Open Doors: Arizona’s ‘Antiques Roadshow’ Treasures Revealed!
It’s finally time to see the three episodes of “Antiques Roadshow” that were filmed at Desert Botanical Garden back in April 2019. I was honored to visit the set during filming, bring a beloved family heirloom of my own, and chat with the team that makes the magic happen. As I’ve written about before, I am a big fan of silver antiques and like to collect pieces when I come across them – I just love to think about the history of each item! So, here’s my story about when the Antiques Roadshow came to town!
THE EXPERIENCE
Lucky ticket holders for “Antiques Roadshow” events are permitted to bring two items to a filming. Upon arrival for your assigned time slot, you check in to determine which appraiser you will be meeting for each item. From there, you wait in line for your turn with the specialist to find out more about your piece. If your item is something special, a producer is called over and you wait to have your appraisal filmed. The flow is a well-oiled machine under the direction of longtime executive producer Marsha Bemko.
MY ITEM
When I got married, my dad, Tom, brought a special gift to my rehearsal dinner: a four-piece Christofle silver coffee and tea set with beautiful teak handles. It was a wedding gift to him and my mom from an aunt who lived in the Bay Area, so we suspect it was purchased from the iconic store Gump’s in San Francisco in 1969.
I met with the very charming Sebastian Clarke of Rago Arts & Auction Center to show him the coffee pot and learned some amazing things about my precious gift. It turns out that the set is silver-plated (not sterling silver), which was determined by the mark and the weight of the pot. That being said, Christofle is considered one of the most valuable producers of these types of gifts at the time as everything was made in France. The value? He estimated I could get about $500 to $1,000 on the secondary market with a full appraisal of the condition. There’s no way I am selling, but it was fun to find out more about my beautiful set.
A BIG FIND
What will you see when you tune in to the first episode that will air on Arizona PBS on March 23, 2020? Here are three sneak peeks: a collection of Neil Armstrong-signed Apollo 11 moon landing photos, a René Vincent “Porto Ramos-Pinto” poster from around 1920 that was purchased by the guest at a Parisian flea market for $30 in 1972 that appraiser Nicholas Lowry calls “a masterpiece of graphic design,” and a collection of 1993 “Magic: The Gathering” Beta cards that include the valuable and sought-after “Power Nine” cards. One of these treasures is appraised at up to $100,000. I can’t wait to find out which one is the big discovery!
WHEN TO WATCH
Arizona PBS on Channel 8 will roll out these episodes on the following Mondays at 7 p.m.: March 23, March 30 and April 13. Tune in and let me know your favorite find from the Grand Canyon State!
Happy spring,
