Chinese Rose Medallion Porcelain
GUEST:
Well, they actually belong to my grandmother, who's 96 years old and in a nursing home. And now they're stored in my mother's basement.
APPRAISER:
Well, all of the pieces are Chinese. They are of a pattern called Rose Medallion. It's because of the rose-colored glaze, and then the medallions of different decorations, figures and flowers with birds. Now, Rose Medallion was very popular, is very popular here in America. It's also popular in Europe. They started importing it around 1840, and they're still making it and importing it today. So let's start with the nicest piece that you have, which is the platter. This is also the oldest piece that you have. If you look at it very carefully, it's very detailed in terms of the painting. The quality of painting is the highest. So I would date this to about 1850, 1860. So it's mid-19th century. These pieces are about 50 years later, about 1900. If you look at the quality of the workmanship, the figures aren't as finely painted. The details of the roses aren't as nicely done. And also, if you look at the bottom, the porcelain, it's fully glazed, whereas here on the platter, it has this wonderful unglazed, very rough surface. This indicates that it's earlier than the glazed surface. So those are some of the things to look for. Another indication for later Rose Medallion is the fact that it's marked "Made in China." If something is marked "Made in China," it is automatically 20th century. That's a dead giveaway. And then you have something like this piece here, which is basically a contemporary copy incorporating Rose Medallion designs. The colors that you see, none of the colors are the same. It looks very, very different. In terms of value, for the platter, I would say you're looking somewhere around $400. It's in a little rough condition, but you told me that your grandmother used it a lot.
GUEST:
She liked that piece.
APPRAISER:
So I would say about $400. For this piece, about $100, about $50, $75 to $100 on these pieces. And this, really very little-- about ten dollars.
GUEST:
Yeah, we just threw that in as a side 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.