Welcome to Mississippi Antique Showcase.

In this episode, we are in Natchez, Mississippi with our expert appraisers to look at your rare finds, family heirlooms and your quirky collectibles.

We'll see what we can learn about these unique treasures, and of course, see what they might be worth.

>> Sounds good!

No!

I had no idea!

>> Yeah, it sounds great.

>> I had No idea.

>> Hello, Elizabeth.

Eleanor, we are here to evaluate the value and the provenance of your beautiful sword.

Uh, tell me a little bit about it and how you came to own it.

>> I bought this sword here in Natchez on, uh, Franklin Street, I believe at an antique store there where the antique stores.

My husband was in town for a meeting and I was roaming the antique shops and I was looking for a birthday gift for him.

And, um, I had in mind a sword.

He had said he would like to have a Civil War sword, and I saw this, it was in a case, and the proprietor of the store said it was a very special sword.

It's a Nashville Plow Works sword.

>> Mm-Hmm.

>> And, uh, he said that Nashville fell to the Union in April of 1862.

So that was early.

And they were originally an implement manufacturer, so they changed from making plow shares to making swords.

>> Yes.

Yeah.

>> And so I paid, uh, what was a lot of money to me at the time, and I had to buy it on layaway.

So it was a total of $3,500.

>> Okay.

>> I'd like to know if it is authentic.

I hope it is.

Whether it might have been repaired or whether, uh, you know, I just I just want to verify that >> I'm so excited that you have so much information about it, and everything you've said is correct.

It is Nashville Plow Works, and I'm going to try and see if we could show this on camera where the Nashville Plow Works comes down around here where it's stamped and it's a Confederate soldier's Confederate sword.

Um, it's in wonderful shape for its age, and yes, it is an authentic Civil War sword.

Um, it's very artistic.

It's got a leather grip right here with the brass, um, uh, ribbons around it.

Um, it's riveted in the end, which is normal for this.

That's correct.

It's got a leather sheath right here, which is correct.

And the bluing in the sword, it's still all there.

It's never been polished out or altered in any way.

So this is in mint condition for its age.

>> Wonderful.

>> And its, uh, origins.

I think it's a wonderful sword.

So you paid about $3,500 for it?

>> Right.

>> Well here's the deal.

Swords and military implements and weapons are collectible, in one sense, by themselves.

And then this happens to be Confederate, which is another genre of collecting for people.

So you have two different things you could evaluate.

I would go with the double, both of them together.

It's a military sword and it's southern, it's Confederate.

And, um, there's a lot of people who would love to have this.

And there were a few of them made because of the fall of Nashville so early in the Civil War.

But, um, you said you paid about $3,500 for it.

I probably put it up about double that now.

And you might even do better for a Civil War enthusiast because as I said, things like this become more and more rare as people collect them and they keep them.

They don't get rid of them.

They don't trade 'em that often.

So, um, I think you have a real, real gem here, and I'm so glad you took time to bring it to us.

Did you enjoy that?

It's fun, huh?

>> It meant a lot to my husband.

>> Yeah.

I think this is great.

So thank, thank you again for bringing up.

>> Well, thank you, Luke.

>> You're welcome.

>> I'm here with Dan and Deborah McKenna from Laurel, Mississippi.

Welcome to the Mississippi Antique Showcase.

>> Well, thank you.

>> Thank you both for joining us today.

I wanna know all about the item that you have today.

>> Well, this item is a bedspread that I had when I was a kid, so it's 60 plus years old.

Uh, I got it when I was about six or seven, I believe.

And then my mother kept it.

And, uh, I was always asked not to jump on the bedspread, so I never jumped on the bedspread.

So that's why it's in good shape.

>> Awesome.

Talk about the history behind the bedspread.

Who actually is depicted on here?

>> It's Gene Autry and the Melody Ranch.

That was his ranch.

>> Oh, wow.

>> And it was in California.

And when his horse died, I forgot the name of the horse, (all laughing) but it died in 1990.

He sold the ranch.

And then the ranch burnt down in one of the wildfires out there in California.

>> Wow.

Wow.

So was this a Christmas present?

A birthday present?

Were you a fan of Gene Autry as a child?

>> I was a fan of Gene Autry.

>> Awesome.

>> So I think it came as either a Christmas present or a birthday present, but I don't recall.

>> So when was the age that you stopped using this beautiful Gene Autry blanket?

>> About 15, I think.

>> That is awesome.

So today you came to be appraised.

How much did you get appraised for?

>> Uh, $200 to $300.

>> Oh, wow.

Wow.

For it being a Gene Autry blanket.

Do you plan on selling it or keeping It?

