1775 Stephen Eastman-carved Powder Horn
GUEST:
This is a powder horn that has been in our family. It was owned by my fourth great-grandfather Stephen Eastman, and he in 1775 went to Bunker Hill and was a drummer for Moses McFarland's regiment, and was in the Revolutionary War.
APPRAISER:
So he was in Captain Moses McFarland's company...
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
...of Colonel John Nixon's regiment.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
Now, Colonel John Nixon's regiment was a Massachusetts regiment. A lot of guys from that area right over the border into New Hampshire...
GUEST:
Yes!
APPRAISER:
...joined Massachusetts regiments. He enlisted on April 30, 1775, and yes, he was at the siege of Boston, he was at Bunker Hill. Now, he was out of service in Nixon's regiment by the end of October 1775. And you said he was a drummer.
GUEST:
Mm.
APPRAISER:
Well, a drummer had a specific task in the company and that was to play the drum, which gave orders to the troops-- it wasn't just for music.
GUEST:
Oh, okay, yeah.
APPRAISER:
Um, so he would not have had this. He would not have had a powder horn at that time.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm, yeah, yeah.
APPRAISER:
But after October, he goes back to New Hampshire and he joins Captain Benjamin Sias's company...
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
...of David Gilman's regiment. They were New Hampshire troops-- a lot of guys did that.
GUEST:
Oh, yeah, okay.
APPRAISER:
That's when he got the horn.
GUEST:
Oh, okay.
APPRAISER:
So he was listed as a private at that time. So he would have been carrying a musket, not playing a drum.
GUEST:
Hm.
APPRAISER:
The carving would have been done only a couple of months after he re-enlisted in Gilman's regiment.
GUEST:
Hm.
APPRAISER:
So he ended up in service for quite some time, not just the siege of Boston, which is great.
GUEST:
Oh, okay, yeah. (chuckles)
APPRAISER:
Um, now, the horn is a little bit different than normal. A lot of times, you see those carved horns, and they're carved through the entire horn. This one, you've got kind of this lower third where you've got all the carvings.
GUEST:
Yeah, yeah.
APPRAISER:
I've not seen a lot of siege-of-Boston-type horns with dotted patterns like this.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
A lot of times, they're straight carvings.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
So you've got pinwheels, which are typical...
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
...and, and show up in a lot of furniture...
GUEST:
Uh-huh.
APPRAISER:
...and other things in the 18th century.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And if we look here...
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
...we can see his name.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
Starting over here, Stephen.
GUEST:
With the backwards N.
APPRAISER:
With a backwards N, right here.
GUEST:
(laughs): Yeah.
APPRAISER:
And then we have Eastmen.
GUEST:
Yeah. With an E instead of an A.
APPRAISER:
Yeah, and another backwards N.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
And then what looks like December...
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
...1775. See this lobe right here with the two holes in it?
GUEST:
Yes, yes.
APPRAISER:
A lot of times, that lobe is broken off, because it's the weak point of the horn.
GUEST:
Sure, yeah, exactly.
APPRAISER:
It's a great horn, typical New England form, plain New England form, except with the added carving. Great pine plug, it's in wonderful condition. I would say, given the amount of carving on it, an auction estimate would probably be in the $5,000 to $7,000 range. (gasping)
GUEST:
Excu...
APPRAISER:
Now, if it had more carving on it, it might be worth more. But like I said to you a little while ago, I've not seen one that has this dotted style pattern before.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
And he has such a great service record.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
So he probably carried this horn a lot longer than 1775.
GUEST:
Oh.
APPRAISER:
And it's great to have it in your family.
GUEST:
Love it, yeah.
APPRAISER:
And thank you so much for bringing it in today.
GUEST:
Well, thank you for all that information.
APPRAISER:
Oh, it's great.
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.