Welcome to the Mississippi Antique Showcase, where our expert appraisers take a closer look at your rare finds, family heirlooms and quirky collectibles.

We'll uncover the stories behind these unique treasures, and of course, find out what they might be worth.

I want to welcome Patty and Will Lewis from Oxford, Mississippi here today.

Thank y'all so much for coming.

We appreciate it so much.

And I have to admit something, I have been waiting for this because I love William Faulkner.

I taught College English, and he was one of the writers that I taught.

So brilliant.

So brilliant.

And so we have something today that deals with William Faulkner.

They have a, a, a letter written by William Faulkner and signed, and here is a copy of it.

The letter is to my father Uhhuh, and he was a merchant and ran a business for the J.E.

Lewison Company.

So he was trying to collect a bill.

Mr.

Faulkner, in his early years was very slow in paying his bills, if at all.

Yes.

He finally, after he won the Nobel Prize and his book started selling, he paid his bill.

Mm.

And the letter refers to some post-dated checks that, uh, Mr.

Faulkner declined to sign.

Mr.

Faulkner took care of a lot of ladies.

Uh mm-hmm.

Yes, he did.

Uh, Wife, uh, sister-in-law, step, uh, daughter, stepchildren.

Mm-hmm.

JoJo and, uh, Malcolm.

Mm-hmm.

They would come into the store and, uh, charge things to Mr.

Hartland and not pay, of course.

Mm-hmm.

Mr.

Faulkner had a, a lot of people, as we've said Yeah.

Uh, for whom he had to take care of.

Mm-hmm.

To at times he couldn't always pay the bills.

And in this letter he says that I have to pay for the food mm-hmm.

For my family that comes first.

Mm-hmm.

And if I sign these checks mm-hmm.

They're not gonna be worth, worth anything, anything.

Mm-hmm.

But my signature, mm-hmm.

Someday is going to be worth a lot more than any worthless checks.

Well, that I write.

This is priceless.

And if I had to put a value on this, it, it would be, uh, no less than a thousand dollars for this letter.

Well, again, thank y'all so much for being here.

Thank you, Ron.

We appreciate your sharing.

Well, I see you have some beautiful Peruvian rugs.

Would you mind telling us a little bit about them and, and, uh, how you came upon them?

I was in Lima, Peru Consulting with, um, an American school there that was, uh, established in the forties.

It's called Colegio Franklin Dena Roosevelt.

So I was helping them to design a K through 12 curriculum.

At the time I was there, there was also a, uh, an international conference that was held.

And one of the things that was available were rugs by Eddie Sulca.

He is a third generation weaver from Ayacucho.

And none of the art that was being produced there was coming out.

I was very much taken with these in that their natural, uh, all of the colors come from collecting leaves and berries and during the rainy season.

So it's amazing the gradations of reds and pinks.

Sulca's work has been displayed at countless museums in the United States, but he's, he is well regarded.

And, uh, at that time, what did you pay for?

Well, I just looked at my journal from 1995 and, uh, I have in there that I had to come up with $300 to get two rugs.

Okay.

So these things that you probably have never had 'em on the floor, you just, have you been hanging them or just had 'em Put away?

I do both.

I've hung them.

I have, uh, had them on the floor.

Uh, right now they're on the floor and, uh, they're really kind of indestructible.

Well, I, I'll tell you, they both in great condition and sign.

That's good.

I would say for the pair of them they'd be today at, at auction, they'd be worth, um, $1500 to $2000, somewhere in there.

Uh, for the price of both of 'em.

Uh, I know you've held on to 'em a long time and you're probably not going to sell 'em.

Right.

But They are things that are collectible and, uh, especially in this condition and with a good story.

We appreciate you bringing them today.

Well, It's great to Like for educating us all the listeners out here.

Well, it's great to be here and nice to meet you.

Yes.

Glad to see somebody from Aberdeen.

We're here with Ms.

Betty Gord.

Ms.

