Penzance Flog It!

If you want beautiful scenery, mild weather and a stunning coastline, you can't beat Cornwall.

It's a pleasure for me to come back to this county, where I grew up, and I get to stay with my mum.

Welcome to Penzance and welcome to Flog It!

Penzance lies ten miles from Land's End in the shelter of Mounts Bay

and enjoys some of the mildest weather in the British Isles.

But is it mild enough to bring out the crowds to St John's Hall for Flog It? Of course it is.

I thought I'd sneak out early and meet everybody in this massive queue

-before the experts snap up the best antiques.

-You'll have to get up earlier than that, Paul!

Grrrrrrr!

Philip Serrell and Jethro Marles may have beaten me to it this time,

but I've got something up my sleeve.

Let's get the show on the road.

Christine, you've brought in a lovely little pendant here

set with pearls and other gems. Tell me what you know about it.

I know very little about it. It belonged to my aunt

and when she died, it came to me.

I would like to know more about it - especially I would like to know

about the little blue snake that's in the centre.

-Have you worn it?

-No, I haven't.

-It doesn't appeal to you?

No, it's the snake, it puts me off wearing it a little bit.

-Do you not like snakes?

-Not in jewellery, no.

-OK.

First of all, we've got this frame of half pearls, or split pearls,

and these are natural pearls, not cultured. I know that

from the age of the piece itself.

These are natural pearls that came from an oyster

that have then been cut in half and each half would have been,

if it was done properly, put on either side of the frame

to that they matched in pairs all the way around, so that the frame looked completely symmetrical.

At the centre you have...a diamond.

You'll notice the way the facets are at the top of the diamond.

It's cut like a thin sliver with facets on the top.

It's what is known as a rose-cut diamond -

when you look down on the surface, it's like the petals of a rose.

Then you've got the little baroque pearl drop -

called baroque because it's basically misshapen.

And then the little snake that you don't like.

He's decorated with a turquoise enamel, which is powdered glass

fired at high temperatures so the glass melts all over the gold,

and he's got beautiful little eyes.

The snake, of course, is very symbolic.

It's symbolic of a lot of things, but a snake forming a complete circle is representative of

-eternal love.

-Oh, right!

A snake bites onto its tail, forming that perfect circle,

and it's the early form of eternity ring, showing eternal love.

But if we turn it over, have a look at it from the back...

you can see that there is a maker's stamp just here.

-I noticed that.

-It is a little daisy, a little flower,

with the initials C and C.

And that is for Walter and Harold Child...

trading under the name of Child and Child.

-Really?

-It's a sweet name, isn't it? Child and Child.

They were jewellers producing jewellery in the latter part of the 19th, early 20th centuries.

-Right.

-So that confirms the date of the piece.

They hand-made pieces, basically. This was a hand-made piece.

You will find pieces by Child and Child that are similar,

but not exactly the same. The only thing that concerns me a little bit

is that rose diamond in the centre.

I'm not 100% certain that that is the original gem that went in the middle.

I'd have been happier if that had been a ruby,

because ruby and the turquoise are the happy marriage of colours,

-the blue against the red.

-The little snake's eyes, if you look closely,

-are red.

-Exactly, and it works well.

So perhaps it's a little more appealing now.

Well, it's certainly much more interesting now that I know

a little bit about it. I was sure the snake was significant.

-But the thing we want to know is what's it worth?

-Yes, I would like to know that.

-Especially on Flog It!

-I would say, in an auction, this is going to make £400-£500.

-Right.

I think we should put a reserve at 400...

-Right.

-Would you be happy with that?

-Yes.

-Is it about what you thought?

It's more than I thought, but I didn't have any idea,

-which is why I've come here today.

-So would you like to sell it?

-Yes.

-Put it in the auction for £400?

-Let's see if it goes a bit better.

-OK. Thank you.

You're in the shade, Lynne!

Actually, it's quite nice. These are original, aren't they?

-Hessian lampshades. Real 1970s.

-Oh, yes!

-If you can't find Troika in Cornwall, you're not going to find it anywhere, are you?

-No.

-Did you buy these recently?

-We bought them in the '70s from St Ives

-and they've been in the family ever since.

-What did you pay?

Probably around £20.

You paid £20 each for them?

-So if somebody offered you £30 each for them, would you take it?

-No.

