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Georgian Mahogany Card Table, ca. 1750

Value (2020) | $3,500 Retail
Watch  

APPRAISER:
Would you describe yourself as a bargain hunter?

GUEST:
Oh, yes, oh, yes.

APPRAISER:
Okay, okay.

GUEST:
Always looking for bargains.

APPRAISER:
Always looking. So where do you go? Tag sales, flea markets?

GUEST:
Yard sales; just anywhere that's having a sale. Antiques listed, I'm going there.

APPRAISER:
Yep. Okay, you're going there. So what's the story on this table? Where did you find it?

GUEST:
Well, I bought this in Tennessee, in Camden, near where I live. I just saw the advertisement in the newspaper.

APPRAISER:
Yeah.

GUEST:
And they said they had antiques.

APPRAISER:
Okay.

GUEST:
So I went by and found this little table.

APPRAISER:
Okay, what was it marked?

GUEST:
Oh, $7.50, I believe.

APPRAISER:
$7.50, so did you negotiate down to any lower price?

GUEST:
No, I didn't. But she did add a potted plant.

APPRAISER:
She added a potted plant to it? Is this stain on the top from the potted plant?

GUEST:
I think it might be, don't you?

APPRAISER:
It really was? Have you found out what it is?

GUEST:
Well, I was told that it was a card table.

APPRAISER:
Yep, you're right on that point. This is a mid-18th-century-- circa 1740 to 1750-- Georgian mahogany card table. Card tables were a huge part of 18th-century life. They were status symbols, because when you had a card table, and here this leaf, which has come off here, right, opened up, and you played the cards at it, right?

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
But when you had this table in your home, it meant that you were, had reached a status, a level where you could afford this rich, mahogany table with a drawer to keep the cards in, with a shell on the knee, with a bellflower, and with these wonderful claw-on-ball feet. All classic English-- probably London-- characteristics. So you have this card table, also called a gaming table. It's a little beat up, okay? You have a couple of spots where you have some, some repairs here and there. This is worth, in a New York shop, about $5,000.

GUEST:
Oh, wonderful.

APPRAISER:
Now, you paid $7.50.

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
Now, that's not a bad profit.

GUEST:
That is great.

APPRAISER:
I would think that's... I'd be real happy.

GUEST:
Thank you, thank you.

APPRAISER:
You're welcome. Now, let me tell you what it would be worth if it were American. There's an American version of this. If these were white pine and a little thicker, those drawer sides, that's one of the things that would tell us that this is an American table made in Boston. And then, it would be worth about $100,000.

GUEST:
Oh, wow.

APPRAISER:
But $5,000's not bad. (both laugh)

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Appraisal Details

Appraiser
Leigh Keno
Folk Art, Furniture
Keno Auctions
New York, NY
Update (2020)
$3,500 Retail
Appraised value (2007)
$5,000 Retail
Featured In
Louisville, Hour 2 (#1214)
Vintage Louisville 2021, Hour 1 (#2510)
Event
Louisville, KY (July 28, 2007)
Category
Furniture
Period
18th Century , Georgian
Form
Card Table
Material
Mahogany

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.

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