1908 Thomas Virgil Hill Landscape Oil
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GUEST:
I got it at a garage sale. Found it for a dollar.
APPRAISER:
Oh, good, for a dollar, really?
GUEST:
For a dollar.
APPRAISER:
It's a painting of Yosemite. It's, uh, clearly Bridalveil Falls and the floor of the valley down below. A very popular spot for painters and artists. It's by Thomas Hill, you see the, down here, the signature, it says "T. Virgil Hill." And then below that, it says "1908." We know his, his dates are 1871 to 1922, is when he lived.
GUEST:
Oh, okay.
APPRAISER:
Now, Thomas Hill, Jr., is the son of Thomas Hill, who is also a very famous painter of Yosemite. Now, this painting you said you got at a, a garage sale. How long've you had it?
GUEST:
About 25 years.
APPRAISER:
Have you thought about uh restoring it at all, have you...
GUEST:
No.
APPRAISER:
This painting is, uh, we'd say in the business, it's filthy dirty.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
Um, if you look at it in places like this, you see stains. Looks almost like coffee stains. But that's probably the varnish, which has discolored. And this color here, the, the falls should be almost white, and it's very...
GUEST:
Dark.
APPRAISER:
...grayish-brown there. So, I think this would liven up a lot. Thomas Hill, Jr., his paintings sell fairly well, but, but not as much as his father's. If this were to go to an auction, I'd probably put an estimate of $5,000 to $7,000 on it.
GUEST:
All right, thank you.
APPRAISER:
Now, if it had been Thomas Hill, his father, this would be about $20,000 or $30,000 painting.
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