Truro Flog It!

During the 18th and 19th centuries Truro was described as the London of Cornwall

due to it being the centre of high society in the county.

Well, today we're hoping for it to be the centre of profit

as for one day only Flog It is at Truro Cathedral.

What a great turnout we've got! OK, it might be raining,

but that won't dampen our spirits

and I'm really eager to see what's inside all of these bags and boxes

because there might be something really valuable.

Our experts today are David Barby and David Fletcher.

It is Team David! Well, it is now 9.30,

it's time to get the doors open because all of these people

are eager to ask a very important question, which is?

-ALL: What's it worth?

-Let's get them inside.

David Barby, known as The Master, has got to the top of his game

since his interest in antiques started at just 12 years old.

-Oh, my goodness me!

-Let's hope he lives up to his superhero name today!

David Fletcher has only ever worked in the antiques business.

Does he growl or squeak?

His first sale included eggs, produce, poultry and livestock,

but he's come a long way since then!

It's academic because it doesn't do either!

It's all about your antiques and collectables on Flog It.

And what a programme we've got for you today!

As if the two Davids wasn't enough, things get even more complicated.

-I'm surrounded by Davids here. David, our expert as well!

-Good name.

There's a bronze plaque that gets David Fletcher very excited.

This is something of a discovery, really. It's a very rare item.

And I value a glass bottle that was fished from the sea.

You know what people do after they've had a few?

-Yeah.

-Straight in the mud.

# It overtakes me

# It overtakes me

# It overtakes me... #

So many people are seated inside now,

which means an awful lot of antiques to look at.

We'd better get on with the work!

And it looks like David is first at the tables. David Fletcher, that is.

And David's sharp eyes have find Joy and a very bright pair of vases.

-Art Deco.

-Yes.

This sums up the Art-Deco style to me this type of decoration,

boldly potted shapes, bright colours, geometric designs and these fit the bill. Who are they by?

-Shelley, I believe.

-Shelley. Right, let's we'll just have a little look.

And indeed they are by Shelley,

one of the best second-division potters.

-Do you know what this type of ware is called?

-No.

-Well, it sometimes gets called Harmony Ware,

but in the trades they more often refer to it as dribbled ware,

and I understand that Eric Slater, who was working in the Shelley factory,

was fiddling about in his workshop one day as potters do

and entirely by accident produced this dribbly sort of glaze,

which ran from the top of the pot to the bottom by mistake.

In other words, it was unstable, it didn't fix,

but nevertheless he liked it and he stuck with it.

Do you like them?

They aren't what I would choose for myself,

but inasmuch as they've come through the family

from my great aunt first of all, onto my parents and now to me...

So they do have a sentimental value?

-Yes.

-Right.

-They're cheery.

-I suppose there is something about them that's...

-Uplifting.

-Yes, there is.

-Yes.

You'll find you're talking yourself into hanging onto them!

-No! They were down-lifted this morning from the top of the dresser in the kitchen.

-OK.

They were thoroughly scrubbed from cobwebs and they'll stay down now.

OK.

They're not worth a huge amount of money, I think it's only fair to say that,

-and I wouldn't put much more than £30 to £50 on this pair of vases.

-Right.

Had you hoped for a bit more?

I didn't know what to hope for, to be honest,

but, you know, it's as well to do something with them.

-Yeah.

-I don't think my children would want them.

-No.

-So, yeah.

-£30 to £50 estimate. Can we sell them without reserve?

-Yes.

-Jolly good, that's what I like to hear.

-See you at the sale.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

So the vases are all cleaned up and ready to go off to auction.

The same can't be said about all of the items we get in on our valuation days!

That's absolutely fascinating, isn't it?

When you get down low you can see the iridescence of the glass, look, the light shining through it.

There's quite a lot of fractures there, isn't there?

Yeah, a lot of barnacles.

There's a lot of age. What's its story? How did you come by it?

My partner brought it home.

He was working on a boat taking divers out on the Scillies

and it was too rough to go and dive wrecks,

so they went down in the harbour at St Mary's and they pulled up about 10 of these bottles.

-Wow!

-And he brought one home for me.

-That was a good catch of the day!

-It was.

-So everyone went home happy.

-Everybody had one, yeah.

-All these are hand-blown.

-Yeah.

-And these are 18th-century wine bottles.

-They're lovely.

Yeah, most inns and taverns back then were actually

by the side of harbours, in dock sides or on canals because that was the only means of transport.

