1777 Engraved American Powder Horn
GUEST:
My husband's grandfather had it in his house and it has sat on our mantelpiece for 40 years. I have no history on its real background, but it's been an enjoyable piece to have around.
APPRAISER:
What we have here is an 18th-century American powder horn, and it's very finely carved. The master carvers on powder horns would use oxen horn usually because you can see that it has what is now a yellowed outside surface, but originally that was white. And to show off a little bit of his carving skills, he would go down here on the far end where they would get the powder out and do this cross-hatching and actually carve off the white section down to the green--just for the contrast-- and then they would put different motifs and sayings on this. This particular one... this saying goes all the way back to the French- Indian wars. It says right here, "Captain Nathaniel Comstock, his horn, powder with my brother Ball, hero-like doth conquer all."
GUEST:
Wonderful.
APPRAISER:
Besides his family and his home, what items would have been most dear to a man in the 18th century but his rifle and his powder horn?
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
This is a military-size powder horn and what you'll see beyond the inscription is you have some very nice engravings on here that are more civilian in nature than they are military. This particular horn is also very desirable because it has the date "1777" on it. One other thing I would like for people to see is this mermaid right here. You can see her tail and she's got a heart right here, and in one hand she has a bottle and in the other hand she has a wine glass, I guess welcoming her gentleman back home with a drink as he comes in the door. Also has some nice crosshatch carving on the end down here. Had you ever given any thought to what something like this might be worth?
GUEST:
I have... I would have no... couldn't even come... guess or come in anywhere near any idea of what it would be.
APPRAISER:
Well, obviously I've talked enough about it to let you know that I think it's a pretty important thing, but bottom line on this type of horn, with these motifs, this crosses over from just being a military object to a decorative object, and I would say conservatively it would be worth $6,000 to $8,000.
GUEST:
Oh. That's... that's quite overwhelming.
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.
