1830 American Embroidered Bedcover
Watch
GUEST:
I got this from my mom. She had purchased it at a little antiques shop in downtown Anaheim probably 20 years ago. She brought it home and rolled it up and put it under her bed because she had no place to put it. And when I went to see her, we dragged it out and she opened it up and showed it to me. And I could see right away that it has some kind of historical significance to it.
APPRAISER:
Now, was your mom a collector?
GUEST:
My mother was sort of like a collector of anything impulsively that she found.... Liked it and took it.
APPRAISER:
So she walks into the shop, sees this. Liked it, paid...?
GUEST:
I would say probably no more than a hundred dollars.
APPRAISER:
Now, at first glance, you might think she purchased a quilt.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
But she didn't. What she purchased was an early American bedcover.
GUEST:
A bedcover, okay.
APPRAISER:
And that's part of the reason that the squares are positioned the way they are. So picture this lying on a bed draped over the sides where everything would now be very visible and in the right position. And up there in the corner is "1830." That's exactly the date we would want to see on a piece like this. The background material is just something that she probably purchased at the dry goods store. It's a piece of homespun. And she used that as her canvas to portray, more than likely, family history. It's the family story. This piece clearly was made on the East Coast, more than likely Connecticut, Massachusetts area. It's interesting that it's dated, but it's not signed. Usually pieces that are this strong graphically and are this artful, you sign because the maker is so proud of her work.
GUEST:
Oh, sure.
APPRAISER:
But for whatever reason, it remains unsigned. The outside is beautifully done in 20 squares, all depicting floral arrangements. The inside tells a wonderful story. We can start on the bottom here with an early American eagle with the shield, the arrows and the olive branch. Moving right up here to this wonderful, folky lion. This one right here, probably three family members. We see a degree of affluence. We see a military man, we see probably a merchant. When we move up to one of the houses-- and there are four houses-- we see this substantial brick home with three chimneys. So she's attempting to communicate in a very folky way, in a very naive way, the fact that the family homestead was quite substantial. It's a wonderful work of art. Now, in terms of value, retail, I would say $22,000 to $25,000.
GUEST:
Oh, my God. Whoa, I almost took a tumble there. Wow, that's, like, more than twice what my best hopes were.
APPRAISER:
And the textile marketplace has actually come down quite a bit in the last couple of years because of the economy. But pieces like this are what collectors still covet and will pay a very strong price for.
GUEST:
Wow, I'm just really still blown away. (both laughing) I'm going to float home.
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.
