Polyphon Music Box and Poster, ca. 1895
Watch
GUEST:
My family lived in Germany in the late '50s and early '60s. And my father was kind of famous in our family for going around and finding things, and, uh, one day he came home with this.
APPRAISER:
This is, uh, the equivalent of a 1890s jukebox.
GUEST:
Yes, sir.
APPRAISER:
Originally, the, the works were cylinder players, but when they came up with a disc player, then it became a much bigger sound. And the neat thing about this one, too, is that it was coin-operated. According to this, I guess it was the German equivalent of a nickel. This is made of walnut, very popular wood in the late 19th century. I love that gilt brass or bronze symbol on the front of there. And it looks like it has the old cloth. When you open it up... ...it has an original ad.
GUEST:
Yes, sir.
APPRAISER:
For Polyphon-- that was in there when, when your family got it?
GUEST:
Yes, sir.
APPRAISER:
This is the golden age of lithography. And they would have sent this to the retailer to hang up in the store to advertise. That alone is probably worth $1,000.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
They made these in a lot of different styles, bigger cases, smaller cases. And the death knell of these came from this magical phrase, "Mary had a little lamb."
GUEST:
Oh, Thomas Edison?
APPRAISER:
Thomas Edison.
GUEST:
(laughs)
APPRAISER:
The first recorded words. And they kept up with Edison for a while. They came up with the technology to do automatic changing on the disc.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
And actually, Regina came up with the Reginaphone, which would play phonograph records. So what do you think it's worth?
GUEST:
I've looked online at different shops. I've, I've seen similar. I've never seen one exactly like it. I would guess somewhere in the neighborhood of $8,000 to $12,000.
APPRAISER:
You're probably high there.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
There maybe will be some people, retail, that might ask that much. But at auction, my feeling would be that its value's around $6,000.
GUEST:
Oh, all right.
APPRAISER:
Of course, you add $6,000 for that, $1,000 for the advertising poster...
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
We're pretty close to eight.
GUEST:
Yeah. (chuckles)
APPRAISER:
I think we need to crank it up and see what it sounds like, don't you?
GUEST:
Great.
APPRAISER:
"Santa Lucia." ("Santa Lucia" playing)
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