-Yeah.

-And, of course, that's where the population gathered

and you know what people do after they've had a few?

-Yeah.

-Straight in the mud.

Which is good in one aspect because the mud, the silt, the clay

has preserved many 18th-century wine bottles.

I mean, obviously it's bad in other aspects because it's very dangerous.

-Yeah.

-I'm not sure whether this is English or Dutch, to tell you the truth.

-This is what I would call a mallet-shaped wine bottle.

-OK.

You see lots that are onion glass, they look like an onion,

you know, with the spout coming out.

This is a straight-sided one with a long neck, but there's an applied rim here, you see that?

-Yeah.

-That's called a string rim.

-And, now, that detail was put on to wine bottles in 1740 to around 1760 and then it changed.

-Oh, OK.

So you can date this to around about, you know, 40 odd years.

-Brilliant.

-Which is quite nice.

-Yeah.

But it's got the look

and that's what the decorators and the collectors like.

Good quality ones that are sort of onion shaped or mallet like this

leaning to one side with clear iridescence

can fetch around £600 to £700 if they're dated

because lots of gentry had their own wine bottles with an armorial on and a date,

which you could then take back to the inn to get it refilled.

-Oh, OK.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

They're worth in excess of sort of £1,200 if they're dated and in good condition.

Now, what's the value of this one?

I think it's worth in the region of 100 to 200.

-OK.

-Possibly the high end.

-I'm happy with that.

-You're happy with that? You don't mind selling?

-I don't mind selling.

OK, let's put it into auction then with a value of £100 to £200

and hopefully we'll get a little more than that top end.

-That would be great.

-What a lovely find.

And the lovely finds just keep streaming through the doors.

David Barby's been hard at work and has unearthed a compact that belonged to Doug's mother.

Can you remember whether your mother was a sort of... happy lady in her day?

Did she go to lots of dances and things like that?

-I'm sure she did.

-She had a good lifestyle.

Very stylish, fashionable lady.

Because this is a very stylish piece.

I look at this and my immediate thought is probably Hollywood 40s,

but since it's your mother it's probably going to be a little bit earlier, is it?

I would say '30s.

To the '30s.

Let's say it was still being used in the '40s.

I think we're somewhere between the two.

What I like about this is that it is sham shagreen.

In other, words it's imitation sharkskin and it's a sort of enamel decoration onto a gilt metal

and you could just imagine this being sort of swung backwards and forwards

when somebody was going off to the powder room or dancing.

-Indeed.

-And it's a multiplicity of uses, isn't it?

-It is, yeah.

So when we open it up, and it's just a simple clasp like this,

we've got a fitted interior there.

-This has hardly been used because this is the....

-I think it's never been used.

-This is the original indication for stamps and this is imitation match case there.

-Yes.

-So, these would be for cigarettes.

-Yeah.

And in here.

-Striker.

-Striker and spent matches, I would think.

And spent matches. That's quite good.

And what do we have on the other side?

-You have the...

-Oh, isn't that good?

The powder and the rouge.

-The rouge.

-And that was used?

-The powder.

-The powder and a little

-plastic comb.

-Yes.

And then what does that say?

"For your favourite lipstick," so your lipstick there.

-It is absolutely complete even down to the little powder puffs.

-Indeed.

That's quite good.

These objects are quite desirable.

Anything to do with vintage fashion is sought after

and young girls tend to spend quite a bit of money on these

bearing in mind if they bought something original today from leading brand names,

they'd pay a fortune,

so they're looking for these sort of vintage retro pieces which they can still use today.

-Yes.

-I noticed on one of them there's a name - Park Lane.

-Yes.

-Now that was the retail brand name

for this object which was made abroad.

So let's think in terms of value.

If we got the right people at the auction probably £100, 150.

We've got to box clever and put it at a price that will attract people

and I would have thought something in the region of between 75 and 100.

Sounds fine by me.

-So, if we put a reserve of 75 on it?

-Yes.

-Would that be agreeable?

-It would.

-I shall keep my fingers crossed.

-Me, too.

-Doug, thank you very much for bringing it along.

And what's so good,

you've got the original little sort of baize container.

Yes. Well, my mother was like that.

Would she have made that or did it come like that?

No, no, I'm sure that's how it was bought.

And that would be put into a suitcase and...

-And into a drawer.

-Right.

-Yeah.

-And your wife doesn't like it? She would not use it or...?

