Royal Flemish Ewer, ca. 1895
Appraised Value:
$5,000 - $7,000
IMAGE: 1 of 2
Appraisal Video: (1:30)
Appraisal Transcript:
GUEST: It is a pitcher that my great-grandfather purchased at an estate sale. We think it came from Persia around 1913.
APPRAISER: Okay, and how long ago did he purchase it?
GUEST: Probably in the '40s sometime.
APPRAISER: '40s? Do you know what he paid for it at that time?
GUEST: No, but he was pretty thrifty, so probably not very much.
APPRAISER: Okay.
GUEST: And the family lore was that it belonged to a sheik?
APPRAISER: Yes, that it was a sheik's water pitcher
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: is what they had told us. Okay, and, uh, it sort of has that look, doesn't it?
GUEST: Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER: Well, this was actually made in Massachusetts.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: The ware is called Royal Flemish, and it was made by the Mt. Washington Glass Works, who in the mid-1890s became part of Pairpoint. This is made in the 1890s and the imagery that they're trying to emulate is a stained glass window. When you think this is well over a hundred years old, the decoration on it is extraordinary. There's a little gilt loss and there's some very minor losses to the enameled areas. There are some very, very elaborate forms of this Royal Flemish ware, but this is a very simple and very, very pretty form and decoration. I think a fair auction estimate for this would be $5,000 to $7,000.
GUEST: Oh, wow. Okay.
APPRAISER: So it's probably more than what he paid for it in the '40s.
GUEST: Yes, yes.
APPRAISER: Especially if he was thrifty.
GUEST: Yes, yeah.
APPRAISER: Okay, very good.
GUEST: Wow.
APPRAISER: Thanks for bringing it in.
GUEST: Thank you so much.
