Inlaid Ladies Writing Desk, ca. 1805
Watch
GUEST:
This is a desk. It came to me from my third great-grandparents, who lived in Arlington, Massachusetts.
APPRAISER:
Well, it's interesting that you say your family's from Massachusetts, because this desk is a distinctive form for Massachusetts. It's what we call a Federal figured mahogany ladies writing desk, and was made between about 1790 and 1810. It's an amazing form. This is really high quality cabinet making. I just love this bookmatched veneer on the doors. It's got this great swirling grain. We've got this nice, distinctive line inlay with a bellflower, you've got this wonderful shaded triangular border, and what's really another nice touch is if you look below the border, they've got this kind of tiger-striped mahogany. Additionally, if we move to the inlaid escutcheon, they've used figured maple, which gets this extra vibrant tiger-striped grain. And the selection of the wood is amazing. It's almost a lyrical quality to it that draws your eye up the drawers as the grain goes back from left to right and continues up. It's a really magnificent piece. If we open up the desk door here, you've got a nice arrangement of what we call short drawers and these wonderful pigeon holes with the cyma curve-shaped aprons. If you open up your door, you'll find a distinctive characteristic. Your ancestor that used this was likely right-handed. This was where she kept ink. Nothing on the left, but over here, we can show the writing surface, and this is how it operates. We can tell that it's been refinished, but it's been gently refinished. There's still good figure and color to the wood; it hasn't been scrubbed. The brass has been replaced at some point in its life. It would have had oval-plated brasses at one time. But overall, it's a superb quality piece. If I had to put an insurance value on it today, I'd safely say insure it for about $10,000 in today's market.
GUEST:
Wow, great.
APPRAISER:
It's a fantastic piece.
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.