She wouldn't use it. She likes it, certainly, as do I, but...

But what can you do with it? That's the point.

-No, no.

-Except put it in the cabinet and look at it.

-Yeah.

-That's the reason for selling it. You've got no use for it whatsoever.

-No.

-Oh, well, I think let the younger generation have their fun with it.

-Yeah.

We'll soon find out

if the younger generation agree with David's valuation

as the compact is about to go under the hammer.

It's joined in this part of the programme by the scrubbed-up Harmony vases

and the not so scrubbed-up 18th-century wine bottle!

Yeah! Do you know, I wish I could relax like this all day long in the Cornish sunshine,

but unfortunately I can't because there's work to do.

We're going to up the tempo and put our valuations to the test

and we're the guests of Jefferys Auction Rooms right here in the picturesque town of Lostwithiel.

Please do remember if you're buying or selling antiques in auction, there is commission to pay.

That's how they make their living and pay for all of this.

It does vary from saleroom to saleroom.

Here in Lostwithiel today it's 15% plus VAT,

so do factor that in to the cost of the thing you are buying or selling,

and the information is always printed in the catalogue.

The locals have come out in force for this antique and modern furniture and effects sale.

With over 1,000 lots to get through, auctioneer Ian Morris has certainly got his work cut out.

OK, something for all you Art Deco fanatics.

We've got a pair of Shelley vases belonging to Joy

with a valuation of £30 to £50 and no reserve at the valuation day,

but I know the auctioneer called you and said, "We'll put a £30 reserve on these."

-Fingers crossed.

-Fingers crossed we get that.

-We'll see.

Here we go, let's find out what the bidders think.

What say quickly? £50 a pair?

£30 the pair?

£20 I'm bid. At £20. At £20 I'm bid. I'll take five to get on.

At £20. 22, then. 25. 28. £30. 32.

At 32. The bid's in the middle.

At £32 I'm bid. I'll take five now. At 32.

Come on, come on, come on. We are struggling a bit.

We are there, £32.

At 32. Five or not? We're done at 32?

At 32 to 428.

-Sold it.

-It didn't exactly fly away.

No, no. We've sold it.

They've given everybody else the same impression that they give my children, so...

-What, get rid of them?

-Yes.

I don't think they're that bad and somebody obviously liked them,

but will there are also be someone out there interested in Clara's antique bottle?

It's my turn to be the expert

and I'm trying to make money out of something salvaged from the Scilly Isles.

-Good to see you again, Clara.

-Hi.

I just hope people see the virtue in something from the 18th century.

-It's a lovely bottle.

-Mm.

-Yeah.

-I'm worried, though.

I am really worried.

It's got to make £100, surely!

It's got to make £100, that's the reserve we've got on it,

so fingers crossed, that's all I can say.

It's not an exact science, but we'll find out what the bidders think.

It's 18th-century free-blown glass bottle there

in distressed condition,

but you would be if you were that old.

What do you say for that very quickly? Can I say £100 away?

£50 I've got. At 50. At £50 I'm bid. I'll take 60 now. 60. 70.

He's got a bid on the book, look.

At £80. £80. 90, now?

At £80. £80. At £80. 90 now?

At £80 I'm bid. 90 or not?

We're done at £80.

Thank you, can't quite sell it at that price. Thank you.

-I'm ever so sorry.

-That's all right.

-It's worth £100, so I'm pleased we protected it with the reserve.

-Yeah.

That's important, it didn't go for nothing.

-It's going home.

-That's all right.

-Look after it.

-I will.

Well, that is disappointing, but I still stand by my valuation

and I think that's a real piece of history there.

Will David Barby be saying the same thing after Doug's compact goes under the hammer?

Good luck, Doug, that's all I can say.

Going under the hammer now is that wonderful compact from the 1930s.

Sort of a faux shagreen, isn't it? It's really nice.

It's really bright green rather than a dull green.

I think we'll get the money on this. It has the look, doesn't it?

Well, it has great appeal, that period, sort of 1930s, movies, it's very good, yeah.

-Here we go, it's going under the hammer.

-The lady's compact.

Can I say £80 away? £50 away?

£50 I'm bid. At £50 I'm bid, the compact. At £50 I'm bid.

I'll take five to get on. 55. £60.

65. £70.

75? 75. At 75.

-It's sold, Doug.

-Good.

At 75. At 75. The bids to my left at £75.