No, it's probably gonna go to my granddaughter.

>> Awesome.

>> She, uh, loves horses and whatnot, and, uh, she's, uh, how do you say it, Deb?

>> Well, she lives in Idaho.

They have a ranch and she's a big horse person, so this will go to her.

She'll appreciate Gene Autry one day.

She may not know who Gene Autry is now, but I think she'll get a lesson.

>> Y'all can give her a little lesson later on.

>> Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

>> Well, I enjoyed you both, McKennas, for coming in and showing me this beautiful Gene Autry blanket and coming in to the Mississippi Antique Showcases.

>> Thank you.

Thank you.

>> It's been fun.

>> Wesley, thanks for joining us today.

This, this looks really interesting.

Why don't you tell us what you brought in?

>> Well, what we got here is a Schlitz Galaxy satellite sign.

Uh, it, it's from 1968 and still in the shrink wrap, as you can see.

It's never been opened.

Still got the original light bulbs and whatnot in there.

And, uh, I wanna see what you've got to say about it.

>> Well, um, I also see off-camera that you brought the original box that it was sold in.

I know you said you didn't have the bill of sale or receipt, but this is still fascinating, obviously, so well preserved.

It hasn't even been opened.

So I'm gonna speak generally about the Schlitz Brewing Company, and then Cory may kind of tell you a little more specifics about this, uh, item and, and maybe give us a value.

>> Awesome.

>> So the Schlitz Brewing Company was a Milwaukee, Wisconsin based company, and it was founded in 1849, 1850.

And it actually operated until the 1980s.

Um, so you kind of bought this on the tail-end of, of their existence.

But really, um, it's the Schlitz beer is kind of the beer that made Milwaukee famous.

And that's kind of the slogan.

And so, it's really interesting to see this piece of a history for this company.

>> And Wesley, you said that you also have a couple more of these, right?

>> Right.

I got a couple that's, you know, not in the packaging and that I have 'em displayed at my house.

>> Okay.

And this would've been the one that turns.

>> It turns with the-- >> With the map.

Um, it looked like some countries and continents over there.

So, um, like Jace said, this is a very interesting and that you've got it perfectly preserved.

So do you think you know how much it may be worth?

>> Not really.

I really don't.

I'm hoping for a lot, but-- >> Well, you've got something really great going for you.

It's because it's, as we said, it's unopened and it really varies.

Jace, what, what do you think?

>> I mean, I would at least give it a $2,500, $3,000 valuation.

Um, >> Well,just like when we were kids, I'm gonna disagree with you on that one.

I have a, I have a slightly better, uh, outcome for you.

Usually because of its unopened status, we've seen them go at the auctions anywhere from $5,000 to $6,000.

But because this is unopened and hasn't even been plugged in yet, I think that'd probably increase the value to a certain collector.

And it's coming in the original box as well.

So I would project this anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000.

>> Oh, Wow.

Awesome.

>> Yeah.

And you have several of these, right?

>> Right, I do.

>> So that's, that really helps whenever you got, when did you say you purchased this?

>> I got it last year.

>> Okay.

>> Yeah.

>> So, how much did you pay for it?

Do you remember?

>> I paid a thousand for It.

>> Okay.

So that's a good ROI, I would like to say.

So thank you so much for bringing it in.

This is a really special piece.

>> Yes, sir.

Thank you.

I appreciate y'all.

>> Absolutely.

>> Thank you, sir.

>> Thank you.

>> Theodore.

I wasn't expecting to see a basketball like this today, and I can't believe you showed up with this basketball.

Tell me about your basketball.

>> Well, it's, uh, my son and his friend, they went to L.A. one night and, uh, so he came back with his basketball.

>> Your son, his friend.

About what year did they go to L.A.?

>> I'm thinking it was somewhere around 2008, 2009.

I really don't remember.

>> Were they big basketball fans?

>> Oh, yeah.

>> Uh, the signature, it looks like a Kobe signature.

Um, I've checked some other signatures of Kobe's and they do match up with your signature.

>> Good.

>> His K especially, there's a big loop on that K. And, uh, that's just the way he signed.

But he had several different signatures.

Uh, there's two authentication services.

I would send it to one of them.

They will give you an authentication verifying that that is Kobe's signature.

Which I believe it is.

And I'm sure you believe it is.

Um, and once you've got that in hand, I think this basketball in today's market at a well advertised auction would probably bring $3,500 to $5,000.

>> Oh, wow.

That's wonderful.

>> Is that more than you thought, or less than you thought?

>> Wow.

I really didn't have no idea, you know, but, uh, wow.

That's great.

>> Well, Ted, do you think your son's gonna want it back now?