Betty has brought a beautiful piece.

She walked by me and I was like, we gotta go follow this.

It's a beautiful lamp with a shell shade.

And Ms.

Betty, you've got to tell them the story and how much you were appraised for today, because this comes with a, a, a free 99 price is what we call it.

It was free.

What?

Talk about that.

Well, I found it in my husband's grandparent's attic, yeah.

And his grandmother was born in 1891.

Okay.

And died in 1986.

Okay.

And I got it that year after.

And so I've had it for quite a while.

Beautiful piece.

Do you use it on a regular?

Yes.

It gets plugged in and turned on.

Yeah.

And it, I had it rewired and it works.

Beautiful.

So from free to now appraised, what were you appraised for?

Well, not $7000 or 8,000, but $700 or $800.

That's Still good.

Still good.

Still good.

That is still good.

So are you wanting to keep it or are you gonna sell it?

Oh, yes.

Oh Yes.

It's, it's a family piece.

It's beautiful.

It is beautiful.

Is that a real shell on the top?

Yeah.

Yeah.

That is so lovely.

I'm a lamp girl.

I, and I like unique lamps and that definitely caught my eye and I'm excited for you.

Thank you.

With this appraisal.

Yeah, we were happy to hear, hear that.

Well, that's good.

We've enjoyed it in our home.

And we'll pass it down to our Yes ma'am, our children.

Well, thank you for coming out to the Mississippi Antique Showcase.

Thank Mississippi.

We're here with Mat.

Thank you so much for coming to Mississippi.

Antique Showcase.

We're really excited about this piece that you brought in by a Mississippi artist, OC McDavid.

And it's really rare because he was born in Ruth, Mississippi in 1911.

Okay.

And his first career actually started out, not in sculpture or art, but he carries a lot of heavyweight in artistic and cultural circles in Mississippi because he was a managing editor or the managing editor of the Jackson Daily News from 1969 to 1977.

But it wasn't until his retirement that he really turned his creative energy towards both paintings and like we have here sculptures.

And so, as you can see in this particular rendition of this sculpture, he really focused on community democracy, civil engagement, and really a collective voice of the people.

His works are, are pretty rare, right?

As in, they're not a lot out on the private market.

They're mainly in collection of museums in Mississippi, in the Delta.

And obviously he resided in Jackson.

And before we get into that piece, this particular one though is more a form of abstract art that he liked to do.

Right.

And his paintings and his sculptures, which really blends the realism with that symbolic nature.

Tell us exactly about how you acquired that.

There was a, estate sale of Emma Lidle at the Pershire Plantation in Pershire Mississippi, which is in Boliver County.

Just I go to estate sales a lot and, and I saw this and it, I thought it was really something that kind of special when I saw it.

And I knew that she was an artist and I knew she had, you know, pretty good taste.

So I saw it and I got it for what I thought was a good price.

This is in really good shape.

Okay.

I mean, I don't see really any major deficiencies and I know it is abstract art and so it's not like there's a lot of delicate things that could happen.

But, uh, specifically about this piece, in addition to the story you told of how you acquired it, we can see something on the back.

So Corey, why don't you, uh, pick up the back and show him that we have what we have on the back.

Sure.

As you can see, this is actually one of the great things about it.

We see the title of this actual work.

We, The People II, and it's signed obviously with OC McDavid Jackson, Mississippi 1984.

The great thing we have is it looks to be when he originally sold the piece is OC McDavid's actual business card and the price that likely the artists that you described earlier paid are $200.

So in addition to the actual piece itself, we have all the providence, which makes it even more special.

And then the actual construction we see with the nails, the gilding on the nails and spray painted ply board that brings it full circle into some abstract art territory.

So when you said you purchased it from the estate sale earlier, how much did you pay for it?

I mean, no more than $75, possibly a hundred, but definitely not more than a hundred.

Well, Jason, why don't you tell 'em about what you made?

