cobham.'

Lord Cobham, you inherited the house several years ago when your brother died,

so you're now responsible in maintaining this house and the grounds.

What's been the greatest challenge for you?

Oh, in a way, trying to find out all the details about the wretched family,

which I knew nothing about when I came here

and then tackling the the maintenance that hadn't been done for a while.

The conservation...

The conservation on the roof,

the stonework on the house was a major problem.

We're sitting in this room

which really is the culmination of the first Lord Lyttelton's interior design tastes.

Was the room designed for the tapestries?

Because looking at the borders, they're not cut down at all.

No, they predate the house by about 25 years.

In fact, they date back to, I think, 1725

and the house was finished in 1760.

So the walls...

The walls and the whole room was designed around them

and George put pictures into the room so it was his showpiece.

It really does flow, the whole thing,

right through to the mirror frames.

It does and I believe that the whole room was designed around the hoho birds,

which reflected in the mirror over the...

-You can see, that's typical of Chippendale.

-Yes, indeed.

On the cresting of the mirrors, that hoho bird,

-and it's picked up in the tapestries.

-It is.

Let's talk about the completion of the house in 1760

and that three-day house-warming party.

-That must have been some bash.

-I think it was.

George was a far worse entertainer than he was a builder

cos he tried to rank everybody invited according to their relative status and wealth,

which was rather like trying to start on Debrett's from nothing.

Apparently the party developed into an absolute shambles

while everyone decided that they were seated

either above or below where they should have been

and Thomas, his son, who was known in the family as Naughty Tom,

failed to dance with the lady with whom he was meant to be dancing with,

who was a most important lady.

Cos it's all about etiquette, isn't it?

Absolutely, but he decided there was a far better girl that he had found in one of the local villages

that he was going to start the dance with, which he did.

So it was quite a party, but not entirely as George had wanted,

I think, is probably the way to put it.

-Was he the black sheep of the family, the son?

-He was.

He was clever, intelligent, bright, but he also was a hedonist.

He loved his ladies and loved gambling.

He was, I think, quite spoiled by George.

Very unfortunately, he went very much to the bad.

What happened, eventually?

Supposedly he was visited by a bird in his room who told him

that if he didn't mend his ways, three days hence at midnight, he'd die.

So he asked his pals and girls around for the night

and they thought it'd be funny to move the clock forward an hour

so when he was still hale and hearty, but not on tremendous form,

at 11 o'clock reading 12 o'clock,

-they departed and he was found dead in his bed the next morning.

-Gosh.

And that was actually a well known supposed ghost story

that ran through the 18th and 19th century.

Horace Walpole, the 18th-century man of letters and extraordinary wit,

was a good friend of Lord Lyttelton's

and he visited Hagley Hall shortly after it was finished

and he wrote, "I wore my eyes out with gazing, my feet with climbing and my tongue with commending,"

and I know exactly how he felt after being inside.

Hagley Hall is the perfect time capsule of 18th-century rococo decoration.

Welcome back to Birmingham's Museum and Art Gallery

where we have set up shop in the splendid Rotunda Room in the heart of the museum,

the perfect place for our experts to uncover some real gems.

Let's catch up with them now

and see what else we can find to take off to auction.

Thomas has found a great pair to start with.

-So, ladies, are you two sisters?

-BOTH: We are, yes.

-I can see, you answered the same! So, what's your name?

-Judy.

-Sue.

-Judy and Sue. And are there any more of you?

-Three.

-Three more!

-Five of you.

-Five girls.

Father said when a man has a daughter, he proves himself a man,

but when a man has five, he proves himself a bit of an idiot!

A giant, I would say, a giant!

Anyway, you've brought along a pair of vases.

-What do you know about those?

-Only that they're Satsuma.

-Yep.

And they came from Great-Aunt Dora after she died,

-who was a real character.

-Why was she a character?

-She was a character because she married a priest.

-A Catholic priest?

A Catholic priest! She met him when she was a cocktail waitress.

Oh, I don't believe that!

In a pub called the Flying Horse in Nottingham.

-I don't believe that story! What was her name, Great-Aunt...?

-Dora.

Great-Aunt Dora was a cocktail waitress.

So did she go on lots of holidays, was she glam?

She was glamorous and she had personality, hadn't she?

But he actually was ordained in Rome

and was stationed there during the war.

And collected lots of antiques while he was in Italy.

These are some of his?

Yeah, and when he came back to the UK,

he wanted to open an antiques shop when he came out of the priesthood.

He ended up being a butcher in a supermarket!

So he wanted to be an antiques dealer,

-but he opened a butcher's shop.

-Yeah.

Let's talk about Great-Aunt Dora's little vases.