What I think's incredible is that people have this thing about antiques, that you buy something

today and it's got to be worth more, or at least what you paid for it, in five or ten years' time.

If you buy a pair of shoes or a jacket, you buy it cos you like it

and I can never understand why the investment isn't in enjoyment rather than money.

-Am I talking rubbish here?

-No, you're talking quite right.

But my tastes have changed. They probably wouldn't have been my choice.

The style is very much 1970s.

Look at the base - we can see the Troika mark and the artist's mark. We've got Cornwall written there.

We can spin them round and see that on each different face

we've got a reflection or a mirror image of the other one

in terms of colour, and we can easily say in terms of value

that we'll put them in an auction, £200 to £400, and I'd be really surprised if they didn't sell.

-Mmm.

-But it just...

It's the fashion of the thing, isn't it? Troika's just gone like that.

Do you think it's going to keep going like that?

It would be nice to think it'd go higher.

I think Troika's come from nowhere and it's become really collectable,

so the graph goes like that, and my experience in life is that anything that goes like that, goes like that.

They're a nice design statement, but I just can't see it

-and I think they're a pure thing of fashion. Why are you selling them?

-They're in the top of the wardrobe.

-Clearly they're important in your life!

-Yes...

-So they're going to go?

-Yes.

-They're gone, history, auction, sold.

-No problem.

-Done deal.

Now, Neville, every now and again

somebody brings something along that's a bit unusual and intriguing,

and you've done that today. Tell us what it is you've brought along.

We've got a bar of Cornish tin

and it was produced a long time ago

from the Wheal Vor tin mine, as you can see written along here...

What does that actually mean?

Wheal is the Cornish word for a mine

and Wheal Vor is not very far from here,

and the House is the place where it was eventually done.

On the end is the Cornish lamb and flag, which is a sign

of purity of Cornish tin.

So like we would have a lion on Sterling silver

or Britannia on Britannia-standard silver, sheep with...

-The lamb and flag.

-The lamb and flag.

You know about this sort of thing. What business were you in?

I'm a mining engineer - retired now, but I've been mining for a while.

-So why did you buy this?

-I didn't buy it.

It was an old friend of mine who was a bit of a historian

and when he discovered that I was at the South Crofty mine

and had an interest in things mining, he gave it to me, which was very nice.

-I find the history of it fascinating. There are people who collect such things.

-Oh, yes.

A bit like people who collect the insurance marks that go on walls,

the lead marks or the sun marks for the insurance company,

and people that collect things to do with mining would be quite interested in buying this.

It's probably worth somewhere between...£70-90.

-Yes.

-Does that figure in with what you thought?

-Fine.

So shall we put it in an auction with a reserve at 70?

-That would be very nice, yeah.

-Jolly good.

Delia, earlier on this morning, before I came to the venue

we were doing some filming just on the quay, by the rocks,

and it was really calm, but I was thinking, although it's beautiful

at night-time or in a storm it could be pretty treacherous.

Is this Cornwall, I wonder?

-I wonder!

-Is it a shipwreck off Cornwall?

-It is. Handsome, isn't it?

-How did you come by this?

-I bought it in an Oxfam shop in...

-1965...

-As you do!

-As one does!

-For a pound.

-Oh, well, I think that was a jolly good buy.

It was rolled up with two other prints, very cottagey prints,

like Helen Allingham type stuff.

Because I was strapped for cash, I sold the two prints

to get enough money to have this framed,

and it's hung on the wall ever since.

For one pound, what a bargain. It still all is out there.

You've just got to get up early.

It's signed Edward Duncan, down in the corner there, and it's dated.

He was a London-born artist and he specialised in maritime works.

-He's in the book. I looked him up.

-Good.

-In our art index guide,

which is a big volume on every single artist that's had work exhibited in very good exhibitions

and sold at auction. He's done both.

He's had 40 of his works sold through the Royal Academy

-where he's exhibited.

-Really?

-Yes.

He was a noted artist of some repute, you'll be pleased to know,

-so it's worth more than a quid.

-That's good. I'm so pleased.

He did specialise in maritime works and this is a tea clipper.

It's a lovely vessel. It's hit the rocks.

I'd love to think it's Cornwall. I don't think it is.

-I don't think it is.

-No. But isn't that lovely?

A lovely washed pen and ink.

