William Forbes Silver Can, ca. 1850
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GUEST:
I brought you a mug that has been in the family. It belonged to my great-great-grandfather, who was H.O.B. Senior. And the date on that is 1848. Then my grandfather is H.O.B. Junior, and his initials are on there. And then my father is H.O.B. III, and his initials are on there.
APPRAISER:
So it's been in your family since the mid-19th century.
GUEST:
That's right.
APPRAISER:
And the family was from where?
GUEST:
From Dalton, Massachusetts.
APPRAISER:
Massachusetts, okay. First of all, we call this a can. It's an American silver can. It was made in New York City. It's a beautiful, as we call it, a cartouche form. A beautiful scroll handle, chased decoration and also bright-cut decoration. But there's something else that makes this a very, very unusual piece of American silver from the early 19th century. If we turn it over, on the bottom, we have some hallmarks. The first hallmark is Ball, Tompkins and Black. Now, they were a very, very well known American silver manufacturer in New York. But there's another set of hallmarks on this can right below the first set, and that's a gentleman by the name of William Forbes. Mr. Forbes was another very well known, recognized New York silver maker. A normal American can of this vintage would be worth at auction approximately $200 to $300. Because of the rarity of this, an auction value on this can would be approximately $1,000 to $1,500.
GUEST:
Very nice.
APPRAISER:
Thank you very much.
GUEST:
We, of course, will never part with it, but thank you very much.
APPRAISER:
I don't blame you. It should stay in the family. And thanks for bringing it to the ROADSHOW.
GUEST:
Thank you.
Appraisal Details
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