You're quite correct, they are Satsuma.

-What date do you think they are?

-Well, I don't know.

-Do you know what period they are?

-I would say, would they be...

-Early 20th century?

-Got it, Sue.

-Good on you.

There's a period in Japan

like we have Georgian, Edwardian or Victorian -

what is the name for that?

-Shall I put you out of your misery?

-Go on, then.

It's called Meiji - about 1869 to about 1912, that sort of Meiji period

and that's exactly what these are.

They're very finely done and what's lovely is the detail.

And you've got a scene going on.

These are open cartouche fans with scenes of an interior,

samurai practising or having a bit of a scrap within a heart

and then some other geisha girls there,

within these bands, and all heightened in gold.

Why did you bring them today?

Well, we just thought there's obviously some value to them

and we thought there's five of us sisters

and what we make on them would go towards a nice holiday in Turkey.

-Right. It's going to maybe...

-No, no, not the full cost.

No, not at all, unless it's...

Is this one of those 99p holidays I see advertised?

The things they've got going for them are the size.

The decoration is good and detailed. The gilding is quite strong.

The bad things is that they could be a bit finer potted.

-They're quite thick potted, but they're not bad.

-No.

Therefore I think they're worth £100-£120.

-We might get you three figures. I'd reserve them at £80.

-Yes.

-You happy with that?

-£80, yes?

-Yes.

-We'll be guided by that.

-Will you come to the auction, you two?

-Yes.

-Yes.

-I'd love to see you.

-Thank you very much, Tom.

-Nice to meet you.

-Thank you.

'Two sisters and two Satsumas somehow have to take five to Turkey.

'You do the maths.'

'Christina knows how to keep it simple

'as she uncovers a very special little party piece.'

So, Kath, this little box is quite intriguing.

I saw you in the queue and I had a little look at this

and there's coronation commemorative wares

and then there's EXCITING coronation commemoration wares

and I got quite excited about this

cos when you think of coronation commemoratives,

you think of mugs, mass produced,

limited edition of 100,000 which isn't a very limited edition, is it?

You don't think of little medallions like this.

Was there a relative at the coronation in 1911?

I think it's possible, yes.

I think it was probably presented to a member of the family who went

-so that's where I think it came from.

-I would agree.

It's intriguing in many respects.

Let's take it out of its little box,

which I think may have been the original box.

I think it might have had a fitted case originally,

but let's have a little look at it.

So we've got here what I initially thought was a coin set into a mount,

but it's not, it's a little presentation medallion

and it says...

So it's the coronation of George V

and inevitably you would have had a reception for heads of state,

for important dignitaries

and I think that this was possibly given out to somebody who went to that.

And the reason I say that is because it screams quality.

The fact that it has all this enamelling work to it

and these wonderful armorials here,

which unfortunately we haven't been able to trace,

but I think we could, given some more time.

And also this wonderful little coronet surmount

which is set with these stones.

-It's really, really beautifully made.

-Yes, it is.

And it doesn't surprise me that when I turn it over

and look at the back, there we go, we've got a wonderful mark there

for the company Goldsmiths and Silversmiths Company Ltd.

Now, they were brilliant makers

and they had a Royal warrant to obviously the King and Queen

so this sort of quality I would expect to find of those makers.

So a really, really beautiful thing.

-Although it looks gold, unfortunately it isn't!

-Never mind.

And we've got a nice silver hallmark here and we know it's silver

because it's got the standard sterling silver mark

-which is the lion passant.

-Was it London, sorry?

It is, yes, London, which was where Goldsmiths and Silversmiths were based.

And of course a contemporary hallmark for 1911

which you would expect

and if only it could talk, it could tell us a few things.

-Can you imagine the gossip from that reception?

-Yes, gosh!

-I wonder what it could tell us.

-The amazing things that went on.

-What everyone wore!

-Yes, the costumes and outfits.

Absolutely, and if you think of the reception itself,

this piece was potentially quite an important part of that history.

Value-wise, at auction,

I've not seen one of these sell in recent years.

We've seen them sell about 10-15 years ago for sort of £30-£40

-and I would hope obviously that we can improve on that.

-Yeah.

-I would like to put a conservative estimate of £60-£80.

-OK.

I think it would definitely appeal to a royal memorabilia collector

and I think it's quite an interesting piece, really.

-It's quite unusual.

-It is quite unusual.

So I think £60-£80 with a reserve of £50

and I think hopefully it will fly away for you.

-Thank you.

-Thanks so much for bringing this in.

Thank you very much.

'Let's see if this gets its crowning moment in the sale.

'And finally, before we make tracks,

'our Thomas finds himself a tank engine!'

