German Silver Music Boxes
GUEST:
They are two silver boxes. They're not music boxes, they're bird boxes. When you pull a switch, a little bird comes out and sings. One was from my mother, and I remember it in the house when I was a child, and the other was from an old aunt who left it to me when she died.
APPRAISER:
These are German bird boxes which really, in effect, are also music boxes. They're beautifully done in German silver, which is not quite the quality of our sterling, but it is German silver. A repoussÈ and floral chase decoration-- very fine quality. Uh, this particular box here is late 19th-century, made in Germany. Uh, this box is a little earlier. Would be probably second quarter of the 19th century. Again, very fine chased and repoussÈ decoration with floral panels and so forth. And then, of course, to wind them up, we have this nice little brass key in the form of a bird. They sound wonderful. I'll just start them up now. You press that little bird, and he comes up. (chirping) And let's give him a companion, and they're singing to us. This one, the wings are also functioning. This one, the wings don't work. Oop, he got a little tired and decided to go home. And so did he. These are very popular today. In a well-advertised auction, this box would be estimated somewhere between $2,500 and $3,500, and this box, between $3,000 and $4,000.
GUEST:
Oh, my!
APPRAISER:
Thank you very much for bringing them to the ROADSHOW.
GUEST:
Thank you. That is amazing.
Appraisal Details
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