Wang Hing Chinese Export Silver Punch Bowl, ca. 1920
Watch
GUEST:
It seems to be an antique bowl. I bought it at a, sort of a charity auction about five or six years ago. They called it a, uh, silver-tone dragon bowl. I was born in 1976, and so that's, that's the year of the dragon in the Chinese zodiac. So I've always kind of kept a lookout for dragons, and I have a, a few of them. I find them very interesting.
APPRAISER:
Oh, I see.
GUEST:
So, I work with some people from China. And they always say that it's one of the more powerful symbols in the zodiac.
APPRAISER:
It's a Chinese export silver punch bowl. It's made by a company called Wang Hing. They were established in Canton in 1854, and due to their enormous success, opened up in Hong Kong in the early part of the 20th century. I think this bowl dates from after they opened up in Hong Kong in the early 20th century.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
Obviously, the trade routes really started to open up in the late 19th century, and the appetite for Chinese export silver became a lot greater as that trade sort of opened up and tastes became a little bit more exotic, let's say. We've got these wonderful dragons. Now, these are separately cast and applied to the bowl. The bowl itself is raised up on a form, as it would be normally, and then these dragons are cast separately. The interesting sort of motif on this, as you've probably seen, is the flaming pearl in the center.
GUEST:
Hm.
APPRAISER:
So the dragon chasing the flaming pearl is something which you see a lot on Chinese decorative arts. So, you often see these dragons in clouds, and appearing across the sky and all kinds of things, chasing this, this flaming pearl. It's a very, very common motif in Chinese, uh, decorative arts-- textiles and export silver like we see here. We tip it back... We've got the W.H. for Wang Hing. We've got the 90 there, which is the sterling silver standard mark. And we've got the character mark for silver in Chinese, as well. So all in all, a fantastic bowl. Very, very collectible. The market for Chinese export silver has grown exponentially in the last, let's say, five to ten years. So, you said you bought it at this charity auction? It was a "silver-tone" bowl, Chinese-style?
GUEST:
Right, uh, you know, I think, if I remember correctly, I think I paid about, about $600 for it.
APPRAISER:
$600?
GUEST:
Um, yeah.
APPRAISER:
Not too long ago-- not too long ago.
GUEST:
Yeah, about five or six years I've had it.
APPRAISER:
The auction estimate for this bowl would comfortably sit at $10,000 to $15,000.
GUEST:
Wow. That's pretty major.
APPRAISER:
Congratulations for having it.
GUEST:
Thank you so much, David, I appreciate it.
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.