WHISTLE BLOWS

So, Pat, tell me about your train set. How did you come to own it?

I had it as a child.

My parents bought me bits and pieces

and then I saved up my pocket money and bought bits and pieces.

I do hear this story quite a lot, that girls bought trains

-and had trains bought for them.

-I know, I was a tomboy.

-Were you a tomboy?

-I loved my dolls as well.

-Oh, really?

-But I did like my trains as well and cowboy sets and all that.

-Fabulous!

Well, tell me when you bought this.

This has got to be in the '50s, I would think.

But this is an earlier set.

Were you conscious of it being second-hand when you had it?

No, not at all. Whether it was passed on from my parents, I don't know.

Cos I was just working this one out.

It's an O gauge set and in the '50s...

Might it have been very late '40s? Say about '48, '49?

-Then it would have been sort of OO gauge.

-Yes.

This is O gauge so we need to establish that. It's not clockwork.

-No.

-It's electric. You can see the electric motor in here.

-Oh, right, yes.

-And a good heavy engine, isn't it?

-Very heavy, yes.

And it's a County of Bedford class engine,

and the counties locomotives and tenders,

they were in production from about 1935.

-Oh, good. I'm not that old!

-No, you're not, this is the thing!

And then the Pullman carriages are the same date and the signalling.

-And they're different colours.

-They are different colours, yeah.

If I was a real anorak when it comes to trains,

members of my saleroom sell lots and lots of trains

-and know all about the different colours.

-Oh, right.

I only know a little bit about the locomotives and this is a 4-4-0 set.

-Do you know why?

-Is it the...

Four wheels at the front, four at the back

-and there's nothing on the back there.

-No.

-And that is the tender.

-That is lovely.

-That is lovely, in good condition with the box.

-Yes.

-Where's it been all these years?

-Up in the loft.

Before that, it was at my parents' house because it was left there

when I moved around and then when we moved to our house,

it was put up in the loft and it's been there for nearly 40 years.

Really? So your boys didn't play with it?

Not very often, not that particular one. I bought them a separate one.

I bet you bought them a OO gauge.

Cos you need a heavy set of track to do it, a really big track.

-I've got some track, I've still got some but...

-It's not that valuable.

-No.

-Have you an idea what it's worth?

-I haven't the foggiest idea.

-Really?

Honestly, I really don't know.

I got it out of the loft and I thought, "I can't just leave it,

-"it's too nice," and there's nobody to have it now.

-It's lovely.

OK, you haven't got the box.

There's metal fatigue on the wheel, but that's quite understandable.

Metal fatigue is when the wheels crack.

Considering it's been up in the loft all that time.

-Yes, the whole collection I would sell for £200-£300.

-Oh, right.

-Yeah, and I'd reserve it at £150.

-OK.

-And I think it should sell for a bit more.

-I was hoping so.

The thing is, if this was boxed, £300-£500 on its own.

-The value lies in the engine and the tender.

-Yes.

-So I would say £200-£300, fix the reserve at £150 - done.

-Yes.

Great, let's keep our fingers crossed! You're usually very good.

MUSIC: "Love Train" by The O-Jays

Well, there you are.

Our experts have now found their final items and I have to say,

what a marvellous day we've had here at Birmingham's Museum and Art Gallery.

Hundreds of people have turned up, they've thoroughly enjoyed themselves

and all day long, we've been surrounded by history.

But right now it's time to make some history of our very own

as we go over to the auction room for the very last time.

And here's a quick recap of all the items we're taking with us.

'Sisters Judy and Susie are flogging their Satsuma vases

'for an all-important family holiday.

'Someone in Kath's family was a guest at King George V's coronation reception.

'If only we knew who!

'But all royal memorabilia is highly collectible.

'And finally,

'let's hope some train guys make a commotion about the locomotion.'

'We're heading in one direction

'and that's to Stourbridge for our last visit to the auction room.'

Right now, we've got two Satsuma vases going under the hammer.

They belong to a great-aunt and five sisters will inherit them.

Two of them are here, Judy and Susie.

It's great to see you again since the valuation day.

-Where are the others?

-Oh, they couldn't make it, but Julia's here.

Hello, Julia! Good luck.

Let's hope it's a nice even figure we can divide into five!

Thomas, do you think we will get that top end?

I think it'll be very difficult because it's Japanese, not Chinese.

-It's all about fashion.

-Fashion, fashion, fashion.

We've got to hit that right moment in time. Is this that moment?

We'll find out. It's going under the hammer right now.

Two very small Satsuma vases, little hexagonal examples,

nicely decorated though. Where do we open with those?

Bid's with me at 75 and I look for 80 in the room.

