Births and Marriages Flog It!

Hello and welcome to another series of Flog It - Ten of the Best,

from the stunning surroundings of Syon House,

nestling on the River Thames, just a few miles from central London.

This amazing estate has been home to the Percy family,

the title-holders of Northumberland, for over 12 generations.

Over the years, I'm sure this place has seen and witnessed

and celebrated many births, marriages and mourned quite a few deaths.

As I look around this magnificent interior, it's easy to see artefacts and mementoes

that mark these milestones in history.

It's a tribute to the people.

Over the years on Flog It, we've had our fair share of mementoes and gifts

to mark these sort of occasions.

So today, I have hunted some of my favourite ones out

from the archives to share with you,

so be prepared to be hatched, matched and dispatched.

For my first milestone masterpiece, I'm taking you to Plymouth.

Back in 2003, Mark Stacey discovered that Sara

had grown out of the Georgian silver beaker she'd had since a baby.

She wanted Mark to name her a good price.

Sara, you've brought this nice beaker in to show us today.

But before we look at it, can you tell us

a little bit about the history - how has it come into your possession?

I've always owned this beaker - it was given to me as a christening gift by my godfather.

A gentleman who was no relation to the family.

My parents met him in the late 1930s, I believe,

on a holiday in Switzerland.

They happened to be walking, and he was a bachelor boy,

and they got talking and then they remained friends.

What a lovely gift to receive on your christening.

If we look at the piece in closer detail, what we will see,

we've got a very nice Georgian period beaker.

I particularly like the simplicity of the design, it's a very simplistic pattern,

but with these two effective bands of Greek key motifs.

Nice clear hallmarks for London 1805.

It also has the maker's initials, J E, for John Eames.

He's quite a good maker from that period.

But it's not a typical shape, it's a nice shape.

Got a very good feel to it.

It's also got this really nice gilding inside.

Your godfather had this engraved for you.

We've got a reasonably good maker,

a nice piece with some nice decoration on it.

The later engraving obviously will have a slight detrimental effect to the value.

Have you ever thought about what that might be?

No, I can honestly say, I haven't.

I've assumed it has a value because there is a hallmark on it

and silver-gilt, so I thought there has to be a value but, I don't know.

If we were putting this into auction today,

I think it would make around £120 to £180.

Would that be something that would interest you in doing?

-Yes, it would.

-You'd like to flog it?

Yes, it seems a shame, but it's just sitting in a cupboard.

I was going to come to that.

Are you not sentimentally attached to it at all?

Yes and no.

But I think, what a shame, this piece is sitting, hidden.

Absolutely gorgeous.

We'll return to find out how it fared at auction in a little while.

From birth bequests to inherited items now,

as I take you to Milton Keynes

where in 2008, Irene had Kate Bateman completely arrested

by her unusual Victorian heirloom.

My mother owned it. It used to be her uncle's many years ago

and she just kept it and kept it and one day said,

"this is something you can have",

and I thought, oh, nice!

You were thrilled to have it as a gift?

It was nice but when you're younger, you never ask questions

about what it was about, you weren't interested.

Now she's long gone, it would be nice to know a bit more.

-Was someone in the family a policeman?

-Yeah, my mother's uncle.

OK, and was that fairly locally?

Oh yeah, around Wolverton, Bucks, which is in Milton Keynes.

It's a late 19th-century policeman's truncheon. Have a look.

It's quite nicely decorated.

You've got all these hand-painted things on the front.

You've got a crown and a VR, for Victoria's cipher,

and you've got constable for a police constable,

you've got a turned fruitwood handle

and you've got a bit of string here,

but it would've had a leather strap or something for the wrist strap.

Quite a highly decorative thing,

as well as a highly effective thing to hit someone over the head with.

-Do you like it?

-I think it's nice, but it's in a cupboard in a box.

-So it is hard to display.

-Oh, yeah.

Sometimes they have wording on them, like where it comes from,

so sometimes you would have the county.

This doesn't, but you've got the VR sign so it tells you it's Victorian, pre-1910.