It's done with a brush, but it's got touches of chalk, as well,

which just soften those waves, make them foam up.

I think it's smashing. Have you any idea

how much this pound is worth now?

-Oh, I'd hate to make a guess.

-Do you have a gut feeling?

-Yes, I do.

If I'd got the money...

..£500 at least, I think.

It's so well painted. The longer I've owned it,

the more I've thought it good.

Yes.

I think you've hit the nail right on the head,

because I would like to have said to you, let's put an estimate of £400-£600 on it.

-I think it's going to sell for 500 quite easily.

-Can we put a reserve on it?

-Definitely.

-Definitely.

A definite fixed reserve of £400.

Yeah.

-All right.

-What do you think? You're thinking a bit more, aren't you?

-Just...

-You want to keep it.

-No, no, no.

Just a... Just a tad. Just a tad.

OK. A fixed reserve of £450.

OK. Yeah.

-All right.

-We've done some bartering.

-OK.

It's time to see if our experts really know their stuff.

Jethro fell for Christine's pendant, but will the bidders have love or money on their minds?

And Philip's not turned on by Troika

but I bet these iconic '70s lamps still shine.

We'll need serious collectors to see the worth of the tin ingot,

this little piece of local history,

and finally the Cornish bidders will surely be lured to this gorgeous pen and ink drawing.

For our action today, we've left Penzance and travelled back up the A30 to Lostwithiel,

to Jefferys Auction Room, and our man with all the local knowledge,

the man with the gavel, is Ian Morris.

Fingers crossed we've got it right.

Christine, the pearl pendant is just about to go under the hammer.

You're flogging this because you don't like the snake on there.

-That's correct.

-We're looking for about £500. Hopefully we'll get it.

-That would be wonderful.

-Fingers crossed.

-The reserve's 400.

-I know.

-And we mustn't say this too loud. There is some damage,

which I didn't point out totally to you. Some chips to the enamel.

And we do know that that centre stone is a replacement.

-Those things...

-They may hold it back.

-Might hold it back,

-but everything else is in its favour.

-Right.

-Were you happy with the valuation?

-Yes.

-Did you think, "That's good"?

-It was more than I expected.

-That's what we want to hear.

Lot 476 is a fine teardrop-shaped pendant,

set with pearls, a diamond mount.

Shall I say £300 away?

£200 to start me. £200 I'm bid.

-We're in at 200.

-At 220. At 240.

At 260. At 280. 300.

320. 340. 360.

-380.

-It's going up.

-400. At 400.

This is good.

At £400. 420? At £400.

Yes. The hammer's gone down. £400.

-That's super.

-Gosh, you had to concentrate. He was so quiet.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes.

-What's £400 gonna go towards?

I'm going to see my grandson who lives in Norway.

-I've actually brought a photograph.

-Oh, look at that! He's gorgeous.

-Fred he's called.

-Fred. And where does he live?

-Norway.

-In Norway.

-My son lives and works in Norway. His family are there.

-Oh, little Fred.

Troika normally lights up a saleroom and this lot is gonna do that

cos it's a pair of Troika lamps belonging to Lynne.

We've got a valuation of £200-400 put on by our expert Philip here.

There's a lot of Troika in the room today but I think these'll do well.

-I think they're a nice pair.

-Good pair. Good pair.

Why are you flogging them?

-Good question.

-And that is the big, all-important question.

-They don't fit in my house.

-Don't they? Not at all?

-No.

-They've proved to be a very good investment.

-Mmm.

-Shades, Paul.

-Original shades as well, yes. Hessian shades. That's brilliant.

-That is so '70s.

-Great shades.

Great shades. It's up there with Mary Quant and Biba.

This is it. Good luck.

193 there.

Pair of Troika table lamp bases

with geometric patterns - lot 193.

Can I say £200 the pair, please? Lot 193.

£200? £200 I'm bid.

At £200 in the room. 210 with me.

At 210, 220, 230.

At 230, the bid is with me.

At 230, 240,

250, 260...

260, my bid's out. At 260.

At 260, 270.

At 270 to my right. At 270. 280 now.

At 270, 280 not.

-We're done, I'm selling at £270.

-The hammer's going down - £270.

-Good stuff.

-Mid-estimate. That's not bad at all.

-Excellent.

How much did they cost? 20?