(both laughing) >> He might.

He might.

Yeah, he might.

>> Well, that's a great basketball and we really do thank you for bringing it in.

I wasn't expecting something from Kobe.

Uh, Kobe... uh, he is a special guy.

>> Yeah.

Yes, sir.

Well, that is really great.

>> I'm with Carter Burns, he's the executive director of Historic Natchez Foundation, and he's one of my good friends now.

Carter, welcome to the Mississippi Antique Showcase.

>> Thank you.

Thank you for, uh, having me and thank you for coming to Natchez.

>> Thank you so much for being here with us.

How excited are you to have the Mississippi Antique Showcase here in the city?

>> Oh, I'm very excited.

We have a lot of antiques here in Natchez, of course.

And people are very proud of their antiques and always interested in knowing more about 'em.

>> Now my biggest thing with Natchez is in itself, it's an antique type of place.

And with you being the executive director of the Historic Foundation, talk about how important it is to kind of pair the two, the Antique Showcase with the fact that there's so much historical information here in the city.

>> You're right.

There is, and decorative arts are really important.

Uh, we can learn a lot about the past in society and how it evolved over time.

And, and a great number of things from looking at decorative arts.

And of course they have intrinsic value as well.

Which, of course, people are excited to come here today to, uh, to discover.

So I think Natchez is the perfect place for, uh, for a show like this.

>> Awesome.

Talk about the organization's mission and exactly what it is that you all do.

>> So our mission is to preserve Natchez history in all forms.

>> Mm-Hmm mm-hmm.

>> So we, um, are a historic preservation non-profit.

And we started out with historic buildings and we still do that.

We acquire endangered historic buildings and restore those, but we also are an archive.

Um, we hold the historic legal records for the county as well as our own collections.

Things that have been donated to us.

And we plan on turning our building into a Museum of Natchez history to showcase those items.

>> Yeah.

I think one of those items could probably come here and get appraised.

What do you think, Carter?

>> I'm sure, I'm sure we can find some things to come here to get appraised.

>> That's right.

That's right.

Now, when it comes down to maybe you antiquing, do you do any on your own?

>> I do.

I do.

Um, of course, you don't get into this business unless you have a personal interest.

So I do like to go, um, go shop for antiques and go to thrift stores and see what I can find.

>> Yeah.

Yeah.

>> Estate sales.

>> Yeah.

Right, right, Right.

Talk about how important it is though for the history to be preserved and, and told over and over again.

>> It's very important, uh, to preserve the history and then to interpret it, and present that to people, not just visitors, but, um, locals, school children, everybody.

Because, uh, you have to understand the past to know about the present.

And this is the best way to do it, is to experience it and, and have the physical objects, um, there to look at and understand and learn from.

>> Now, when it comes down to MPB, how big of a fan are you?

>> I love MPB, I love, um, many of the shows on MPB.

So y'all do a great job.

>> Awesome.

If anybody wanted to get in touch with the organization, where can they go and how can they do that?

>> So they can go to our website, which is www.natchez.org.

And we also have social media pages on Facebook and Instagram, so they can follow us there.

>> Well, Carter Burns, thank you again for the work you do for the city of Natchez and for coming out to the Mississippi Antique Showcase today.

>> Yes.

Thank you.

>> Thanks Carter.

>> Well, Rick, you brought us the devil today looks like, or at least a demon.

>> Yes.

I'm not sure what it is, though.

>> That's quite a mask.

>> Thank you.

>> Where did you come by that?

>> Well, my wife and I, when we first got married, we ended up buying a house and this was in the shed behind the house.

I've kept this for over 30 years.

>> For over 30 years.

>> Yeah.

It wasn't never allowed into the house, and it's still not allowed in the house.

We keep it in the shed wrapped up.

It it, it's in the same shape it was in when, when we found it.

>> Well, he is kind of spooky looking, isn't he?

>> He is.

>> I was looking at the back of your mask.

And, uh, you could see some, some old, um, I don't know if that's varnish or where somebody's wore it.

Um, but there's stains in there and it definitely looks, uh, like it has a good bit of age on it.

And, you know, if you research that sort of thing, and I've ran into some similar before, most of those, uh, masks you'd see of this nature, they were from Polynesia.

Uh, some of 'em, you'll see 'em, they'll say they're, uh, they'll attribute it to maybe Hawaii.

Uh, the Japanese had, uh, a lot of masks that were similar to this.

And I guess they used it in conjunction with some of their festivals or dances.

And they wanted to be fierce and scare people.

So they, they were the devil with some horns and some, some big teeth, evidently.

>> Yes.

>> But I really like it.

