Edgar Brandt "La Tentation" Lamp, ca. 1925
Watch
GUEST:
It's been in the family for a number of years. It was one of those things where all of a sudden, no one wanted it anymore. (laughs) People aren't really into snake motifs so much, and it had to fit into the right place. So, decided it would be nice to have, and honestly don't know all that much about it except that I believe it's bronze. I believe it's from a French artist, maybe the early 1900s. That's about it.
APPRAISER:
Well, it is very clearly signed on the base. It says Edgar Brandt, "E. Brandt," and Edgar Brandt was the leading metalworker in France starting in the 1920s up through the 1940s. He actually didn't die until 1960. His main body of work was wrought iron. He was the master of wrought iron in the '20s and '30s. He did all kinds of architectural work, he did doors, radiator grills, fences. He worked in Paris, he also worked in New York City. And this is one of the lamps that he made. This came in two sizes-- it came in this size and it came in a table size.
GUEST:
No kidding.
APPRAISER:
And sometimes they have this glass shade, and they also come with an alabaster shade. Alabaster is a soft stone that's translucent.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
Brandt made this part, this is made out of bronze, and the shade was probably done by the Daum glass factory. Daum Nancy is in the eastern part of France by the German border. And this is from the Art Deco period, from the 1920s. "Art Deco" term comes from an exhibition that was held in Paris in 1925. And Brandt, as a matter of fact, designed the entrance gates to that fair.
GUEST:
No way.
APPRAISER:
This is like his most famous, famous piece. And it has a title... I know my French is awful.
GUEST:
That's okay.
APPRAISER:
And we're going to get all these letters and emails. It's called "La Tentation"-- "The Temptation," or "Seduction."
GUEST:
Oh, well, makes sense.
APPRAISER:
So it's this wild snake coming out of a basket down there.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
The 1920s is when Howard Carter found King Tut's tomb...
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
So there was a tremendous amount of interest in things that were Egyptian.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
They sometimes called it Egyptomania. Very, very desirable, it's very rare, lots of fakes, lots of reproductions, so it's nice that the one you have is a real one.
GUEST:
All right! That's the good part, right?
APPRAISER:
That is the good part. And there's a better part.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
In terms of the value, the condition on this is a little shaky.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
It has some problems here with this green. Bronze is mainly copper, so when it deteriorates, it turns this green.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
It's the reason the Statue of Liberty is green. In a gallery setting, you're talking about $35,000 to $45,000.
GUEST:
No kidding! (chuckling): Wow! That's incredible. So if you were to see one like this in, like, pristine condition, what is that then?
APPRAISER:
There was one at auction that brought $62,000.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
So I assume the condition was better. It also had a very strong provenance, which can be important. But I think $35,000 to $45,000 is pretty good.
GUEST:
That's incredible. That's pretty good for a snake lamp.
Appraisal Details
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.