75 with me on a commission, 80 anywhere?

At £75 with me, anyone coming in for the little hexagonal Satsuma vases?

At £75 they'll stay with me, 80 anywhere else?

Last chance at 75, are you sure and done? All finished?

-Nope, didn't sell.

-They didn't sell.

-Awww!

-Oh, dear.

-They're going to be shared around again.

-We can't go to Turkey now!

Is that what you wanted to do? I'm sure you can still get to Turkey.

Why do you want to go to Turkey, just for a holiday?

-Just for a holiday, yes.

-A bit of nice warm weather?

-Yes.

I'm sure that'll happen, OK? So, who's going to take them home?

-Judy will take them home.

-Good luck, Judy. Don't drop them!

'Unfortunately you just can't sell them all,

'but I'm sure there'll be a good reception for our next item.'

Well, it's been in the cupboard for many years

and now we've liberated it.

-Ooh!

-We have, haven't we? Yes, I like that.

Kath's coronation reception brooch is just about to go under the hammer.

It's seen the light of day! We've rescued it.

Now, why has it been in that cupboard?

It's not something I'd wear.

No, I know how easy it is to put things in the cupboard

when you don't really want them

and you forget about them over the years, don't you?

Yes, I just felt it would be nice to see

if I could find a good buyer for it, somebody might want to buy it

-and add it to their collection of royal commemoration things.

-Sure.

-And there are collectors out there for that.

-Oh, hugely, yeah.

Coronation and royal memorabilia is a huge collectors' field

so hopefully...

It's been on the internet so hopefully it's been viewed

by a good wide audience as well so hopefully it'll sell well.

-We're just about to find out. Are you ready for this?

-Yes.

It's going under the hammer now.

A silver gilt enamel George V and Queen Mary coronation pendant.

Really sweet little brooch there, bid's with me at 40 and 45

and 50 I look for in the room. 45 with me and the lady's bid at 50.

-It's gone.

-Brilliant!

-50, 55 anywhere else? At £50, 55 anywhere?

Come on, come on!

She'll take it with her at £50 if we're all sure and done...

-£50.

-There we go. Somebody wanted it.

-You've done it!

It's not going back in the cupboard, that's a good thing.

-And thanks for bringing it in.

-Thank you.

-Yes, it was a really interesting thing so thank you.

-Thank you.

'Now Kath has abdicated herself from the medallion,

'it's full steam ahead for our final item.'

Boys and their toys, eh?

Well, it's not just boys that like train sets.

Patricia does too and good on you! Were you a tomboy as a little one?

-Yes.

-Cos Mum and Dad got you this, didn't they?

-That's right, yes.

-Why do you want to sell them now?

-I haven't got anybody to give them to.

I've got two grandsons,

but they're not really interested in that sort of thing.

Well, I think there's a great market for this, don't you?

Certainly the county class locomotives

and it's an O gauge electric which makes it quite rare and interesting.

Yeah, yeah. He's the right man for toys!

Thomas is certainly not just a fine art expert.

-He's our toy expert, aren't you?

-Well, I do sell a lot of toys.

-I know a little bit.

-Well, good luck. We're looking for £200-£300.

Hopefully we're on the right track.

Anyway, here we go!

Moving on to trains now, a Hornby GWR,

the County of Bedford locomotive.

We've got a lot of bids and interest in this,

-and we'll open the bidding at...

-Lots of interest, did you hear that?

-Yes, I did.

-..£520...

-Oh!

Do I see 540 in the room or is it staying here at 520?

-We've got a lot of bidders.

-Wow!

-540 anywhere else in the room?

At £520 then, the trains will go at 520. All finished at £520, all done?

Gosh! The opening maiden bid, £520, straight in, straight out.

-Patricia, fantastic! £520!

-That's brilliant.

-Thank you, Thomas.

-No, it was very good.

-Well done, Thomas.

-We knew it was good, but...

-We didn't know it was THAT good, did we?

-Well, I had an inkling.

If you own something like that, you now know what it's worth

and we'd love to sell it for you!

Bring it along to one of our valuation days.

Well, I think that deserves celebrating, don't you?

What are you going to do?

Well, I was putting it towards a holiday,

-but my laptop has gone kaput on me.

-Get a new laptop?

-I think it'll have to go towards that.

-Well done.

-Thank you ever so much.

-Well done, both of you.

55 fresh bid, 60...

Well, that's it, it's all over for our owners.

As you can see, the auction is still going on,

but what an exciting time we have had here.

OK, hands up, it was touch and go in places,

but that's what auctions are all about!

Hopefully you can join me soon for another one,

but until then, it's goodbye from all of us here in Stourbridge.