-Yeah.

-Somewhere around there.

-Yeah.

What are you gonna do with the money? What'll you put that towards?

Bit of commission, mind you. But what's it going to?

-Oh, probably treat my son.

-And yourself!

A bit of Cornwall's heritage is about to go under the hammer.

It's an ingot and it belongs to Neville.

This is part of your social history and mine - I grew up in Cornwall.

-It is hard to put a value on it.

-Yes.

-It's a tactile piece.

-We're gonna keep our fingers crossed.

-Yes, see how it goes.

And hope we've got some Kernow, patriotic Cornish people here

that are gonna want a little bit of Cornwall to take home with them.

-Yes.

-OK? It's going under the hammer now.

-Here we go.

Lot 650 - it's an ingot

with lamb and flag engraving. Lot 650.

What do you say for that? £50 away? £30 away?

£20 to start me, surely?

£20, thank you.

At 25, at 25. 30? 30, 35...

At £35 I'm bid. 40 or not? We're done at 35.

Can't let it go at that, I'm afraid.

No, he's putting the hammer down at £35. It's all he's got in the room.

That's a shame. Neville, I think it's got to go home.

Hang onto it, be proud of it.

-Well, I am proud of it and I'll hang onto it.

-Good.

Spoken like a true Cornishman - a Trelawneyman.

I've been joined by Delia with my favourite item of the whole show - that pen and ink wash.

-That is gorgeous. Edward Duncan.

-Mmm.

-Shipwrecks, dated. It is stunning. We've got £450-600 on this.

-Mmm.

There's a spelling error in the catalogue.

There's a spelling error in the catalogue. They spelled it Dunkin and it should be "can".

-Yes.

-And my man is an RA.

-And that's not in the catalogue.

-It's not in the catalogue.

-I wonder if that's mis-represented on the website. I haven't checked.

-Don't know.

Still, it only cost me a pound, so it doesn't really matter if it doesn't sell.

-A good buy in 1965. It looks fantastic.

-It does look rather good.

Good luck, it's going under the hammer.

-Oh, gosh!

-Yeah, it's frightening.

-I think it's gonna bomb.

I don't.

Lot 776. What do you say for that? Quite nice painting there.

Can I say £500?

£400 away?

400? I've got 350 on the book.

At 350, at 350, the bid is with me.

At 350, 380, 400,

420...

-450.

-Come on.

-At 450, the bid's with me. At 450, at 450.

480...

At 480. 500? At 500.

At 500. 520 now. At 500.

At 500. 520, not. We're done at £500.

-500.

-Not bad for a pound outlay.

Mid-estimate. Not bad. A good outlay -

-£1. Mind you, over a period of time, 1965...

-Yep.

Yep, it's been stuck on the attic wall in various houses

and now another one's up there now. So, you know...

-And you're off travelling.

-Yes, it's going into the travel fund.

-It'll help to sail me down the Nile.

-How exciting is that!

-Mmm.

-I'm envious. Really envious.

Well, we're getting some good results today and Delia's drawing

has inspired me to explore Cornwall's artistic past.

Artists have been attracted to the town of St Ives

which is situated on the north coast of Cornwall for well over 100 years.

Indeed, both Turner and Whistler were early visitors here.

And it's easy to see the attraction, with the picturesque cottages

all dotted about in a higgledy-piggledy fashion.

And of course, the spectacular views of the sea.

During the war, sculptor Barbara Hepworth and her artist husband Ben Nicholson

moved to St Ives and before long the town became a centre for a new generation of avant-garde artists.

The importance of the St Ives' colony grew and strengthened.

And it was finally recognised in 1993

when the Tate Gallery - this spectacular building behind me - was built.

We're gonna take a look in there in a moment.

But back to those early days. The artists started off in much more humble surroundings.

Like many of the buildings on this beach, these were originally net lofts

where fishermen could mend and store their nets

until an American painter - Howard Russell Butler -

made his studio here in 1886.

Fishermen still use the cellars for storage here today.

But these spectacular, breathtaking views

have given dozens of artists inspiration for well over 100 years.

People like Ben Nicholson, Patrick Heron and Francis Bacon,

and the great thing is, artists today are using the studio for exactly the same purpose.

More and more artists and sculptors were drawn to St Ives in the post-War years,

producing work that was heavily influenced by the local landscape

but which must have seemed bizarre and experimental to the locals at the time.