I'll take 80 now. At £75 I'm bid. 80 or not?

Are we all done at 75, then? I'm selling at the £75.

-Yes!

-Oh, that's good.

-Well, done.

-It sold!

-I'm pleased with that.

I bet you are. That's really good, isn't it?

-Yes.

-Spot on, good valuation, David.

-Thank you very much.

Coming from you, Paul, that's remarkable!

-Doug, thank you very much.

-And thank you. Thank you.

-Thanks, Doug.

Right on the money, David, and the compact has kept everything looking rosy here in Lostwithiel.

If you've got any antiques and collectables you want to sell, we would love to see you,

but you've got to come to one of our valuation days

and you can check the details in your local press or you can log onto -

Click F for Flog It, follow the links

and hopefully we'll be coming to a town very near you soon.

That's the end of our first visit to the auction room.

We are coming back later on in the show, so don't go away

because I can guarantee one or two big surprises that will make you smile,

but before we go back to the valuation day

to join up with our experts to look for more antiques to sell,

I took a closer look behind the scenes at our magnificent venue.

You might think Truro Cathedral looks like one of the great cathedrals of the mediaeval period

and you'd be right...sort of.

Because during the Victorian era when it was built,

the Gothic revival was in full force.

At its height, Gothic revival encompasses everything from furniture to architecture

and here you can see the evidence of the movement, can't you?

Wonderful high pointed arches which replaced sort of the softer Norman round arches

and, of course, these wonderful great big stone cluster columns.

But why did the Victorians embark on such a major building project in the first place?

For 800 years Cornwall had been administered from Devon,

but in 1877 when the Cornish diocese was re-established in Truro

a mother church for the new diocese was needed.

It was decided a brand new one should be built.

Well, most of it was brand new.

There'd been a parish church of St Mary's on this site ever since 1257,

although it was rebuilt in the 16th century,

but what the Victorians did in their wisdom was

instead of knocking down St Mary's to build the new cathedral,

they actually incorporated it, as you can see here,

into the new structure so it's a wonderful piece of conservation.

And look how clever the designers were.

They married the older architecture of St Mary's aisle

to the specially designed addition

with a beautifully crafted join in the roof and ceiling.

This mix of Victorian innovation, traditional design and skills is evident throughout the cathedral.

And here is the high altar, it's the focal point of any church or cathedral.

It's where Holy Communion is celebrated

with the sharing of bread and wine representing Christ's great sacrifice,

but the backdrop behind the high altar here at Truro Cathedral is truly, truly magical.

Just look at that. It's known as a reredos.

It's carved in Bath stone by Nathaniel Hitch, a man at the top of his genre.

He made Bath stone do what it shouldn't do, because it really does come alive.

The whole thing depicts biblical scenes,

but the two that I'm drawn to and that anybody is drawn to here,

are the central panels.

There's two, one at the top, Christ sitting on the high altar

above Christ here below, suffering on the Cross.

Your eyes drift, you go to one or you go to the other,

you keep swapping backwards and forwards, you see the two at the same time.

Now, that is very clever.

I tell you what, you can't walk around Truro Cathedral without admiring the stained-glass windows.

I defy anybody that because they are truly quite amazing. Look at that.

They make your eyes gravitate upwards towards the heavens,

and I guess that's what it's all about.

This was the largest stained-glass project ever commissioned in the world

and it was done by the master studios of Clayton & Bell.

And when you look at the rose windows you can see

they really are breathtaking.

Another important part of any cathedral is the organ

and, as with most of the impressive features in this building,

the organ is one of the finest ever made.

Good sound, good sound.

This organ was built by possibly one of the greatest, Father Willis,

and it was transported to Cornwall by boat as the safest means of transport back then.

It was installed in the cathedral in 1887 when only a third of the cathedral had been completed,

but it was installed, as you can see, in its own purpose-built vault

cleverly designed by the architect, Pearson,

because it really does allow the music just to be thrown out.

And considering Willis only had the plans to work from, the cathedral was only a third finished,

when it was fully completed nothing had to be altered, and it's never changed since.

And it still sounds as good today as it did back then, so take it away.

What an amazing place and what a wonderful treat to look at

while you're waiting for a Flog It valuation.

Well, it really is super to be back home here in Cornwall.

I'm ever so excited about this, and so is David Barby.

Look what he's spotted.

Victoria's brought in an intriguing ivory ornament.

Did you have... family in the Colonial service?

