Ángel Botello Bronze Sculpture, ca. 1980
Watch
GUEST:
I bought it in New York City about 20 years ago. Over 20 years ago, probably.
APPRAISER:
And it was in a gallery, shop, what kind of...?
GUEST:
No, it was a dealer who sold it to me. She was actually selling Haitian art, and she had a couple of bronze statues, and I just took to it immediately. I thought it was so beautiful, and so statuesque, and I relate to bronze ladies. So I thought, um, I just related to her totally.
APPRAISER:
It's really a wonderful piece. As you know, it's signed. It's by an artist named Ángel Botello. He was interesting, he's sort of one of these Renaissance characters, because not only did, did he do sculpture, but he did paintings, he did watercolors. He was born in Spain in 1913. And he studied in Paris. He studied architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts and he also studied painting. And it's interesting that you said that you bought this in a gallery that specialized in Haitian art, because he lived in Haiti for a number of years. And then, in 1953, he wound up in Puerto Rico. He's probably the most famous sculptor in Puerto Rico. It was probably done in the early 1980s. So you have this lovely little seated girl.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
Seated child. It's charming, made out of bronze. It's very modern-looking, stylized. She has this wonderful flat face, which I find very appealing. And this is nice, long neck.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
And then her dress has this great, great sort of pebbly, textured surface, which I think is nice. And so what did you pay for this when you bought it?
GUEST:
Oh, gosh. It's been so long, but around... I, I know I paid $1,000. I know it was a lot of money for me at that time 20 years ago. I had art before, before I had furniture. But I was just, again, so taken by it, and just thought it was so lovely, I just put the money out.
APPRAISER:
His work is very, very desirable. The market is very, very strong for works from Puerto Rico, from artists from the Caribbean. This is a great, great piece. The value in a gallery is probably about $10,000.
GUEST:
Okay, nice. Really nice. (laughs)
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.
