Patriotic Pyrography Cabinet, ca. 1910
GUEST:
I acquired it recently at a country auction about 125 miles from Jacksonville. Actually, the auction was only three weeks ago.
APPRAISER:
Three weeks ago?
GUEST:
Yes. I purchased it for $375, which was lower than what I anticipated it would go.
APPRAISER:
Did anyone bid against you?
GUEST:
Oh, the bidding started at $50.
APPRAISER:
$50?
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
You thought you were going to get it for $50 at first, or what?
GUEST:
Oh, no, I thought that people would like it as much as I did, but apparently they didn't. I generally write on the auction sheet how much I'll go to so I don't go over. I put "$800." As I kept thinking about it, I put "$1,000."
APPRAISER:
Okay.
GUEST:
And then I changed it one more time to "$1,100." But I didn't have to.
APPRAISER:
I've been doing the ROADSHOW for years, and this is the nicest example of pyrography, or pyrographic art, that we've seen.
GUEST:
Yes!
APPRAISER:
All those years. I'm going to tell you right out, it is. It is so, so nice to see, I'll tell you. I love the fact that right in the middle, you have on this piece the American flag burned in with this hot poker, surrounded with these trees, these naturalistic trees that are three-dimensional. That's one thing I love about it also. This is burnt in, but these trees are very carved. They're not just burnt, but they're hand-carved. And they have a real three-dimensional feel. This was made in the early 20th century when the Art Nouveau period was very popular, so it flows like the Art Nouveau period as well.
GUEST:
I see.
APPRAISER:
Over on your side, we have the Liberty Bell and Uncle Sam holding up the American flag. So talk about patriotism. It's gorgeous. And if you come over to the other side, you'll see the Chinese flag, a wonderful dragon with the symbol, with the red dot. And above it, we see the Korean flag and the Japanese flag up here. And there are several flags, but centered by the American flag. It's 46 stars, which shows that it was made between 1908 and 1912. We had that flag for four years. So that's really great in dating the piece.
GUEST:
That is great!
APPRAISER:
It nails it right down, and it's perfect for the period. And it also was colored, so you have some dye that's seeped into the wood, and that's all original. And you also see some gilding...
GUEST:
It's still left.
APPRAISER:
...used on the stars. So it's all original and it's so great that you didn't clean it, which I know you'd never do. Let me tell you what I think the value would be. Because this has everything going on that you really want in a pyrographic work of art, a retail value on this, if someone were to present it at a show as a patriotic piece of Americana, would be about $6,000.
GUEST:
Oh, really?
APPRAISER:
You did pretty well.
GUEST:
For a $375 investment.
APPRAISER:
Not bad, you did pretty well.
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.