-I didn't, but my husband probably did.

-And this belonged to your husband's family, did it?

Yes, it was from his family.

So what's the history behind it? How did he acquire it?

Well, all I know is that his family were living out in India

and he told me that that was where it came from.

I can't tell you anything else, I'm really sorry!

-So what part of India?

-A place called Chittagong.

-Chittagong.

-If I'd done my homework, I could tell you what part of India that was,

but I'm afraid I haven't even done that.

Well, this is not Indian, this is Chinese.

-Oh, right.

-If you think of those...

-very intricate carved cases where you put visitors cards in.

-Yes.

This is exactly the same sort of quality.

-Right.

-This is superb carving that the Chinese excelled at.

-Yes.

-And if you look very carefully some of these leaves and flowers are actually undercut,

-they're drilled through and then carved so you get these in high relief all the way round.

-Yes.

-It's exquisitely done. Of course, this is a section of a tusk.

-Yes.

But you've also got to bear in mind this was probably purchased in Chittagong

-because this type of carving was available throughout the Colonial areas.

-Right.

So, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, you would find this type of work available.

-It was a huge, huge industry.

-Right.

This may well have formed part of a garniture,

so these would have been on a mantelpiece with a central ornamental item

and then two either side which could be used as spill holders.

-Right.

-Something as simple as that.

Or maybe peacock feathers as decoration,

dried flowers or something like that.

-Yeah.

-The date of this,

-I think the date is towards the end of the 19th, beginning of the 20th century.

-Right.

-Of course with ivory now, people don't like buying ivory because of the conservation of elephants.

-Yeah.

But we're looking at a piece that dates...

-..much earlier than this sort of consideration.

-Yes.

The style of decoration is exquisitely done and therein its value.

One or two interesting things I observed,

first of all there's a very small hole down the side there

and one wonders whether in fact it's finished up now as it started off life,

because the little hole there is a pin which would probably have meant that it had a separate foot

and we haven't got that.

-No.

-I think this ebonised section is later than the original piece.

Also, if you look carefully, this area all the way round the bottom,

it's rubbed slightly smooth...

..as opposed to the rest of the section here,

-so one wonders whether in fact there was another component down below.

-Oh, right.

So we're looking at a very well carved ivory piece

-that might have started life off in a different format.

-Right.

As regards value,

this is beautifully carved and I think at auction

it will realise something in the region of about £100 to £150.

-Right.

-That sort of price range.

I'd like to see it do more because of the amount of workmanship

that is entailed in producing something like this,

but I'm just a little bit concerned that it's now arrived in a different state.

-Right.

-You want to put a reserve on it, I would imagine.

-Yes, yeah.

I think we should put a reserve at 90.

-Right.

-Is that agreeable?

-Yes, OK.

-You sounded slightly hesitant there.

-£100?

-I know there's not a lot in that, but...

-We'll say £100 with discretion.

-Right.

Well, let's hope we can do a little bit more than that for Victoria.

This bronze plaque that Carol and husband, Ian, have brought along

has got everyone excited, especially our expert, David Fletcher.

Now this is something of a discovery really,

or at least a mini discovery, for us.

It's by no means unique, but it's a very rare item.

Tell me a bit about it.

Well, we won it almost 15 years ago now at a raffle,

took it home and hung it on the wall and didn't really think a great deal more about it

until probably four years ago or so and we did a bit of research on it.

Right, OK. So you didn't know who it was by at the time you won it?

-We knew it was Eduardo Paolozzi.

-Right.

-But didn't really realise the significance of it.

-You didn't realise how important he was.

-No.

No. OK.

This is a three-dimensional flat representation,

if you can have such a thing as a three-dimensional flat representation,

-but you know what I mean.

-Yeah.

It's a sort of maquette really of the famous piece of sculpture

After Blake that stands in the forecourt of the British Library

and, I mean, you knew at the time it was by Paolozzi

and how did you know that?

It came with this letter of authenticity with it.

OK, I'll just quickly read this.

This obviously is on his own notepaper with the printed heading.

"This is to authorise that the bronze plaque Newton After Blake

"can be raffled for the Brenchley & Matfield Tennis Club." Where's that?

-In Kent.

-In Kent.

"This was executed by me

"and a copy cast by Livingston Art Founders in 1995".

It then goes on to say that "the original version of the sculpture

"is being installed in front of the New British Library"

and it's signed by Paolozzi himself, which is fantastic. Dated 1995.