Price-wise for the auction, do you have any idea what it would go for?

-Not really.

-No idea.

I would think probably for an auction estimate

you would put maybe £80-120 on it, so they are quite collectible.

-That's good.

-You want it to sell.

What would you say to a reserve of £50?

Why not?

-And an estimate of 80-120.

-Brilliant.

Great. We'll see you at the sale.

We'll be back to find out whether that truncheon beat out a good price in the sale room.

To Monmouth, and back to 2008, when Michael was after a top estimate

from Charlie Ross for his inherited embroidery box.

It used to belong to my grandmother.

Right.

It was handed to my mother when she died in 1970-ish.

My mother handed it on to my daughter

-so it's the fourth generation in the family.

-Right.

-And your daughter's instructed you to bring it?

-Yes.

She's getting married next year.

It would be useful towards the honeymoon.

Does it come with any story?

Not that I'm aware of.

I don't know where it's from, what age it is, anything.

All I know is it must be something like 110 years old.

That's pretty accurate. It's late 19th century.

-But where does it come from?

-I don't know.

-I'll put you out of your misery. It's Indian.

-Right.

-And do you know what it's made of?

-No.

It's very black. I thought initially it was ebony but I think I can see a bit of flecking.

I think it's a wood called coromandel, hence its weight.

Unbelievably heavy.

-Almost the weight of stone rather than wood!

-Right, yes.

We'll open it up.

Wow.

Look at that fantastic workmanship.

It is coromandel.

If we look at the back, you can see the brown flecks running through it,

rather like rosewood.

-You know, the wood. Rosewood.

-Right.

It's got the most wonderful ivory inlay.

When I say wonderful, it's not Japanese quality.

The quality isn't brilliant. It's rising up in a few places.

Nevertheless, it's interesting.

Then it has different woods, specimen woods, laid into it.

There's some - probably - tigerwood, there's some rosewood, I think,

and mostly ivory, and then coloured with these floral...

Good Lord.

-There's not something like this in every one, is there?

-No!

That was actually given to me 40-odd years ago.

-You know what that is?

-That's a vesta.

A vesta for matches and striking along the bottom.

We haven't come to look at this. we're looking at the box.

If we lift this up, there should be a compartment in the bottom.

Oh my gosh, it's full, isn't it?

-I don't know anything about them.

-You don't?

-No.

There's a little note which we could probably have a look at.

"Dear Rosa." Does that ring a bell?

-There was an Aunt Rosa.

-An Aunt Rosa!

-My mother's aunt.

"First pair of boots. Too small for her little feet."

That's dated 1873.

Wonderful.

Coming back to the box,

did your daughter say take it away, if it's worth more than ten quid, sell it? Or 500?

No, she just said take it and sell it. I've got no use for it.

I suggested it might be worth in excess of 100.

That's a pretty good valuation. I think it's worth about £100.

-Really?

-How does that sound?

Reasonable.

Reasonable! Were you hoping for more?

Well, always.

LAUGHTER

-It's not my money!

-No.

-But that would be all right?

-Yes. Jolly good.

I would suggest putting a reserve in just below the psychological £100 barrier.

-Perhaps £75.

-OK.

Would you be happy with that?

My daughter would be very happy.

We'll see if that box exceeded Charlie's somewhat conservative valuation a little bit later.

I'm taking you to Newcastle now

where in 2006, Lesley made Anita's day with the Whitefriars vase

that she'd bought for her parents' wedding anniversary 30 years ago.

This is a lovely blackcurrant sweetie.

I love it to bits!

Do you know what it is?

I believe it's a Whitefriars vase, but that's as much as I know.

Where did you get it?

I bought it as an anniversary present for my parents in the early '70s.

You're a woman of taste.

Did you pay a lot of money for it at the time?

I thought it was a lot of money. It couldn't have been more than a fiver.

All I can say is it was a good buy.

-Was it?

-It was a good buy!

It is Whitefriars, and one of the prestigious glass makers,

they always made items of quality.

Not only did they make quality products,

they employed the best of designers,

and this vase was designed by a chap called Geoffrey Baxter,

who was one of the most prestigious designers of the 20th century.