Cornishman Norman Pollard, who works at the Tate, has seen it all.

Norman, what is it that brings so many artists to St Ives?

They always talk about the quality of the light down here, obviously.

It's supposed to be so clear. And also when you look around us, you see all the landscape...

-Stunning.

-..the sea. For the artists it must have been a wonderful place to come.

Obviously, they liked it here, apart from the light and everything.

-They must have liked the place.

-They must've done. Yeah.

What was it like with Ben Nicholson wandering around

and Patrick Heron? What did the local people think of these, well, superstars, really?

-I think at the time, they didn't realise they were superstars.

-No.

So, you gotta think, in them days St Ives was a working town

and so the artists were working the same as the people. So they weren't looked upon as anything different

-to the people living here.

-Yeah.

-They were trying to make a living a little bit like us.

-So people never thought of them as superstars.

-No.

-They were just part of the community.

-Did they mix with the community?

-Very much so.

A lot of the people knew them and was always friendly with them,

-but never really got into their art a lot.

-No, couldn't understand it.

-That's right.

-Well, they were forward-thinkers, weren't they?

-Very much so.

-Geniuses.

Tell me about the Tate. How did that come about?

Cos I was a young lad living in Cornwall, and I remember Prince Charles opening this as well.

-In 1985, they had a very large show of this St Ives' group...

-Yeah.

-..at the Tate Gallery in London.

-Yeah.

-And that kick-started the idea

-that we could have a gallery here. So the impact when it first came was tremendous.

-Oh, yes.

People just turned up from everywhere and...

It is astonishingly beautiful here, isn't it?

It's no wonder they gravitated from all over the country

-just to come to St Ives.

-That's right.

-It's gorgeous.

-Even today it's lovely.

-Yes! But there's something about it, something wild

-and sort of makes you feel sort of tense and excited.

-Yeah.

-Every day is different.

-Yes. Yes, that's what it's all about.

-Shall we go in and have a look?

-That's a very good idea.

-Come on, then.

Here we are, Paul. This is what I call the St Ives' Room.

This is the group of artists that this gallery was built for.

Yes, I can see it instantly.

It's so progressive, very avant-garde

considering they live in picturesque England.

-Country cottages by the sea.

-That's right.

Yet they're painting something...uh!

-..worlds apart from that.

-Yes, even though St Ives was well known

for more traditional work in the early days,

and then this group of artists came here and painted

-the same scenery but in a different way.

-Yeah, I can see Terry Frost's work here.

Yes, the sort of concentric circles,

-lots of spirals.

-That's right. The famous red, black and white colours.

-Yeah, he really is a legend.

-Yes.

These were the leading names, the major players, weren't they?

-That's right.

-Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, Alfred Wallace

-and of course, Sir Terry Frost.

-They were, yes.

You can see this beautiful Hepworth here.

Beautiful finish to them. It's one of the things I love - the finish to the sculptures.

-Yes.

-Yes.

-I can see some of your favourites over here -

-Alfred Wallaces.

-Oh, yes, the Wallaces. Everyone likes to come in and see the Wallaces.

They're one of the most popular things in the gallery.

Well, I could stay and look around here all day,

but unfortunately I'm running out of time.

If you're ever in St Ives, please come and visit the Tate Gallery,

it's well worth it.

Right, it's time for me to pop back to the valuation day

and catch up with our very own avant-garde experts.

Mark, you're a bit of a collector of these prints, are you?

Not really, my grandfather passed them onto me.

I never met him cos he died before I was born.

He left them for me and I've always had an interest in birds and animals

so they were passed down to me.

-Have you had them on a wall?

-No, they've lived in a plastic bag...

-My mum reckons since 1930, they've been in a bag.

-Oh, no!

They come out occasionally and have been admired.

-How did he get hold of them?

-He was a lithographic artist

and he was working in a printer's when he was...early in his career.

They were a set of proofs that were sent off to the artist and returned

and then they would've been scrapped,

-so he collected them, took them home.

-Right.

-These are the plates that would've been part of the run.

-Mmm.

There would've been hundreds, if not thousands of these produced.

-They were then put in folios or books...

-Yeah.

-..and used as an educational tool.

-Mmm.