Now, Paolozzi is an important man.

He was Scottish of Italian parents who trained in London at,

I think I'm right in saying, the Slade

amongst other art schools and had a workshop in London.

Right.

It's bronze and it's patinated.

The three-dimensional work itself of course is also bronze.

Now, I suspect this isn't unique and therefore it will be possible to ascertain its value

because we'll be able to make reference to comparable works that have been sold.

We're going to have to do a bit of homework, really,

but my view is that this is worth somewhere between £2,000 and £3,000.

I know that similar editions in plaster with a bronzed finish

have been sold recently and they made well into four figures.

This has got to be worth more than that.

But what I'd like to do, really, we don't always do this,

in fact we very rarely do,

but there's a case here to be said

we'd like to take it in at an estimate of 2,000 to 3,000

and then do a bit more research before we confirm that estimate

and, more importantly, confirm a reserve.

Can I ask how much the raffle ticket cost?

-£1.

-£1, gosh!

"The draw takes place at Matfield Village Green

-"on 22 July 1995, tickets £1 each."

-£1.

-But you were generous, you bought more than one.

-We bought five.

-Five! So it actually cost you a fiver, not just a pound.

-No.

-You could argue.

Well, I think this is great and very exciting for us to find it.

I won't ask you what you're going to do with the money

-because you'll have quite a bit and could do all sorts of exciting things.

-We could.

-But do you have anything in mind?

-I think probably some house renovation.

-OK.

-We might even do a small family holiday.

-Oh, great. You could do a bit of both.

We could.

-Do you normally do the house renovation?

-Yes!

Right, so you're going to be spared this one, someone else will be paid to do it!

-Indeed.

-Quite right.

-OK, we'll go ahead on that basis, then. It'll be very exciting.

-Yeah.

-I can't wait.

-No.

-I'll see you both there.

-Look forward to it.

-Thank you very much.

Isn't that just incredible? I can't wait to see how that does when it goes under the hammer.

Now, from one great artist to another.

I just can't resist showing you something else that's on display here in the cathedral.

A lot of the people that have turned up at our valuation day will possibly have some Royal Doulton,

maybe modelled by George Tinworth, one of the greatest modellers in the potteries.

What they might be unaware of is the fact that just behind them

tucked away in a corner of Truro Cathedral is this.

It was first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1880.

It's here now as a presentation to the safe return, it says here,

of two loving sons back from the Boer War.

But just look at that angry street scene.

The whole thing does come alive for me.

It's modelled in clay, but look at the relief of the characters.

And there's Jesus, look, saying to this weeping woman,

"Don't worry, everything's OK."

Simon is being pulled out by his ear to help with the cross.

But just look at the guards muscling people along, people jeering, saying this is totally wrong.

It's staggering, it's absolutely staggering.

I just hope later on today we might have some George Tinworth, who knows?

Well, what a coincidence!

Mary has brought in what looks like a Doulton figurine, but is that actually what it is?

Well, David's about to tell us.

Well, Mary, I've always wanted to meet a friend of Dorothy,

-because this little figure is called Dorothy, is it not?

-She is, yes.

Where did you get this figure from?

It's been in my family as long as I can remember.

I remember seeing it sitting on the mantelpiece.

-Oh, right.

-And as a child, being told not to touch it, not to dust it,

just to leave it alone, I could dust everything else, but leave that.

So why are you contemplating selling it now?

With a boisterous cat, I'm afraid it will get broken

and it's not really something that I'm particularly keen on.

Right. Is it too fussy?

A little bit, yes.

I think that's a problem with these ornaments now, they don't fall in line with modern taste.

-Perhaps not.

-You know, modern taste is more for Poole, Troika.

-Yes.

-Those sort of minimalist tastes.

-That's right.

And this is, I suppose, something of the '20s, '30s

and I suppose my parents' generation, which would have been the '50s.

This one was produced by Leslie Johnson who was a decorator with the Doulton studio

in the '30s, '40s and he started producing on his own account

and this one here is one of his productions.

Very much in the Doulton style and there are collectors out there that collect Leslie Johnson figures.

-Oh, right.

-This one here called Dorothy is part and parcel of his studio productions

and it's all beautifully coloured, all hand-painted decoration here

and the modelling is very much on par with Doulton figures.

Now, Doulton figures aren't fetching as much as they used to.

You know, I can remember the times, £80 to £100 and they've come down probably £40, £60.