This is what is hot!

And that's why I'm so pleased to see it.

Price-wise, you paid a fiver for it, Lesley.

About that.

-If I offered you a fiver for it now, would you take it?

-No!

You'd be quite right! You would be quite right.

Now, you bought it for your folks.

It's in your possession now. Do you have it on display?

No. It's just in the spare room.

-So it's doing nothing?

-No.

In that case, it's time to pass it on.

I would love this to go into auction and be one of my items.

I would estimate it in the region of £500-£700.

How much?!

500-700.

I'm very, very surprised it's as much as that.

I didn't have any idea at all it would be worth that much.

-But a very nice surprise!

-Are you pleased?

-Yes.

Would you be happy to sell it at that price?

Sure! Yes! Very happy!

Well, it may go higher.

There is one of this design which is an orange colour.

This is quite unusual. You don't see a lot of them,

and I'm not absolutely sure if this colour is more desirable

than the orange colour, but your auctioneer will do some research.

Lesley, we'll see you at the auction

-and I'm sure it's going to do very well.

-Thank you.

It may have been love at first sight for Anita,

but did it win any admirers in the auction room?

We'll find out in just a moment, but first,

let me give you a quick recap on my initial line-up of today's ten of the best.

Charlie Ross was convinced that Michael's gorgeous embroidery box

would have the sale room all sewn up.

Lesley's blackcurrant Whitefriars vase made Anita's mouth water,

but did it get the bidders drooling when it went under the hammer?

Sara's silver christening beaker brought a twinkle to Mark Stacey's eyes

so get ready to see whether it polished up a profit when it went to auction.

And Kate Bateman thought it was a crime

that Irene kept her Victorian police truncheon hidden away.

Here's hoping it managed to collar a winning bidder.

Let's find out as we head over to the auction room in Woburn,

where familiar Flog It face Charlie Ross was presiding over the auction.

We've got £80-£120 on it. It belongs to Irene here.

Possibly for not much longer.

-Who have you brought along?

-My husband.

Hello. Cracking item. How did you come across this thing?

It was my mother's uncle.

I wonder if someone was in the police force somewhere in the family.

I don't know. I wish I did know.

It took your eye, Kate.

I think it's great. Condition is great,

so that should mean it should sell pretty well.

But you're right, if it was dated, if it had a warrant number on it...

The name of a place.

Yeah. You could attribute it to the local police station.

-Wow. You are looking at 400-500.

-And upwards.

Lot number 577 is a Victorian constable's truncheon.

In fantastic condition. £50, I'm bid.

Five. 60. Five. 70. Five.

80. Five.

Your bid. 85 on my left. 90.

Five. 100. And ten. 120.

120. 130.

120, your bid in the back standing.

£120.

And selling at 120... 30.

140. 150? No.

140 at the back. At £140.

-That was like a game of table tennis!

-That is really good!

Really nice.

-So what are you going to put the money towards?

-A holiday.

-Where do you fancy going?

-We go to Norfolk.

-Norfolk.

We take the pets with us.

That truncheon gave Kate's £80-£120 estimate a jolly good beating.

Now to Plymouth, to see how Sara's christening beaker performed.

Sara, your little silver beaker is just about to go under the hammer.

How do you feel about that?

Mixed feelings, because it's something I've known all my life

and yet it just sits in a cupboard and it seems a shame.

-The silver dealers are out in force today.

-Are they?

All the silver has sold, so we're feeling pretty confident.

-Let's hope so!

-Let's see if Mark's still feeling confident.

Yes, I am. I'm very confident. I like it.

120-180.

I like the classical borders.

It's a nice clean piece, nice gilt interior.

The only sad thing in some ways is the name on it,

because it doesn't tie in with it at all but it's a nice solid piece

and I think we'll be all right with this.

-It's silver.

-Good luck.

And several bids. I am bid £210 for it.

-At 210.

-Wow!

-220.

230, 240, 250, 260.

270, 280, 290.

310, 320.

-It's nice to know somebody will really enjoy it.