Think you, so I think based on today's art market, what we were looking at, and there's not as much comparables, but I think we'd estimate We The People II.

This McDavid work around $3,500 to $4,000.

Wow.

It holds a particular appeal, uh, for the southern regional art market.

Right.

Um, and it's also sold off, thereby collectors who, um, appreciate American civic themes too.

So I think you've got a great find, um, a good return on investment as we say.

Um, but I know a lot of people be very special to you, So you may not wanna sell, But that's always an opportunity.

We Had a chance to check in with Jace and Corey in Columbus and take a tour through this historic home.

Welcome to 12 Gables in Columbus, Mississippi.

And 12 Gables is one of the most historically significant homes in Columbus, Mississippi.

Architecturally, it is one of the earliest surviving Greek revival examples.

But, you know, the main question I get, Corey, and I know you have a place that is historically furnished as well, is, do y'all really live like this?

And the answer is yes, you can.

Any of the furniture that you'll see is all used, whether it's the sofas, the chairs, um, the dining table, the porcelain that you'll see sitting out, all of it is, is put to use.

And of course, we still have our casual spots as well that you can kind of relax after a long day.

But most days we're sitting in this parlor, or we're dining in the dining room, uh, we'll have the hor d'oeuvres set out there, or we're on the great front porch, which I hope y'all will get a chance to see as well.

Well, Corey, I think it's now time to split up and show him some other things about the home.

What do you say?

Let's do it.

Now welcome to the dining room here at 12 Gables.

As you can see around the room, we've tried to put period furnishings American, uh, furnishings in this room as well.

For instance, this server is from Newport and they're, they're gorgeous pieces and they add a, a really good element to any dining room.

As we're moving along the room.

You'll notice these peculiar to most people's style of lighting, but they're called argon lamps and they're just fitting within the period and theme of 19th century lighting.

So you'll see those all throughout, uh, 12 Gables as well.

We hope you've enjoyed the tour of 12 Gables and learn a little bit about its furnishings.

Please come again next time.

I'm here with Todd from Oxford in Oxford, checking out some cool sports memorabilia.

Todd, would you bring us?

Well, I brought a, uh, Michael Jordan rookie card and I, um, as a child of the eighties, I grew up watching sports, playing sports, and I think that led to me collecting, uh, baseball cards, basketball cards as a hobby.

I got this one at a flea market in Jackson, just randomly at a booth.

Picked up a pack, uh, probably for a couple bucks and pulled this out.

And I knew at the time that it was really special.

Yeah.

So this was in a pack of Cards.

That's right.

So it just happened to be one of 'em that I got at the pack.

The Luck of the draw.

Right man.

Well, I think you hit it.

Um, so Michael Jordan, arguably one of the most recognized names in the NBA.

Right.

Ever.

There's LeBron James now, but again, Michael Jordan, especially our age, he was it.

I had a poster of Michael Jordan on the wall in my bedroom when I was a kid too.

Um, 15 seasons in the NBA and again, record after record after record.

Um, a fantastic player.

Now this being his rookie card, very rare, right?

Very rare.

Do you have any idea of what it's worth?

I really don't.

I've tried searching and there's such a wide range of information out there.

It's really hard to tell.

There are some fakes.

There was also copies of this made in the nineties, the 10 year anniversary of the rookie season.

On the back here, you don't see any of the verbiage That was after that they did with the, the copies.

So that's very good.

And obviously where you got it, how you found it, it's pretty awesome.

You know, the story is fantastic.

So do you have any idea of value today?

I really don't.

'cause it'll be a surprise.

Yeah, well, so we're looking at, there was one that just sold at auction at $9,000.

Wow.

So you're looking at a retail value of about 11,000 to $12,000.

Yeah.

That's Great.

Yeah.

You did well in your couple dollar investment, Huh?

Exactly.

Exactly.

Look, thank you so much for bringing it down again.

An iconic card.

Yeah.

Iconic sports memorabilia.

This was fantastic.