I, you know, if I had it, I'd probably bring it in the house.

It would look neat hanging on the wall, you know?

>> Yeah.

I've thought about putting it in a box of glass over the front of it and just hang it.

>> Oh yeah.

Yeah.

If you had it in a good shadow box frame.

You know, a mask like this, um, you know, there're apealing 'cause you don't see 'em every day.

Um, I think probably you get down to price.

Have you ever had it appraised?

>> Have not ever done anything with it.

It's just, I've hung on to it and kept it wrapped up, but I just haven't done anything with it.

>> Right.

>> I hadn't even cleaned it.

>> Hadn't even, well, it's, it's doing pretty good.

Um, you know, probably in a well-advertised auction today, this mask would probably bring somewhere from $200 to $300.

>> Oh, wow.

>> Um, you probably maybe hadn't run across any but, uh, doing what I do, you know, I see 'em from time to time.

There's some of 'em out there, some of 'em are painted, some of 'em are natural.

And, uh, I like yours natural.

Um, I think that, uh, that's >> It's an interesting piece.

>> That's a good way to do it.

Yeah.

It, uh, it probably took a while to carve that mask.

>> That's what people who have seen it have told me this takes a lot of time to do that type of work.

>> Oh, yeah.

It'd be neat if you had a picture of the guy that originally wore it wearing the mask.

But, uh, did you ever look into who had, uh, lived in the house before?

>> When we bought the house, I did see the couple.

It was an elderly couple, but I never researched them or anything.

>> Might have been something that was brought back from World War ii.

You know, a lot of what we have in this country is World War II stuff from Japan and the islands.

Uh, I had an uncle that was stationed in Guam and he was always sending something back.

And it's very possible that it, it came back then, or possibly the Vietnam War.

>> Yeah, that's what I was thinking.

Maybe somebody had served in military and was over there and brought it back.

>> Well, it's a neat mask and we sure do appreciate you bringing it out.

>> Thank you for having me.

>> Margaret, thanks for joining us here in Natchez and coming down from Jackson.

What did you bring us today?

>> I brought you a campaign flag from Henry Clay that was in my husband's family.

>> Okay.

>> They were from Yazoo City and it hung in their, they had a cotton plantation in Yazoo City, and this hung in it, and it said on the back 1844.

>> 1844.

>> Yeah.

>> And have you had it looked at yet by anybody?

>> No, I have not.

>> Okay.

Well, so I can tell you a little bit more about the flag.

>> Okay.

>> You're a hundred percent correct.

It's a campaign flag.

Um, Henry Clay and Theodore Freelinghouse, and as you can see in the top written right there.

Um, were running against James Polk in 1844.

>> Okay.

>> And that was the election.

Clay was the Whig party.

And then, um, Polk was the Democratic party.

Polk ultimately won the election by a near margin.

It was only 39,000 votes.

>> Wow.

>> And so it was a close race.

And Henry Clay would've gone on to become president, but unfortunately lost that election.

>> Right.

Oh, okay.

>> So what we're looking at here is a condensed version of the full flag.

So someone has folded the flag here.

>> I wondered that It looked like it, there was a fold.

>> They've absolutely folded it and probably folded it to make it fit in this frame.

>> Okay.

In the frame.

That makes sense.

>> But it would've been a little longer this way.

>> Okay.

Okay.

>> And then what we see in other examples of this flag is more stars than this.

>> Okay.

>> And while we haven't seen this exact flag, there are other banners out there, um, supporting the election.

There are also ribbons of the same nature.

with similar writing and all of that stuff.

>> Right.

Right.

>> So, do you have any idea about value?

>> No, I have none.

I've always wondered.

It's been hanging in my dining room for years.

>> It's been hanging in your di--?

Hopefully out of light hanging in your dining room.

>> Yes, yes, yes.

It was not in the light, but, um, is that silk or is that?...

>> It's, yes.

This is gonna be silk here and then it's gonna be cotton mixed in around the border.

>> Okay.

I just, I wondered about that, but no, I had no idea.

>> Again, most of them are colored.

They're red, white, and blue.

>> Right.

That's what I pulled up.

>> This one doesn't appear to be faded.

It appears that the colors, the blues here are still there.

They're still intact and they're pretty vibrant.

The blues, and then this is yellowed.

Now I can tell this is probably not on an acid-free back.

So at some point you're gonna wanna switch it out to an acid-free back, um, for preservation.

>> Right.

>> And conservation.

You're gonna wanna have the flag open.

So you don't lose this one section.

>> Right, right, right.

>> So at auction, I've followed several results here and there.

Um, and what we've seen is that the ribbons, the ones that are this big can bring $800 to $1,000 and up.