-330.

-At £340.

-Good gracious!

All done at £340.

-340 quid!

-That's amazing!

-That's super.

-That's wonderful.

-That'll get you there.

-It will!

That'll pay for the flight as well!

No tantrums there.

Let's hope it brings years of joy to some other youngster.

We're off to the sale room now in Cardiff,

where Michael was joined by his daughter Heidi

to see whether his sewing box managed to weave a good result.

Hello! I love the hair!

What does Dad think?

I had a shock when I saw it!

Cracking embroidery box. Lovely shoes. Did you see them?

I love those. They're the first thing I go to when I look at it.

I'd have kept those and sold the rest, I think,

but I think a lot of the value is in those.

-This took your fancy.

-It did.

The shoes are 1873 with a little note written about who owned them.

-I think they're beautiful. But the box is good quality, too.

-Yes.

Hopefully we'll get the top end. We're going to find out right now.

Thanks for brightening up the show with all that colour! It's going under the hammer now.

Lot 516. Numerous commission bids here.

Start me straight in at...

-Come on.

-£160.

170.

180, 190, 200.

210, 220, 230.

It's because you're here!

270, 280.

290, 300, 310 takes me out.

At £310 back in the room at 310.

320? 320.

330.

-340, 350.

-Oh, they like this.

360, 370.

380.

390, 400.

Charlie, what did we miss?

I know nothing!

£410. Back of the room at £410.

At £410, are we all done?

At £410.

-How exciting was that?!

-Oh, my word!

That'll go a long way towards your honeymoon.

Yeah, I can eat now!

What is the money going to go towards?

Don't forget there's commission to pay.

I'm getting married in three months. I'm going on honeymoon to America

so that'll go a long way to paying for the bits and bobs we want to do.

Incredible result. What's your fiance's name?

Carl.

He'll be so surprised! I bet you can't wait to call him.

That box got almost four times the top end of Charlie's estimate,

and Heidi was tickled pink.

And it's on to Newcastle now to see whether Lesley's vase

managed to catch anyone's eye.

Hopefully we're going to turn £5 into £700 right here, right now,

with the help of Lesley here, and the Whitefriars glass

designed by Geoffrey Baxter, picked out by our lovely expert, Anita.

-That was a good investment in the 1970s.

-It was indeed.

I had a chat with Giles the auctioneer earlier.

This is a hot spot for selling 20th-century modern.

He gets a lot of buyers, they love it here,

and he says it should do the top end of the estimate.

Hopefully a little bit more.

It hasn't peaked yet, and that's a good colour as well.

Fingers crossed. I can't wait for this one!

I've got four bids,

and I'm bid 900 to start with.

-Ooh! I like that!

-950 anybody?

1,000. 1,050.

1,100.

It's a rare colour.

1,150. The commission's out.

That's 1,150 for the last time.

That's 1,150.

-1,150.

-That's wonderful.

Less the commission. What are you going to spend it on?

-It's going to go towards a holiday.

-Where?

Buy quality? Anita's saying buy quality!

She's going on holiday, she's not going to spend it on antiques!

-We want to go back to Russia.

-Do you?

That vase of Lesley's certainly made a wonderful wedding anniversary gift

for her parents back in the 1970s.

There was certainly a lot of love for it in the room at the auction.

Love is in the air right now as I take you back to 2008

on a visit to Tenby in Wales, where I made my own little token of love

for my beautiful wife, Charlotte.

Take a look at this.

One of my great passions in life is wood.

I love it in the living organic form but also in its cut and felled form.

It's incredible versatile.

It's beautiful to look at, and it's also wonderfully tactile.

Not only is it useful for making practical items like tables and chairs,

but you can also make wonderful sentimental items,

like this love spoon, which was made right here, just outside of Tenby.

The tradition of making love spoons is believed to have originated in Wales

and dates as far back as the 17th century.

Spoons were given as a token of engagement or betrothal,

and the tradition has lived on.

And the man who's keeping the tradition very much alive is Kerry Thomas.

Thank you very much for meeting up with us today

and letting me have a go.