Thanks so much for showing it with us.

Oh, it's Wonderful.

Thank you.

Yeah, Everything goes in cycles.

The world has always been in cycles.

Do you think we're going to see in the relatively near future some of the things that in the 1960s, 1970s, brought three times what they bring now, do you think?

We're gonna get back to that.

And I'm not gonna name any one specific thing, but I think, you know, we, we Will.

I mean, everything, like you said, goes in cycles, but he made a good point that we're gonna have to get, uh, young people, you know, young people, they wanna buy Ikea junk furniture and it lasts about two years, then they have it sitting out on the street, whereas they buy antiques.

Antiques keeps that character.

It, it has a story to tell a period of time, and they can keep it, look at it, invest their money in it, and touch it, use it.

And it lasts on and on.

You know, if a leg breaks off, you can, you can put it back on.

You know what I've said so many times that I think that, um, it might not be totally true, but I think it, it is very relative to where we are today, is that we are really losing a whole generation of beautiful living.

And that so many people, life is so harried now for everyone that they want something that can be in the dishwasher.

They want, you know, those things instead of fine China.

I think that is one of the things that we find is really hard to, it's Reframing the way that people think about antiques.

And this is something that we do on a daily basis.

So we remember the old markets of the auction business where people were investing in these antiques.

You know, we're selling tester beds for $25,000 and $35,000.

Yes.

And those tester beds today bring $2,500.

Absolutely.

But so when I had the conversation with the consignor about, Hey, listen, I paid this for it, now it's worth this.

I say, well, when you bought that Jaguar in 1999, what is that worth today?

Right.

Because when they purchase a car, they think about, you know, they're not, they're using it every day and they're not worried about selling it for profit.

And so we just simply need to reframe the next generation about how they're thinking about these things.

They're using them every day.

They're not buying anything from EKF for the now, the same amount of money because antiques have become so cheap.

They're not buying that and then thinking they're, they're gonna sell it for a profit.

They're just using.

We're here with Lisa Stevens from West Point, Mississippi.

Right.

And Lisa has brought along probably some of the most unusual items we've had.

Tell us what they are.

They're Coach Lanters that were used, uh, with the Stevens funeral home back in 1897.

And they, they were on a horse-drawn coach, right?

Yes, yes.

Absolutely.

How were they lit?

How were they fueled?

Well, they would open the door on the sides and, uh, put, I guess lantern the oil in it.

And, uh, then they'd been changed over to electric.

Now, Stevie's great -grandfather, uh, started the funeral home business and that was my deceased husband.

And, uh, they used them on their coach John Horse.

How did you come to, uh, preserve these?

Well, he, um, he kept those and after he passed away, I purchased the home from the estate and I just kept 'em in my storage and taking care of 'em and heard you were in town and let's show 'em off.

Good.

What do you display 'em at home or anything as conversational pieces Or anything?

We used to, but not anymore.

Well, Lisa, thank you so much for bringing these unusual items.

We appreciate that.

Alright, Thank you.

We are here with Mona Mills.

Mona has got a beautiful face jug that caught my eye and I had to see all about it.

Mona, you've come to the Mississippi Antique Showcase mm-hmm.

With what?

So this is a face jug made by Titus and Euple Riley.

They were in their sixties, I believe.

Yeah.

She took Euple, took a class at Itawamba Community College and came home at night and taught Titus everything she learned and they turned it into a business.

So, So I wonder, did she base this off of somebody's own face?

Well, actually, the face jugs have been around for a long time.

Okay.

But really became popular in the South when, when Potters, uh, no longer found an outlet for their churns and whiskey jugs.

And also they turned to knick-knacks and Nas.

Yeah.

Little Bang face jugs.

Little bang A people would buy them and usually they're very grotesque and they're much bigger.

Right.

But, um, this one's was cuter and they, and the Riley's didn't do too many of these.

This is the only one I know.

Right.

I looked dead at this mug and said, look at that little man I got.