>> Right.

Okay.

>> So we've also seen that the flags can bring $4,000 and up.

>> Okay.

>> But two things there.

The first one is, is that there's no other examples of this readily available.

Very important.

>> Right, right.

>> Condition is a little bit of an issue here.

But also the other main thing to note is this is a little bigger than some of the other examples that we've looked at as well.

All of that being said, I think that a fair auction estimate, especially at some historical auction, you're looking at an estimate of somewhere in the ballpark of $15,000 to $25,000.

>> Okay.

Okay.

Wow!

>> Is that what you thought?

>> Sounds good.

No!

I had no idea.

>> Yeah, it sounds great.

>> I had no idea.

That sounds great.

>> Yeah.

Better than, better than nothing, right?

>> I know, I know.

>> And it's been hanging in your dining room the whole time.

>> Yes.

>> And kept in the same family, right?

>> Yes, yes.

Definitely.

Definitely.

>> Yeah.

Well, it's fantastic.

I love seeing stuff like this and I, I really appreciate you for bringing it down here.

>> You're welcome.

I was so excited to go home.

>> Fantastic.

Yeah.

Thank you for bringing it to Natchez.

Thank you for bringing it to the showcase.

>> Oh, this is fun.

Yeah.

>> Yeah.

Great.

>> I am Cory Ferraez and this is my twin brother, Jace Ferraez.

And we wanted to share some special things to us, to you, the audience, to let you know a little bit about us and then also some of these fantastic items that we have for you.

>> Yeah.

So we are the twin appraisers.

My specialty is more in European antiquities and decorative items, while my brother, he is more, uh, versed in some American furniture.

So we have a little bit of both to share and we're really excited about some of these items.

I'll start first by talking about this, uh, table in which the items are sitting on.

This is an early Federal American table.

Um, there's some unique things about it.

One, you can still see that there's some gold stenciling, which is absolutely beautiful.

Um, it is also painted gilt in the midsection and it has claw feet as well.

One thing you'll notice about this piece is, throughout the years, I mean, it's probably 1820s, 1830s American, but throughout the years people have employed different techniques to try to preserve the table.

Some not so great.

But, um, this table has actually been ebonized and that, um, is where there's black on the tables instead of the, just the original wood.

Um, and then also there would've been original gold gilt leafing, but probably in the Victorian era they switched and to using, um, paint.

Uh, so this is actually painted, uh, gold and one of our other appraisers is actually going to re-gilt this for us, so that we can get it back more to what it originally was.

So Cory, tell me a little about some other things about the table.

>> Well, one of my things is you have, um, what we consider to be a classical American table.

That's what my specialty is.

We happen to both be lawyers.

So that's always an interesting aspect that we kind of take that focus into our antiques.

Um, but one of the classic things about this is the area that you can locate based on some qualities of the table, specifically the design and form of this table is New York, probably right around 1830.

And there's some famous cabinet makers, uh, Lanue and Duncan Fife that you or Michael Allison, that you can compare these forms with.

So this was probably done in the same style or form of, but certainly there's the gilting as he's referenced.

But it's just an overall fine example of a New York classical table that we really appreciate and it's gonna be loved, uh, in one of our homes, I think, um, to come.

So I wanted to jump up and talk about some other items that are sitting on top of the table.

We have first another pair of, uh, lusters.

And these are lusters from the Victorian period, likely Bohemian, Czechoslovakia.

And one of the great things about it is these actually have my favorite prism designs.

These spear designs are probably the largest, uh, that are found in the luster family.

So I really like that element along with the silver plating, there that provides really a unique perspective and, and gives it a little more ornate design.

And then Jace, how about you talk about the middle item?

Well this is probably our favorite item because it is a decanter meant to store alcohol, and that's one of our favorite activities is cocktail time.

Of course.

Um, and so we actually just picked up this piece.

It is a sterling silver decanter.

>> Sheffield, actually.

>> Sheffield.

>> And that's because the silver plate is put over in this case, Sterling silver is put over copper.

And so they, there are distinctive marks on the bottom that allow us to know the English origin and region of this piece.

But we really like it because of the form and the carriage that comes with it.

There's just really ornate marks on it.

And my favorite thing about Sheffield, it was starting around 1790 or so, is how the copper comes through the silver.

And most people find that that be a slight imperfection, but it's really not.

It actually makes and enhances the beauty of the piece.

So when it comes to cocktail time, we wanna put our liquor in our decanters and then enjoy every evening.

>> So we hope you enjoyed these items as much as we did.

>> Join us next time, Mississippi Antique Showcase, and see if you have hidden treasure in your closet.