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German Relief-carved Plaques, ca. 1890

Value (2019) | $1,800 Retail – $2,700 Retail
Watch  

GUEST:
So in 1921, my great-grandmother came from Poessneck, Germany, and she brought these items, along with a few other items from home, that her grandfather had carved out of wood.

APPRAISER:
First of all, let's talk about what they are. These are relief-carved panels, and I think they date from around 1870, 1880. Your grandfather, or your great-grandfather... Is...

GUEST:
It would have been my great-great-grandfather.

APPRAISER:
Great-grand, I was going to say.

GUEST:
(laughs)

APPRAISER:
There's a lot of greats in there.

GUEST:
Yes!

APPRAISER:
He, he was very highly skilled, just the way he did the mountains and everything. The fact that he was from Germany sort of puzzled me a little bit with, on this bigger one.

GUEST:
Exactly.

APPRAISER:
Because that's a Norwegian flag.

GUEST:
Yes.

APPRAISER:
But sometimes, they did things like this from prints.

GUEST:
Oh, okay.

APPRAISER:
The images were print-inspired. They weren't necessarily something that they just sort of took out of nature.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
But your great-great-grandfather was, was way better than average because of the way he did the mountains, the way he did the people's faces, and everything is so animated.

GUEST:
Yes.

APPRAISER:
And I especially love the one up front here that has the trees.

GUEST:
Yeah.

APPRAISER:
The other thing I like about this stuff is that it has the original finish.

GUEST:
Yeah.

APPRAISER:
The frame is, is integral to the whole thing.

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
It's-- the frame is not added.

GUEST:
Right.

APPRAISER:
The whole thing is one solid piece of wood.

GUEST:
One piece, yeah.

APPRAISER:
Well, personally, I'd hang them in my house.

GUEST:
(chuckles)

APPRAISER:
In a heartbeat.

GUEST:
Yes.

APPRAISER:
So in a good retail setting, I would say, on this large one, we'd be at about $1,000 to $1,500.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
And each one of these would be about $400 to $600 each, give or take.

GUEST:
Very nice. Yes, they mean a lot to me and been in my family a long time, and they'll keep hanging on my wall till I go. (laughs)

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Appraisal Details

Appraiser
Ken Farmer
Decorative Arts, Folk Art, Furniture, Musical Instruments
Ken Farmer LLC
Charlottesville, VA
Appraised value (2019)
$1,800 Retail – $2,700 Retail
Featured In
McNay Art Museum, Hour 1 (#2413)
Event
San Antonio, TX (April 27, 2019)
Category
Paintings & Drawings
Period
19th Century
Form
Plaque

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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