The last one we have on record that Leslie Johnson sold was £55

and that was for a lady wearing a crinoline and lifting up the edges of the dress like this, you know,

rather sort of pretty, and this is a pretty figure.

-Yes, yes.

-I think we're looking at something in the region of about £30 to £50 on this figure.

It's very little, do you still want to sell it at that level?

Yes, yes, I'm quite prepared to sell it.

Will you get another ornamental object? Or spend it on the cat!

I might spend it on the cat,

or I might buy another jelly mould or teddy bear.

-Is that what you collect?

-Jelly moulds, yes.

-What sort, the stone ones or...?

-No, glass ones. The stone ones are a bit expensive,

I'm waiting for them to drop, but the glass ones are very interesting.

Have you got some with rabbits at the bottom?

A large rabbit, a baby rabbit. Small ones with anchors in the bottom.

-So you've got a complete warren!

-Oh, I've got a whole lot, yes!

You should sacrifice this and buy more jelly moulds.

-Thank you.

-I don't know how many you'll be able to get though.

Well, no. I've only got a few hundred now.

-Hundreds?

-Afraid so!

-So how do you display them?

At the moment they're just stuck in a cupboard,

but I'm looking for a cabinet so that I can show them off.

-Let's hope we sell this and you can buy a display cabinet.

-That would be good.

Truro has turned out some truly fascinating items,

but it's time to put our experts' valuations to the test once again.

Victoria's carved ivory ornament started off life as something else.

We're not really sure what, but I hope it doesn't put the bidders off.

Mary's Leslie Johnson figurine survived her childhood unscathed,

but now she's worried it'll get broken, so she's decided to sell it.

And the most exciting lot of all is the Paolozzi bronze

that was won in a raffle by Carol and Ian and I can't wait to see how that does.

And neither can auctioneer, Ian Morris.

Great story, you won't believe this.

It's a bronze plaque by Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, wonderful architect.

Sadly dead now. But it's inscribed with his name on the back with the date 1995 when this was won

in a raffle at a tennis club and we valued this at £2,000 to £3,000.

Unbelievable, isn't it?

That is, I must admit, a superb way to improve on your money

investing £1 and getting, hopefully, towards £2,000.

It's incredible, isn't it? And, hopefully, fingers crossed,

the money is going towards house renovations.

Which again is hopefully investing in the future to increase your money further.

Paolozzi would be pleased with that, being an architect, wouldn't he?

He was into architecture, quite modernist,

and, you know he would like modernising houses, renovating so, yeah, I think he would like it.

At the time it was touch and go if they wanted to sell this,

but they're happy to let it go with a fixed reserve of £2,000.

I know their wishes and I know what they would like for it, so let's hope we get it for them.

Will this get the top end or are you confident at just getting it away at the lower end?

-There is certainly interest.

-Good.

We've had purchasers in the room there having a look, so they do quite like the plaque.

It's whether they put their money where their mouth is.

Well, it's now time to wave goodbye to Dorothy.

-I've been joined by Mary and it's that little Doulton-type figurine.

-It is.

-You like this a lot, don't you?

-Well, I like it, but I'm afraid of it being broken

-with a boisterous cat around.

-Who's this naughty cat, what's its name?

-Basil.

And I think Basil's white because you're covered in white hair!

Yes, I'm afraid I am.

He's very naughty this one.

-Well, good luck. Good luck.

-Thank you.

I hope we get the top end. It's a well sought-after figure.

-A good model.

-It's an interesting figure and it's a nice name, Dorothy,

because everybody knows an Aunt Dorothy or something like that.

-I think it's quite a comely figure.

-Yes.

That type of figure is not making great waves at the moment.

Fashions have changed. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

-OK.

-"Comely buy me," that's what we need, isn't it? Good luck.

-That's what we need.

-Here we go.

The Royal Doulton figure, Dorothy. A studio production by Leslie Johnson.

What do you say to that one very quickly? Can I say £60 away?

£40 to start me.

£30 I'm bid.

At £30 the bids on the books.

At £30. 35. £40. 45. £50.

At £50 the bid's with me.

At £50. At £50. Five or not?

Are we all done at the £50?

Buyer 802.

Top end of the estimate, yes!

-Oh, that's good!

-Thank you.

-Marvellous!

-Very good.

-Does the cat get the money? Are you going to treat the cat?

-Might do.

-Might do.

Might get him a few treats.

-Dorothy's found a new friend.

