Tang Dynasty Ceramic Horse Sculpture
GUEST:
My husband was flying out of the Pacific, uh, right at the start of the Korean War, and he flew into Tokyo, found it in an antique shop, and bought it. (chuckles) On installment. Every time he went in, he carried seven cartons of cigarettes...
GUEST &
APPRAISER:
(both chuckle)
GUEST:
...to the man in, in the antique shop. And that went on until he was about to be transferred back to the States, and he paid off the balance in cash. I don't know how much it was. (laughing)
APPRAISER:
What year was that?
GUEST:
That was 1950.
APPRAISER:
I understand that you were at the ANTIQUES ROADSHOW before. When was this?
GUEST:
It was in Atlanta, about 1997. I saw Mr. Lark Mason, Jr., and he was doubtful about the horse, so he advised me then to have it authenticated. He pointed me in the right direction. I took the horse to Chattanooga. A lady there drilled holes in him, and I sent it to England, and they sent me back the fact that he's real. (chuckles)
APPRAISER:
Thermoluminescence tests are really, really important to get for pieces of this type. This is a test that Oxford Authentications does in England. Basically, they take a core sample from the belly and two or three other places...
GUEST:
Right underneath here.
APPRAISER:
Right un, usually underneath the, the head of the piece, and then they irradiate those samples with light and calculate when the piece was last fired.
GUEST:
Mm, okay.
APPRAISER:
So for Tang Dynasty examples, these tests are pretty foolproof.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
So it's really a boon for a collector to have a test of this type done for these pieces.
GUEST:
Well, I'm so glad.
APPRAISER:
These Tang Dynasty horses are really quite rare, for its massive size, and also the fact that it's a three-color glazed example. The ownership of these steeds was a matter of great prestige during this period, and so models of these were buried when the nobleperson actually died. If you had come to us in 1999 with this authenticity certificate, we would have told you that the insurance value would be about $100,000. In 2007, the market's gone down a bit. It'd be about $80,000 at insurance now, okay?
GUEST:
Wow. Wow, that's still very good.
APPRAISER:
This is, it's great, isn't it?
GUEST:
(laughing)
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.