GUEST: I bought it at an estate sale in Grand Rapids, Michigan, about four years ago. I know it's Newcomb College from the distinctive mark, but that's about it.
APPRAISER: Do you remember what you paid for it?
GUEST: $18.
APPRAISER: This particular piece of Newcomb is quite striking for many reasons. Among the top reasons is the fact that they most often have a floral pattern on them. Very, very seldom do they have anything figural or animal.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: So having a band of alligators like this, this is only the second time I think I've seen that.
GUEST: Wow.
APPRAISER: The artist is one of my very favorite artists at Newcomb College. Her name was Marie de Hoa LeBlanc. And her signature is over here. And she really did a lot of the very best of the Newcomb pieces. She was with them from the very beginning, from the 1890s, and she went to Newcomb College at 16, and she started as a china painter. This piece is in a style that is not the very earliest style. The very early ones are not carved. It's just flat painted, and they look English, and they're wonderful. However, I personally prefer the ones that have a little bit of texture with them. The date on this is easy to find out, because there is a chart. The chart will show you that this date is 1906.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: So that's quite early. This particular piece at auction today would be $5,000 to $7,000.
GUEST: Wow. Wonderful. Wonderful.
