GUEST: Well, it was my mother's doll. She said that it was a doll that she played with when she was a little girl. And my mom is 78 years old now. She gave it to me a while ago, and I've always loved the doll. I love the face. I love the eyes especially, because they seem to look at you wherever you are in the room. The original clothes were made of silk. And they have begun to deteriorate. A few years ago, about six or seven years ago, I went to a little local doll show and bought this little outfit. And now we have it under a glass dome on the mantel.
APPRAISER: Well, what the doll is, it's German. It was made in the 1920s, 1930s. It's lucky you still have the original clothes, because part of the value of the doll is actually its clothing.
GUEST: Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER: It was made by a company called Kestner in Germany in the '20s and '30s. And do you have any idea of the possible value of it?
GUEST: Oh, no, not at all. I wouldn't even have a clue.
APPRAISER: Well, since you have the clothes that do go with him, and his wig's original... the head's what is called bisque. It's a human hair wig. The body is composition papier-mâché. You can see the head moves, arms move. As long as there's no damage on his head, the value of him is between $4,000 and $6,000.
GUEST: Oh, my goodness. I'm totally surprised. I would never have dreamed, never. It's always just been on the mantel, and everybody said, "How cute." And gosh, very special.