-Then lots of people buy those folios and then pull them apart

-and mount them into pictures and put them on the wall.

-Right.

Archibald Thorburn, the artist, is very well known as a watercolourist

of the early 20th century -

predominantly, you think of game birds like pheasants, grouse on heathland or moorland.

That sort of thing.

You don't so often come across these

natural history studies that he's done here.

And you've got some really wonderful, wonderful plates.

-I love this image of the bats.

-Mmm.

This is Leisler's bat.

I'm no bat expert. It says so here.

And of course you've got Archibald Thorburn, 1920 on this one.

That's probably my favourite plate.

-Is it? I picked that one out, didn't I?

-Yeah.

So we like the same one. But the detail,

-you can see the transparency of the wing, can't you?

-Yeah.

You get the image of the sky coming through somewhat.

That's a beautiful image. They're wonderful.

They really are wonderful.

A lot of these are of birds, and that's fine,

-but the more interesting ones are of the mammals.

-Right.

-Yeah.

-They have a certain charm about them.

-Mmm.

-Look at this little fellow here.

-Yeah.

-They look that cute, don't they?

-Mm.

How could anyone do anything nasty to a seal?

Anyway, what are they worth?

If we worked on £5, £8 a plate...

-Mmm.

-..em, I think you're looking at £150-200.

-OK, brilliant.

-How does that sound?

-Sounds good. Yeah.

-You'd be happy with that?

-Yeah. All right.

-Let's see what we can get for you.

-Thanks very much.

-Good luck with those!

-Thank you.

Liz, this is a fabulous collection of jewellery.

Why do you want to sell it?

It's my aunt's, and she wasn't somebody I knew particularly well,

so it's not very sentimental for me.

And I have some nice jewellery from my mother,

and I could use the money.

He is one of the great... I won't ask you what for, not yet.

We've got one of the great 20th century designers,

who opened up in Copenhagen in 1904, Georg Jensen.

I mean, that's just a name to conjure with.

He's an interesting man. He had an exhibition in America in the 1920s,

and Randolph Hearst, the wealthy American industrialist, bought the whole lot.

He must have had a fairly interesting private life, cos he was married five times!

This is just a lovely collection.

If we start off with the first little brooch at the end there,

it's got all the right marks on the back of it.

It's marked up for 1954.

And I think that we need to estimate this

at £120-£180,

fixed reserve £100.

We're going to sell all these as separate lots.

We move on to this lovely little bird brooch, and again,

all the right marks on the back. 1955.

Um, and again, £100 fixed reserve,

and it'll make estimate £120-£180.

I love this one.

This is this little snail, and it's quite an unusual design,

this snail. 1952.

Again, all fully marked up.

Estimate £120-£180, fixed reserve £100.

And that's the first one with the box.

Then we go on to these sort of amoebic designs,

which were designed by Henning Koppel in the 1950s.

And this one, I think we can put an estimate of £120 to £180 again,

with a reserve of £100.

And again, we've got the box there.

And this slightly larger amoebic design,

I think we can put £150 to £250 on that, reserve £120.

-So, Liz, we could potentially have here £500 to £1,000.

-Mm-hm.

-What are you going to do with the money?

-I've got some home improvements.

-Home improvements?

I've been doing some work at home and quite a few things are going wrong.

They can stay wrong! I'd keep all this lot. What we have to ensure

is that the auctioneers, if possible, get a photograph done. These have to go on the internet,

because I think we'll go to the auction, and Paul will say those magic words,

"Liz, your lot's coming up now", and I wouldn't be at all surprised

to find telephone bids and all sorts going on.

Your problem is not are they gonna sell or not - it's how much will they make?

-So I think it's fabulous, really exciting. Roll on the auction. Are you happy with that?

-Very much so.

-So, Jim, it's nice to have you on a day out today.

-Thank you.

-Nice to see you fit and well, yeah?

-Oh, yes, fighting fit.

Absolutely. And you've brought along three different family timepieces.

They have a personal history to you.

Tell me about this one first of all - this travelling clock.

It belonged to a cousin of mine, who was a major in the Queen Alexandra's.

And she served in France in the '14 war,

and that clock can be seen...in her cubicle.

-So it's seen a bit of action?

-I expect so, yes.

-Absolutely.

It's not something that has a great deal of value, but the history and the family history behind it

-doesn't mean you want to keep it?

