Baggage Battles – Travel Channel’s New Reality Show

The Travel Channel is jumping into the auction reality television show with their offering called “Baggage Battles.”  The show will follow three teams of treasure hunters who attend auctions featuring items left at airports or in abandoned baggage.  Auctioneer & Appraiser Tim Luke will serve as auctioneer for an episode taping March 3, 2012 in Los Angeles, CA.

We will post some photographs and information after the taping about the show, the teams competing and info about the production team putting the show together.

For more info on the show, click here.

What’s It Worth Wrap Up – Copper Tray & Prints Video

Auctioneer/Appraiser Tim Luke joined anchor Roxanne Stein for his weekly segment on Fox WFLX 29 in West Palm Beach, FL.  The live in studio segment is part of the 8am morning news line up.  This week’s viewer submitted item come to us from Maralee  in West Palm Beach, FL.

Click here to see the video clips of the segment!

 

What’s It Worth Wednesday – Copper Tray & Prints

Join Auctioneer/Appraiser Tim Luke for his weekly segment on Fox WFLX 29 in West Palm Beach, FL.  The live in studio segment is part of the 8am morning news line up.  This week’s viewer submitted item come to us from Maralee  in West Palm Beach, FL.

Copper Tray

The first item is a 27.5″ diameter copper tray with interesting marks.  Based on the weight of the tray, it may have more value as scrape than as a decorative tray.  Once I get the opportunity to examine the piece in person, I will be able to determine age and value of the item.

The other item she is brining in consists of a number of prints or etchings by John Fulton Short (1932 – 1998), a Philadelphia artist.  He also is know as the first, if not the only, American to become a Matador in Spain.  The value will depend on the medium of the pieces.  If they are prints the value is less than if they are originals.

How much do you believe the piece is worth?  All will be reveled on the “What’s It Worth Wednesday” segment during the WFLX Fox 29 morning show 8am hour.

The answers will be posted after the show along with follow up commentary!

What’s It Worth Wrap Up: Christ Portrait

Roxanne Stein, Tim Luke & Lisa from Port St. Lucie

Auctioneer/Appraiser and Hobe Sound, FL resident, Tim Luke appeared last week on Fox WFLX 29 Morning News show with anchor, Roxanne Stein and a viewer from Port St. Lucie, FL.  The weekly segment, “What’s It Worth Wednesday” airs during the 8am hour and features viewer submissions of items for opinions of value.

This week our item came from Lisa, a viewer in Port St. Lucie, FL.  She received the portrait from her mother who received the piece from her mother, so it dates back to the 1940s.  They were interested in finding out about the age of the piece, if it was original and if it has any value.

The piece is titled, “Head of Christ” by the artist Warner Sallman.  The piece was stamped with the printers information on the bottom corner and a date of 1941.  The print was done and mounted on a sturdy cardboard.

The story of the artist’s background and his journey in creating his most famous work, “Head of Christ,” dates back to 1924.  He was struggling to produce a cover illustration for a denominational magazine when inspiration struck and he created a 3″ thumbnail sketch from which a final charcoal drawing was produced.

After explaining all this to Lisa and Roxanne, I asked them both, “Is the piece over or under $25?”  They both answered over, but alas they were disappointed to discover the piece was actually valued under $25!  It was merely a decorative print of a religious portrait.

See you Wednesday week with more interesting items!

Valentine’s Greetings

The modern day greeting card can be traced back back to the Middle Ages, around 1400.  It was popular to sing to your Valentine in addition to sending written messages to express amorous feelings.  An example of a Middle Ages Valentine is housed in the UK’s British Museum.

The popularity of exchanging Valentine’s cards grew during the  Victorian time period, 1890 to the early part of the 20th Century.  Antique and vintage cards can still be found at flea markets, antique malls and ephemera or paper shows.  Collectors look for whimsy, construction and appeal.  Expect to pay in the $1 – 50 range.

The mid-20th Century also brought about mass-production and printing.  These cards are not as valuable and were produced in great volume.

Another fun fact about Valentine’s Day comes from the Catholic Encyclopedia.  It states there were at least three early Christian saints named Valentine.  One was a priest, the other a bishop and little is known about the third, only he met his demise in Africa.  All three were said to have been martyred on the 14th of February.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!

What’s It Worth Wednesday – Christ Portrait

Join Auctioneer/Appraiser Tim Luke for his weekly segment on Fox WFLX 29 in West Palm Beach, FL.  The live in studio segment is part of the 8am morning news line up.  This week’s viewer submitted item come to us from Lisa in Port St. Lucie, FL.

The piece is titled, “Head of Christ” by the artist Warner Sallman.  Since I have only seen a digital photograph of the piece, the big question is over the medium of the portrait.  Is is a print, lithograph, oil, watercolor or a digitally printed copy.  Also, having the opportunity to looking at the ornate nature of the frame in person will provide other clues about the time period, quality and overall value of the piece.

Tag on Verso of Piece

The story of the artist’s background and his journey in creating his most famous work, “Head of Christ,” dates back to 1924.  He was struggling to produce a cover illustration for a denominational magazine when inspiration struck and he created a 3″ thumbnail sketch from which a final charcoal drawing was produced.

How much do you believe the piece is worth?  All will be reveled on the “What’s It Worth Wednesday” segment during the WFLX Fox 29 morning show 8am hour.

The answers will be posted after the show along with follow up commentary!

What’s It Worth Weekly Wrap Up

Fox 29's Roxanne Stein with Expert Appraiser Tim Luke

Auctioneer/Appraiser and Hobe Sound, FL resident, Tim Luke appeared this week on Fox WFLX 29 Morning News show with anchor, Roxanne Stein.  The weekly segment, “What’s It Worth Wednesday” airs during the 8am hour and features viewer submissions of items for opinions on the value they may or may not posses.  This week our items came from a viewer in West Palm Beach, FL.  They were interested in finding out about the vase, tea set and cast iron still bank.

Items on Fox Set before Segment

The bank (in Roxanne’s hands in the photo above) is made of cast iron and is called a safe bank.  It was missing the key to open the safe plus the central bolt holding the bank together was replaced.  The most likely explanation of the replaced bolt was someone wanted to get at the money trapped in the bank.  The other unfortunate quality of the bank was the oxidation of the cast iron.  Overall the piece was in the under $50 range.

Next up was the tea set.  As the photograph illustrates all the pieces were very tarnished.  The set turned out to be silver plate and the viewer was cautioned about over polishing because the silver plating will rub right off with to aggressive a cleaning!

The last item appraise was the vase and the question from the viewer, “is it Chinese or Japanese?”  In looking at the material used to make the piece coupled with the glaze and design, I was able to determine the piece was Japanese.  It is Satsuma pottery and the large size of the piece also helps its overall value.  The only flaw was an old repair to the handle of the piece.  The appraisal of the vase came in at around $150.

See you next week with more interesting items!