Chinese Cloisonné Cats, ca. 1920
Chinese Cloisonné Cats, ca. 1920
VALUE (2014) | $2,500 Auction – $4,000 Auction
ANTIQUES ROADSHOW APPRAISAL
On this episode of Antiques Roadshow Lark E. Mason appraised a pair of Chinese Cloisonné Cats, ca. 1920.
APPRAISED VALUE (2014) | $2,500 Auction – $4,000 Auction
This appraisal was filmed in Charleston, WV on August 16, 2014.
APPRAISAL TRANSCRIPT
GUEST:
We went to an estate sale in Canton, Ohio. Akron, Canton area.
APPRAISER:
Okay when was that?
GUEST:
It was about seven years ago and I just adored them. Purchased them for $75.
APPRAISER:
You thought they were Asian, which is why you came to me. One of the issues in determining where something is made is looking at other examples from a particular culture. There is in both China and Japan a history of working with enamels, which is what this is. And this is a type of enamel work called cloisonné enamel. China has a longer tradition of working with Cloisonné enamel than Japan. And they also have examples of animals. Some of the Cloisonné enamel animals one sees, date prior to the 20th century, and some of them are from the 17th and 18th century. There's some damage that's occurred on the back of this. In fact, I can turn this over so you can see. Right here there's some damage that's occurred on the neck and the ridge of of the back. It was repaired considerable time before you purchased it.
GUEST:
OK.
APPRAISER:
So that's helpful in establishing that these have been around for a little while.
GUEST:
OK.
APPRAISER:
Now one of the other things is we want to look at how they were made. So I'm gonna turn it over another direction and see that there's a surprising color, this white color underneath. And in the center, on the underside, there’s this circular medallion. That actually is what's called a Cash Symbol. It's representing money. So this is a symbol representing a Chinese coin. And it also can represent good luck. When you look at the underside also we can see that there's some wear on the base of the feet, indicating that this has been around, again, for some time. The question arises then, is it from the 17th, 18th century or 20th century? There's a big difference in the value depending on when that is. So I believe all these different points that I've spoken to you about indicate that it is from the first quarter of the 20th century. Not the 17th or 18th century. We believe that even with the damage and everything else, they're so amusing, they're really terrifically modeled, they're fun and in the current market that these would likely sell in the $2,500 to $4,000 range at auction.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
That's at auction.
GUEST:
That's great.
APPRAISER:
So seven years, $75 to that amount. That's pretty good.
GUEST:
That's great.