-Not particularly, no.

-Why?

-Well, I've got no-one to hand it on to. I've got no children,

so if something happens to me, it'll be thrown aside.

-Does it work?

-No.

-So it's not working.

-No.

-And I've said, "Why don't you just take it home?" and you don't want it - you just wanna sell it!

-Yes.

And the same is true with these other two watches.

-Now these have a more personal history to you.

-Yes.

First of all, you've got this silver cased Half Hunter pocket watch.

I carried that for years on the footplate,

until I got made a driver, and I bought a gold one for myself.

-So you were given this one by your father...

-Yes.

-..when you first

-got onto the footplate of an engine.

-Yes.

-And what were you doing then?

-What sort of work?

-I was the fire man.

-You were stoking the fire?

-Yes.

-That's hard work, isn't it?

-It could be, sometimes.

-And then you've got this gold wristwatch by JW Benson.

-Yes.

-When did you buy that one?

-I went to London to work, and I bought that.

-Like a little treat to yourself?

-Yes. Well, something I always wanted

was a gold watch. So, as you say, a treat, yes.

-As you say, it's a 9-carat gold watch.

-Yes.

It'll be hallmarked on the inside, but we don't need to look at it.

Benson is a very well-known make. They made watches in the Victorian period, and to the admiralty,

in the late 19th century, and then in the early 20th century,

they continued to do that, but also making watches for commercial use,

for everybody to buy in their shops.

This little wristwatch is lovely. It's got a good, clear dial,

it's got that centre seconds hand going around.

You've got Arabic numerals as well as the markers,

but the great thing about it is it's in such good condition.

-You obviously didn't wear this one on the footplate!

-No.

-No scratches.

So many watches were presented after 25 years' service, 50 years', however many it might be,

and there would be an inscription on the back, and that doesn't help.

But this one's completely plain, so that has to be good,

-cos it's not personalised to you. And you just don't want to keep it?

-Not particularly, no.

How much was this one when you bought it, then?

That was about £65, £68.

-What year was that?

-Ooh...'59 or '60.

-That was a lot of money.

-It WAS a lot of money then.

-You're not going to get that sort of money.

-I understand that.

-Ideally,

we would normally suggest selling this one on its own.

But you've said to me,

"I just want to sell all of these watches. Please get rid of them."

And I think that for all three watches together,

-I think we'll get something between £120 and £160.

-Fine.

-You'd be happy with that?

-Yes.

-Put a reserve at £120?

-Yes.

-Let's put them in the auction and let's hope they make that little bit more for you.

-Fine, yes.

-All right.

Time waits for no man, and neither do auctioneers.

We're off to the saleroom

with Jim's timepieces - mementoes of his working life.

We're hoping the bidders will have designs on this superb collection

of Georg Jensen brooches. And they should be fighting

tooth and claw to get their hands on Mark's animal prints.

But first, I can never resist hunting around the saleroom

in case I find something that really is going for a song.

It's surprising how many musical instruments you come across in an antique and general auction room.

We've seen it time and time again on a "Flog It!" -

countless pianos, guitars, and even trombones like this one.

And really, if you're thinking of taking up a musical instrument,

why go to a music shop and buy a brand-new instrument for £200-£300

when you might get fed up with practising after six months?

Come to an auction room, pick one up for next to nothing,

start practising, and you never know - you might get quite good at playing it.

Let's give it a go.

Oh, well, I don't know about me!

But let's hope our experts hit the right note in the auction.

Right, now we've got a collection of timepieces - a couple of watches and a travelling clock

-belonging to Jim here. These go back a long way.

-Yes.

Why are you flogging them? Have you got a very reliable wristwatch?

Well, I have, yes.

-At the moment it's being repaired!

-Oh, it's not that reliable, then!

There is a value of £120 to £150. Now, will we get that top end?

-I know Jim wants it. Jethro, the pressure's on.

-It's always on!

-The pressure's always on!

-And it's ticking away as well.

-It is.

Watches and clocks - pocket watches in particular -

haven't seen a very good return in the last 30 years, I'm afraid to say.

But the gold wristwatch is in there, and gents' watches sell well.

There's a demand. I'm hopeful.

Lot 456 here, a silver-cased Half Hunter pocket watch by Benson,

clock and bits and pieces, three items in total. 150 away?