How did you get into this?

I first heard about the tradition back in 1969 when I was courting.

I'd heard about the tradition of the love spoon, that it was a token of engagement

and I thought it would be a good idea to make a love spoon

-to save myself having to buy an engagement ring.

-Simple as that!

The first spoon that I ever made was this simple one here

and once I carved the spoon, I offered it to my girlfriend, she accepted

and that became our first engagement spoon made in 1969.

But your workshop here, it's just wonderful.

It's good being surrounded by items of folk art, it's good for your soul.

It's a lovely material... Wood is such a lovely material to work with

and I'm privileged to be able to make my living from such a lovely material.

You've made hundreds of thousands, which I'll talk to you about a little later,

but can I have a go? Can you talk me through?

Because I want to make one for my wife

-so this would be a good opportunity to try my skills.

-Yes, yes.

-Yes, yes!

-With your expert advice!

I really like that kind of love spoon

which almost reads like a love letter for the intended.

Oh, yeah. There's a message in the spoon.

What we'll try to do today is get a bit of the message in your spoon.

Every spoon is unique.

The symbols carved on them have specific meanings

but often the interpretation and the message are relevant only to the recipient.

Well, it looks a bit rough.

I've drawn it straight out on a blank of oak.

I hope you approve of this.

What I've got is a nice raised back panel,

which for me looks like a piece of furniture. There's my hole -

I want to hang it on the wall because hopefully I'm going to be proud of it.

That's my initial, P for Paul, C for Charlotte.

I've used this motif which I'll obviously put a hole in

and cut this out with...

a fret saw. That's a soul motif that the ancient Egyptians used.

I've got keys. That's the key to my heart and the key to my house.

Hopefully we can put this together

and hopefully she'll fall in love with that and cherish it!

I'm sure she will.

-It did the trick for you!

-Definitely.

There, now...

This hopefully should look something like... Oh!

Do you know what? I'm happy with that.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yeah. So far, so good.

It's getting there. It just needs a bit more love.

A couple more stages, a smoothing plane on that and some sanding.

You make a spoon every year which is very personal to you.

It not only records events going on in your life

but also world events.

That's correct.

-Can you show me some examples?

-Yes.

I started with our engagement spoon

and from there we went on to our wedding spoon.

Let me go on to 1977...

children - various ways to recall the birth of a child on a love spoon.

-The little balls.

-A link, put the name, the seed.

This is very clever because this is made out of one piece of wood.

How long did that take you to do?

Perhaps 60 hours at the time.

That's a lot of work, isn't it?

I've thoroughly enjoyed my visit here with Kerry.

It's been so inspirational.

He is a craftsman keeping a tradition and a spirit well alive here in Wales,

and if you get a chance to pay him a visit, please do.

You'll get a one-off spoon made for you.

And I was lucky to make my own with his expert guidance.

It's my design. It only took three hours.

It's slightly naive but there's a lot of heart and soul and integrity

and that's what it's all about with folk art.

I absolutely love this, and I hope my wife does, too.

From tokens of affection to portraits of a rather more sombre nature,

as I take you back to 2005 and to Chippenham,

where Carolyn bought two death scene paintings for me to value.

Carolyn, thank you very much for bringing this pair of prints in.

I love them and think they're quite romantic

until you take a closer look and realise what's going on.

-They are both death scenes of women, which is not very romantic.

-No.

-But they've got the look.

-Definitely.

Where have they come from?

They've come from the attic of the house I moved to.

-So you found them in your attic?

-Yes.

They look like they've come from an attic.

They've been quite damp in places.

Good job you got them out because they would have started to perish.

The good news is, at least the print themselves isn't too badly damaged.

A bit of water marking there.

This is the sort of thing I'd like to repair and restore myself

and anybody that's done a little bit of decorating

and can work with Pollyfilla and plaster could touch that up.

This one's in much better condition.

It depicts the death of Lady Jane Grey.

She was beheaded by Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII,

who rightfully inherited the throne,

and if you look closely you can see millions and millions...

-I've never noticed that.

-..of little dots.

