GUEST: I got this from my friend Jim, and he was the funniest man I've ever known, and he collected all sorts of things. And he knew that I never liked this--I always thought it was really creepy-- so when he passed away, he left it to me as a joke.
APPRAISER: Why didn't you like it?
GUEST: I just, I don't know, the faces… just kind of creep me out. I know it's probably a very important piece, and it reminds me of Jim.
APPRAISER: How long have you had it?
GUEST: Only a couple years.
APPRAISER: Have you done any research on it at all?
GUEST: No. I- I-- just by looking at it, I think it's Victorian, but that's all I...
APPRAISER: Very Victorian.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: This is a German automaton. Sometimes they're referred to as mechanicals…
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: …Made in between, I would say, 1898 and 1910. You can see what the subject matter is. It plays music and it also moves--that's the definition of a mechanical. If you look, it's an older woman here, and normally, her mouth moves. If you turn it around... you can see the key wind mechanism here and the key that turns it on and off. Unfortunately, it's not working. Did it ever work when you first got it?
GUEST: It did. In fact, that was one of the things that I kind of thought was creepy, when it moved, um, but it did work even as recently…
APPRAISER: Okay.
GUEST: …as this past week.
APPRAISER: Normally if it was working, the eyes on the dolls would move.
GUEST: Yeah.
APPRAISER: And also they would be drinking tea. It is sort of creepy if you look at it. Sometimes, these had labels on them. Unfortunately, this one doesn't have a label. There were various German firms that made these mechanicals. The heads are made of papier-mâché.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: The clothes are all period. The box looks like the original covering for the box. I think these items have been added at some point in time. It's not the most attractive mechanical I've seen.
GUEST: Yes!
APPRAISER: But it's a nice version of it…
GUEST: Yeah.
APPRAISER: And the subject matter is good. On today's market at auction, this would bring in between $1,500…
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: …And $2,500.
GUEST: Okay, all right, thank you. Well, Jim would be happy to know that.
APPRAISER: That's good.