100 away? £100 I'm bid. 110. 120.

130. 140. 150.

160. And 170.

I can go to 175. 180? 180.

My bid's out. At 180 right there.

190. 200. 210.

220.

At 220 in the middle. At 220.

At 220, 230 up?

We're done, at £220.

Yes. The hammer's gone down. £220, very nice.

-Proper job!

-Proper job!

We have 34 loose bird and animal prints for you right now.

We're not exactly giving them away, but there is a little bit of profit.

We've got £150 to £200 on this,

-but you could mount them up and frame them and sell them separately. Did you think of doing that?

-Um...

-I did think of it, but the cost of framing would have been...

-Yeah.

You've got to be in the know with a good framer

and get the whole lot done as a job lot.

They must be displayed, which is why I think they'll go to the trade, be split up, framed,

-and resold.

-And there's nothing wrong in that.

-Of course not.

Everyone needs to make a living, so fingers crossed. Let's see if we can get you the £200 top end.

They're going under the hammer now.

34 Archibald Thorburn prints of various birds and animals,

including foxes, seals and garden birds.

They're all unframed, but a number of them - lot 753.

Can I say £150 away?

£100 away?

£50 to start me? £50 I'm bid.

At £50, I'll take 60.

60. 70. 80. 90. 100.

At £100.

110.

120. 130. 140.

150. At 150, the bid's in the middle of the room.

At 150. 160? Are we done? I'm selling...

-Sold at 150, right on the lower end.

-Oh, well.

-It'll do.

-They've gone.

-Lots of memories there, your granddad's.

-Yeah. Someone will enjoy them now.

Right now, we've got some 20th century modern for you -

it's great design, it's by Georg Jensen -

-five brooches belonging to Elizabeth.

-Mm-hm.

Philip took them in as one lot, but we're going to split them up and sell them individually.

We've got a value of £120 to £180 on all of them except for the fourth lot, which is a bit more.

-We're hoping for £250 plus.

-Georg Jensen is a name of the moment.

He's a real style icon. I don't think you could have chosen a better time to sell them.

They're going to sell and sell well. Fingers crossed. Here we go.

This is the first lot now.

Lot 494. It's a Georg Jensen oval-form brooch,

decorated with a trail of flowers in relief. £100?

At £100, I've got a bid on the book. 110. 120.

At 120, the bid is still with me.

130, 140, 150. At 150, your bid. My bid's out. 160. 170.

180? 180. 190?

At 190 in the back, then. 200 and up? At £190...

Yes, the hammer's gone down. £190, top end. One down, four more to go.

This is the next one.

I've got a start again at £100.

110. 120. At 120 the bid's with me.

130. 140. 150. 150? My bid's out.

160? At 150 in the room.

At 150. 160? 160.

Brilliant.

At 160 on the phone. At 160...

Are we done? At £160.

Second one down, £160. This is the third.

Let's say £100 to start. £100?

£80? £80 I'm bid.

90. 100. 110.

115. 120.

At 120. 125?

130? 135.

140? 145.

At 145, lady's bid. At 145. 150 up?

-£145.

-Yes! Hammer's gone down. £145.

It's getting exciting. Tension's building. That's just under £500,

a fiver short. Here's the next one.

Can I say £100 to start?

£100, our usual starting point? £80 to start me?

£80 I'm bid. At 80.

90. 100. 110.

115. At 115. 120 now?

At 115...is it 120?

Yes, 120. 125?

At 120 I'm bid. Are we done?

At £120...

Right. £615 so far.

Your last chance to buy one. £100 straight in, please.

£100? £80 to start me. £80.

At 80. £80 I'm bid.

90. 100? 100.

Is it 110? 110. At 110, 120 now.

At 115?

Is it 120, madam? 120.

At 120. Is it 125?

£120 I'm bid.

£120... Is it 125? 125. 130 now.

125 to my left. Are we done?

-At £125...

-Yes! £125.

-740.

-He's played darts! £740.

That's good. That was quality. Georg Jensen is quality.

-I think they've gone to a great home.

-Hopefully they'll enjoy it more.

-Well, they'll wear them!

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

The auction's still going on. We've had some mixed results, highs and lows, but that's auctions.

It's not an exact science. I've had a wonderful time here in Cornwall.

So until the next time, cheerio.