It's come from a print run.

These are late-Georgian.

I think they're 1810, 1820.

What's good about them is they've not been hand-coloured in.

This is beautifully coloured in

but the ink has been on the press before they were pressed.

-It's actually on the engraving.

-OK.

-And I like them.

I think they're quality and they've definitely got that look for me.

The backs. Well, if I pick one up...

..original backing. The collectors will like that.

The dealers will like that. It shows they haven't been tampered with.

Value-wise,

Mmm... I would like to see these sell for around £140 for the pair.

I think they've got the look.

But to be safe I'd like to put them into auction

with a valuation of £90-£130.

-Would you be happy with that?

-That's fine.

I was thrilled to death by those paintings

but did anyone want to dice with them when they went under the hammer?

We'll find out shortly.

First though, here are three major milestone markers

from the archives that I just have to show you.

This Victorian mourning locket

was given to Gill as an engagement gift

but it wasn't really to her taste.

When Prince Albert died, Queen Victoria went into mourning

and mourning became a fashion.

Oh, right.

I would date it from about the 1860s, 1870s.

And there was no need to mourn its loss at auction

as it fetched a cheerful £380.

In Dunstable, back in 2009, Valerie's stunning silver christening set

made Michael Baggott somewhat broody.

Look at the wonderful condition of that.

-That's never been out of that case.

-It's lovely, isn't it?

And there was plenty to celebrate

when it delivered a decent £210 result.

Nothing says "I love you" like a diamond ring

and this 1.1 carat stunner

had Charlie Ross at "hello!" in Tavistock back in 2008.

The great beauty of this ring is its simplicity

and therefore it will appeal to more people.

It absolutely lit up the sale room, selling for a sensational £950.

Now for my next memorable milestone momento,

and it was Michael Baggott's turn to be wooed

when Carol brought in her rather unusual wedding disc back in Dunstable in 2009.

Thank you for bringing in this small little metal disc today.

Before I tell you anything about it, what can you tell me?

Not very much, I'm afraid.

When my mother-in-law died, it was found in a box with other items

so it just stayed in the box.

What were the other bits and pieces? Coins and metal?

No, they were more religious items.

It's probably the nicest thing

I've ever seen on a Flog It valuation day.

It's a very fine, very early Dutch wedding medal.

-What we've got is a silver disc.

-It's silver?

Yes, it's not marked but that's not unusual.

This is superbly engraved with the wedding couple,

so you've got them here in this hallway,

this classical hallway.

You've got a checkerboard floor

and you've got these little cherubs

parting the clouds with a wreath

and the rays of sunlight coming down on their union,

like a blessing from heaven.

The lovely thing is if we turn it round, and probably the explanation

why it was in a box of religious-related items

is we've got a scene of the wedding of Cana,

which of course relates to it being a wedding medal.

It's very difficult to pin an exact date on it

but I would say anywhere from about 1650 up to 1700.

Really?

So Carol, any idea of how much it's worth?

About £75?

It's only a little bit of silver, isn't it?

I think I'd be remiss in putting it into the auction

with a reserve less than £500.

And I think we'll set that as a reserve.

Really?

And we'll put £500-£800 as an estimate.

I wasn't going to bring it in.

Oh! Don't say that, Carol!

It is a gem and a delight

and it will, I think, by far be the finest piece of silver in the sale.

-Right.

-Thank you so much for bringing it in.

Let's hope it does really well in the auction.

-Thank you!

-Thank you!

Did anyone say "I do" to Carol's disc when it went under the hammer?

We'll find out in just a moment.

First, though, I'm taking you over to Dover, where back in 2009, Mark Stacey was astonished

to discover that a pair of stunning Moorcroft vases that Liz had inherited from her grandma

had been relegated to the cellar.

You've bought a Flog It favourite in, Moorcroft pottery.

Now, tell me all about them.

These were a gift to my grandmother.

-My mum thinks that they could have been a wedding present.

-Where were they married?

I think they were probably married up in London.

It would have been around early 1900s when they got married.

-Oh, that would fit in with the date.

