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Watch | Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 3

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Close Up | Poet Rainer Maria Rilke's Quote

Close Up | Poet Rainer Maria Rilke's Quote

Owner Interview | Korean Yayoi Stone Dagger, ca. 750 BC

Owner Interview | Korean Yayoi Stone Dagger, ca. 750 BC

Appraisal Collection | All Our Appraisals from Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 3

Appraisal Collection | All Our Appraisals from Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 3

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Mt. Washington "Napoli" Biscuit Jar, ca. 1895

Value (2016) | $4,000 Auction – $6,000 Auction
Watch  

GUEST:
This was given to me by a dear friend and neighbor of mine some years ago. I don't really know a lot about it. It looks almost English to me, but I noticed there's a mark on the bottom that says "Napoli," and that sounds Italian.

APPRAISER:
It does say "Napoli" on the bottom, and then there's a number underneath it. This was made by a company called Mt. Washington.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
And they made all different types of glass, Crown Milano and Royal Flemish. But this particular glass was called Napoli.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
And it was interesting when I saw it, because I was a little confused, too. But then I lifted the cover, and inside, there's an "MW" in there, which stands for Mt. Washington. They first opened in 1837 in South Boston, Massachusetts, and in 1870, they moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts. So this piece was clearly made in New Bedford. They actually merged with Pairpoint Glass in 1894, and Pairpoint would make some of the metalwork. So this was an opportune moment for them to make a biscuit jar like this one. Now, Napoli glass was made for a very short period of time, between 1894, when it was patented, and 1896.

GUEST:
Oh, my word.

APPRAISER:
And it was created by Albert Steffin, who was the head of Mt. Washington. Now, the little fanciful figures that you see, which I just think are so adorable, are based on Palmer Cox's Brownie figures. Palmer Cox was a Canadian illustrator and author who wrote the Brownies series, and he illustrated... In many of the books, you have these little figures of what he called Brownies.

GUEST:
Interesting.

APPRAISER:
In fact, it was so popular that one of the first hand-held cameras made by Eastman Kodak was called the Brownie camera, and it was named after the Brownies of Palmer Cox.

GUEST:
Oh, how interesting.

APPRAISER:
This almost looks like Jiminy Cricket, but we know that's not.

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
And over here, looks like a Keystone Kop.

GUEST:
That's right.

APPRAISER:
And over here, I thought this was a goose, but some people might say that it's a duck.

GUEST:
Oh, okay.

APPRAISER:
But it's really just terrific.

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
And then these two figures here, which are so lovely. What's so interesting is, you see the painted figures on the outside, but those are painted on the interior.

GUEST:
Oh, my goodness.

APPRAISER:
It's not on the surface, so you can only imagine how difficult it must have been. And then you have this beautiful gilt webbing, which is typical, and there are some pinched areas. It has a nice handle with a tied twig design. It's all-in-all in really remarkably good condition. The metal has tarnished somewhat, but actually, if you saw the interior, that's probably what it looked like when it was brand-new.

GUEST:
Ah, so it's gold-plated?

APPRAISER:
There is a trace of gold plating on it, very, very little, but, yes, it was originally gold-plated. In terms of value, something like this at auction could easily bring between $4,000 and $6,000. (gasps)

GUEST:
Oh, my word. I had no idea. That's great. Thank you.

Support provided by: Learn more

Appraisal Details

Appraiser
Arlie Sulka
Glass
Lillian Nassau LLC
New York, NY
Appraised value (2016)
$4,000 Auction – $6,000 Auction
Featured In
Indianapolis, Hour 2 (#2105)
Event
Indianapolis, IN (July 09, 2016)
Category
Glass
Period
19th Century
Form
Container , Jar
Material
Glass , Gold Plate

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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