I gotta see this little man.

So what are you hoping off of today at Mississippi Antique Showcase with this job?

What am I hoping to get?

A couple of hundred dollars.

Okay.

Okay.

How much did you pay for it?

Probably around 150.

Okay.

We we're going for Three.

We're going for $300.

We're crossing fingers.

I would just, I would just want to get a little of my money back, although it's not going anywhere.

It sits up in my kitchen, so I see it every day.

Okay.

Well, Good luck to you.

Thank you so much for showing me this lovely, unique piece.

Thank you.

And I hope, I hope it all works out during the appraisal.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jay.

I glad to see you today.

You've bought, um, about the most exciting thing that showed up so far this, this weekend.

And, uh, what an appropriate place for this to show up Right here in Oxford, Mississippi in Ole Miss tidy country.

Yes, Sir.

Uh, tell me about your ball here.

Uh, Well, this was purchased by my wife's grandfather.

It was a radio auction for the March of Dimes, and he purchased it for $900 in 1961 or two.

Um, and I have the newspaper article from that, but nonetheless, he gave it to his son.

My, my wife's father, Bubba Jenkins.

And Bubba passed the ball down to me because I was the only ole miss, uh, person in the family.

Everyone else, they were diehard state fans.

Right.

And his father outbid the other man on the radio who was a diehard Ole Miss fan, and her grandfather was a diehard state fan.

So he outbid him out of spite.

That's fair.

I think everything's fair at an auction.

It looks like just looking at the tips and some of the writing on it there that it's been played with.

Yes.

Uh, who played with the ball?

Uh, my, my wife's father and his brother played with it several times out in the yard.

It, it was just a toy to them.

Well, it's holding up pretty good to have been played with, and I can tell there's a lot of wire.

It looks like they played a lot With it.

I think there's still some gumbo mud on the side of the ball, but I can see some of that gumbo mud.

There's a little here and it looks like a little on the front over there somewhere, sir.

Um, I'm gonna turn the ball, but folks can see it.

It's signed by John Vaught and it's signed by Jake the quarterback.

Yes.

Jake Gibbs.

Gibbs.

Yes sir.

Mm-hmm.

And then it is, it's marked Ole Miss 1960 National SEC Champions.

Did you take this ball and show it to, uh, Jake Gibbs?

Yes, sir.

I did last summer.

I, I, I met Jake at, uh, an event in Lexington and, um, I showed him the ball and he handled it and he, he remembered the ball.

He remembered the ball And he, uh, you could tell that he recognized it, I guess, but, Well, he's quite a legend.

Uh, you know, he played, uh, I think three sports for Ole Miss after his football career, which it must have been pretty good.

They were the national champions.

He went on to play for the Yankees and, uh, made a name for himself there.

This guy was quite an athlete.

Have you ever had the ball appraised?

I, I have not.

This is the first appraised First time.

Mm-hmm.

Oh, you know, it's got a lot going for it.

It's, you know, not only has Jake Gibbs signature, but John Vaught's signature, I think John Vaught won 190 games at Ole Miss.

Wow.

I mean, he was a heck of a coach.

And of course, this is their 1960 National Championship game.

Won 10 games, lost zero, and tied won.

You know, I look back at balls that we've sold and we do options and we sold a Archie Manning, Peyton Manning, uh, football, uh, back when Peyton was the quarterback of the University of Tennessee.

Uh, Peyton signed the ball, his dad signed it, and it was a charity auction, kinda like where this one came from.

That ball brought $5,000.

Right.

But when it comes to a rare ball, this is a much rarer ball because Archie and Peyton have signed lots of balls.

Right.

In today's market at a well advertised auction, I think this ball could very easily bring 15 to 20,000.

Really?

Wow.

Um, it's a special ball.

No doubt.

And, uh, we really appreciate you bringing it in.

Join us next time on Mississippi Antique Showcase.

Find out if you've got a hidden treasure tucked away in your closet.