-Then she happened to see this piece

and because it matched, she bought that as well.

Can you remember what she paid for this piece? Some time ago.

-Yeah, I was very young when my grandmother died.

-OK. So how have you ended up with them?

-Because my mum gave them to me.

-Right. And they're in pride of place in your sitting room, are they?

They were until my husband and I got married a couple of years ago,

and we got a gift of some large modern vases from our best friend,

and so unfortunately, these have been relegated to the cellar.

To the cellar? Oh, that's not very fair, is it?

Some wonderful-quality objects like that. Well, I'll tell you a little bit about them.

They are wonderful examples of William Moorcroft's work.

William Moorcroft was an art nouveau designer who joined a factory called Macintyres, in about 1897.

Basically, he was given free range in his department.

He was an artistic director, if you like.

And to produce these art nouveau designs under a brand name called Florian ware.

-It is Florian.

-Florian ware,

and he produced that, and then in the early part of the 20th century

he went his own separate way,

but these are from that early period, so they're not quite the 1890s period,

they're more likely to be 1910, 1915, somewhere around about that period.

And they are blue and red anemones, the design, which is

one of Moorcroft's favourite ways of decorating the vases.

but on these particular examples, everything marries together very nicely.

We've got a very curvaceous art nouveau shape on the vases here.

I love these little minaret tube-line decorations,

that go around the main cartouche of the flowers.

And the use of these lovely colours, these subtle olive greens and the dark and light blues,

just to really create that 3D effect, if you like.

-And this one obviously, it's more inspired from the oriental designs.

-Right.

It's almost like a gourd shape vase, with this little sort of knot neck there.

I mean, they're absolutely charming.

I know you've brought the three items in as one lot,

but I think in fairness, to get the best possible price,

we need to sell them in two lots.

The pair of vases and the single vase.

I would put on these very pretty pair of vases £500-£800.

And on this one, I would put around £400-£600.

And I would put the reserve of 450 and 350 respectively.

-Are you pleased with that?

-I am very pleased with that.

-Jolly good.

-The fateful question, what will you do with the cash?

-Spend it on our sick car.

-On your sick car, poor thing.

-Yes.

-Has it got a name, this sick car?

-I'm afraid he's called Pierre.

Pierre? Is he a French car?

He's a Peugeot.

Pierre the Peugeot, how lovely.

We'll see if those vases smash Mark's estimate in just a minute,

but first, here's a quick reminder of my final ten of the best

birth, marriage and death-related bygones.

I was tickled to death by Carolyn's paintings, but did anyone

at the Wiltshire auction room want to give them a new lease of life?

Michael thought Carol's wedding disc was one of the finest

pieces of silver he'd ever seen,

so stand by to see if it delivered a sterling result in the sale room.

Mark thought Lizzie's Moorcroft vases were positively delightful,

but did the bidders in the sale room agree?

We'll be back to find out in just a minute.

But first, let's see if I was on the money with my £80-£130 valuation on Carolyn's two paintings.

Pressure is on me now, it's my turn to be the expert.

It's a bit of fine art. In fact, it's two lovely engravings, brought in by Carolyn.

Early 19th century.

They are death scenes,

but I hope it's not going to be a nail in the coffin for our valuation.

-What will you do with the money?

-It's going to go towards my daughter's first car.

How much is that going to cost?

Lots of money, lots of saving up.

-For the car she wants, anyway.

-Hopefully, this is six months' road tax.

-We're going to find out right now.

-Thanks.

Someone start me at £100?

50 then? 50 I have. 50 I have. 55. 55.

60 here. 65. 70 here. 75 at the back. 80. 85 at the back.

90, and the bid's with you. 90, the bid's on my right.

Do I see 95 anywhere? 90, the bid's on my right. Do I see 95 anywhere?

Selling then, at £90.

They're gone.

Thank goodness for that.

That is six months' road tax, isn't it?!

Yes. Bang on the nose as well.

Yeah, bottom end. Bottom end.

-I'm pleased.

-Thank you. I'm pleased. In fact, I'm well relieved.