-Yes.

Yes, I'm glad of that.

Another happy owner on Flog It.

If our next lot hits the valuation that David Fletcher expects

it would make owners, Ian and Carol, very happy indeed.

We've been waiting for this and hopefully it will be worth the wait.

It's a name we are familiar with on Flog It, Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, a wonderful architect.

Now, this item belongs to Ian and Carol and you got this from a tennis raffle

and hopefully we're turning it into £2,000 to £3,000.

That wonderful bronze plaque, limited edition.

I came across this architect when we were filming in Scotland about six or seven years ago

and we had this little tiny model that he made to give to the reps

because he designed a lot of rubber flooring, industrial flooring,

and this elephant, I put a value of a couple of thousand on it and it made it, even with the damage,

so it's a name that a few people will really, really be determined to have,

and I agree with the valuation, and so does the auctioneer, we had a chat.

And this is bronze, Paul, not rubber.

And not rubber and it's not an elephant, either, no!

I think it's great. I love it to bits.

Two to three, hopefully.

-Try to.

-We're going to get that.

-Wow!

Why have you decided to sell now?

I think we just saw Flog It in Truro and decided to bring it along and see what you thought of it.

Well, it certainly opened your eyes up, didn't it?

Gives me a lot to think about.

I loved thinking about it, I loved looking at it, handling it.

Did a bit of research on it, as you know. It's an important name.

I love 20th century stuff. We don't see enough of it, do we, Paul?

We're going to find out what the bidders think.

This is the moment we have been waiting for.

Good luck, everyone. Here we go.

I've got bids, got interest and I'm going to start at £1,500.

At £1,500 the bid's on the books. At £1,500.

At £1,500. The bid's with me.

1,600. 1,700. 1,800. 1,900.

2,000. Two one.

At £2,100. The bid's with me.

At £2,100.

At £2,100. Two two or not?

At £2,100. Two two or not? Are we done?

At £2,100.

Buyer 814.

Yes, he sold it for £2,100. Got to be happy with that!

-Absolutely.

-What a great result.

Spot on valuation, well done, David.

-There is commission to pay - it's 15%. It's a lot of money, so enjoy it.

-We will.

-Thank you.

That's made everybody's day.

Again, a spot-on valuation.

Will the ivory ornament, which is up next, make it a hat trick for our experts?

Next, a touch of the Orient comes to Cornwall and it belongs to Victoria, who's joined me.

-And who have you brought along?

-My husband, David.

-I'm pleased to meet you. I'm surrounded by Davids here. Our expert, as well!

-Good name.

I love this. We've got £100 to £150 on this wonderful carving, absolutely wonderful carving.

-Yes.

-Why are you selling this?

Well, we've a credenza full of other items which we store away

and we just can't look at everything all the time and, really, things have got to go and...

What I like about this is it's very tactile, you have to hold it.

-Yes.

-You have to turn it around in your hand

like a Renaissance prince, you bring out these pieces and handle them.

But if you've got too much, I quite agree with you.

-It's overbearing.

-It becomes an obsession to hold on to it.

There's no-one else to appreciate it as well.

Who do you pass it on to? They're not going to appreciate it.

-That's true.

-I'd rather it go to someone who would appreciate it.

And it's an acquired taste. A lot of young people are put off by ivory.

-That's very true.

-But, anyway, I think this is lovely and it should find a new home.

We're going to find out now. We can't do any more talking, it is down to this lot in the room,

the packed bidders of Lostwithiel. Here we go.

A fine 19th-century floral carved ivory on the ebonised plinth, there.

Nicely carved. I've got two bids and I've got to start at £200.

200!

At £200. 220. 240. 260.

280. At 280. The bid's with me.

At 280. 300 now.

At 280. At 280. 300 now.

At 300 on the phone. At 300. 320.

At 320. 350?

350. 380. 400?

Gosh, they love this.

-That's very good.

-At 400 to the right and I'm out. At £400.

At £400. 420 now?

At £400 I'm bid. 20 or not? On the phone to my right at the £400.

Yes! £400!

You've got to be so happy with that!

Difficult thing to value. Well, done, you, for bringing it along.

-Good.

-That's exciting, isn't it?

-Very exciting.

Sadly that brings us to the end of a wonderful show in Lostwithiel.

It's great to be back in my home county of Cornwall, I'll see my mum tonight!

I hope you've enjoyed watching, so, until the next time, cheerio.

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