GUEST: Well, this bank belonged to my grandfather. And it was a gift to him from his father. And his father came west from Arkansas and they lived in a place called Lake Valley, New Mexico. So we don't really know how old it is and I'm not sure if this actually belonged to his father, but it was a gift from his father to my grandfather. My mother, of course, coveted this and when my grandfather passed away in about 1979, my mother got it. And I always wanted it so I told my mother, "I really would like to have that sometime in my life." So when she passed away I now have it.
APPRAISER: Well, you got a wonderful little bank here. Do you know what it's called?
GUEST: I don't.
APPRAISER: Well, it's very easy to figure out the name. It's called "The Clown on Globe" mechanical bank.
GUEST: (chuckling) Makes sense.
APPRAISER: And it was made by a company called J&E Stevens in Cromwell, Connecticut, in the 1880s, 1890s. And it was a fairly expensive toy in its day.
GUEST: Was it?
APPRAISER: It's cast-iron, it's a mechanical bank. It's one of the scarcer banks and one that doesn't survive very well because of the rather violent action. What's unusual about this bank is that it does have a winding mechanism. Most banks you just put a penny in and then click a lever and it gets deposited. So after we've wound it, we release the clown so he's just sitting there like that, then we hit down this lever and he flies up in the air. Now, one of the things that makes this bank rare is there's a lot of stress points on his arms and they're often broken.
GUEST: Are they?
APPRAISER: And then repaired. There are other elements that are easily broken-- the legs, the feet. But this example is really in very, very nice condition.
GUEST: Thank you.
APPRAISER: It's all original, very nice paint. What really makes a bank valuable these days is the quality of the paint, and this has all original paint, very nice strong color. So I think at auction this bank would bring between $3,000 and $4,000.
GUEST: (chuckling) Oh, my God.
APPRAISER: Now, if it had a slightly or much better paint, this bank has sold for as much as $16,000 to $17,000 depending on paint.
GUEST: (chuckling) Oh, my God.
APPRAISER: So it just shows you how important paint is. But $3,000 to $4,000 is pretty nice for a family heirloom.
GUEST: That's good. Yes, thank you very much. I think I'm a lucky guy.