At least they didn't die a death in that sale room.

Now to Tring, to see if Carol can find a bidder

to fall in love with her stunning silver wedding disc.

Next up we've got that wonderful old Dutch metal. Will it be a winner?

We're just about to find out. It's got a value of £500-£800.

-This you found in a box, didn't you, of your mother's belongings?

-Yeah.

-Were you surprised when you showed Michael here?

-Absolutely.

I wasn't going to bring it on the day

and then when he said how much he thought it would be...

I had to stop my eyes popping out of my head when I saw it.

It's a splendid thing.

Hopefully, we've got one or two bidders in the sale room.

A telephone bidder from Amsterdam would be what we'd like.

That's what we were looking for!

OK, we'll find out. This is it.

It's 17th century.

Do we start at five? Do we start at four?

Do we start at three? I think so, surely. £300?

Yes. 300 I'm bid for it. At £300.

£320. At £350.

£380.

Are you 400? I've got it now.

£400. At £400. 420 bid.

420?

450? 450. 480?

-The room's out at 480.

-Yes.

At 480 bid. At 480. £500 bid.

At £500. Are you 20, sir?

520. Perhaps even 50.

550 bid for it now.

550 I am bid for it. 580.

£550. At 550.

-Can you see the bidding?

-No.

Nor can I!

All the secret nods and winks, I think.

Are you 20, sir? At 620?

And 50. 650.

This is good. This is good.

You're travelling well. 680.

At 680. 700 now.

700 is bid.

Is that it? £700.

At £700 I am going to sell it.

It's going away, I'm afraid.

Away from the room at 700. I'm selling away from the room.

He's going to be sold. Do I sell at £700?

Well done, Carol's mum.

That's all I can say! Good on her.

Yeah!

And on you for hanging on to it cos you know what we get like nowadays.

You rummage through everything and chuck it all without thinking twice.

If you hadn't put it into an auction

and someone had seen it that had recognised it for what it was,

it would've been a 20 pound note, I'm sure.

£700 - a cracking result for Carol!

Finally, let's join Liz and Mark at the saleroom in Canterbury

to see if those Moorcroft vases made her some decent cash.

We've got two lots of Moorcroft going on under the hammer.

-A pair of vases to start with. 500-800.

-That's right.

It's all the money there and the single vase, 400-600.

-Why are you selling these?

-Good strong designs.

-Very good.

I've had to get a new car.

-Oh, have you?

-Yes.

-So they had to go?

-It's to finance that, I'm afraid.

-I guess it's better being in too much debt, isn't it.

-Yeah.

Let's see what we can do. Here we go.

Lot number 47 are the pair of early 20th century

Macintyre Moorcroft pottery vases.

-For bids, we're starting at £880 and I am looking for 900.

-Straight in!

Straight to the phone at £900. 920.

-940.

-Hey!

-960. 980.

1,000. And 50.

Oh, my life!

1,100. 1,150.

1,200.

1,250.

1,300. 1,350.

1,400.

1,450.

1,500. 1,550.

1,600. Anybody at £1,600?

Any interest at 1,600 online?

-Well, I never.

-In the room?

Bid is at 1,550 on the telephone and selling at 1,550.

That's the first lot. £1,550. OK, here's the single vase.

Are you ready for this? We're going to add to it.

I think we might have a few bids.

Four bids, we're starting at £820.

-Oh my God!

-Who's in at 840?

Any interest at 840? 860? Anybody at 860?

On the phone at 840 now. Anybody at 860?

Any interest at 860?

If not, I'm selling at £840.

The bid is on the phone at 840.

Gosh! Straight in!

You were taken by surprise. So was I. £840!

-That's 2,390 quid!

-Excellent.

-The debts are going!

-They are!

What a great thing to do.

-Thank you.

-Thank you so much!

What a lovely feeling.

Yes.

With a grand total of £2,390,

that was a cracking result for Liz!

Sadly, that's all we have time for today's show

but I do hope you join me again soon for another look back

at some of my favourite collections from the Flog It archives

but until then, it's cheerio from a rather splendid Syon House.

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