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Mid-17th-Century German Gilt-metal & Jasper Cup

Value (2016) | $7,000 Auction – $10,000 Auction
Watch  

GUEST:
I'm hoping you can tell me what it is. I remember it first when I was eight or nine in the mid-'40s, in my grandfather's home, in his library. His father, my great-grandfather, had a brother who was in the Royal Navy. I suspect that his brother purchased this somewhere in the Far East. I'm only guessing. That's what I know about it. And I wonder what it is. I have had people, just purely informally, tell me they guessed that the green is jade, and gold trim. But purely a guess-- it's never been appraised.

APPRAISER:
Well, what you've brought to ANTIQUES ROADSHOW today is a very nice example of a German... decorative object, really. So it looks kind of like a cup, but it really didn't have a function. So it's German, not Asian. And the material is what we're just going to call gilt metal. It could be silver-gilt or gilt-bronze, and/or a combination of both. And then the stone is jasper.

GUEST:
Oh!

APPRAISER:
Not jade, it's jasper. This was actually made by hand in the 17th century.

GUEST:
Ooh! (laughing) I'm surprised.

APPRAISER:
Well, it's a very, very nice example of what the German craftspeople in that time were doing to make very nice decorative objects that very wealthy people would display to communicate their taste level and their wealth. And then also they would give them to other people of their socioeconomic status as gifts. And the style that we have here, it's Mannerist in style. And Mannerism is a style of art in Europe that started in Italy in the late Renaissance, which is the early 16th century. But in Northern Europe, it lasted into the 17th century. And this Mannerist style does precede the Baroque style of art in European decorative arts. So what we have from top to bottom, we have a rim here that's chased with floral and foliate decoration. Very fine technique to the turning of the stone. And overall, the amount of work that went into this then translates into its value at the time, and the value today. So I looked this over very carefully to see if it was marked by a known maker, and it is not. If it was marked by a known maker, we would be looking at something quite a bit more valuable. In a sale of European decorative works of art, I would expect this to realize at auction between $7,000 and $10,000.

GUEST:
(laughing) I'm shocked.

Support provided by: Learn more

Appraisal Details

Appraiser
Jason Preston
Decorative Arts, Furniture, Silver
Jason Preston Art Advisory & Appraisals
Los Angeles, CA
Appraised value (2016)
$7,000 Auction – $10,000 Auction
Featured In
Virginia Beach, Hour 3 (#2115)
Event
Virginia Beach, VA (June 25, 2016)
Category
Decorative Arts
Period
17th Century
Form
Cup
Material
Gilt , Metal

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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