GUEST: I don't know anything about it-- nothing. Absolutely nothing. It was in my aunt's attic, and she was going to leave everything there, and I said, "Can I have it?" And she said yes, so I brought it home.
APPRAISER: Well, it's what's called a kashkul, and a kashkul is a begging bowl. It's made from the seed pod of a coco de mer. And the coco de mer seed is the largest seed pod in the world of its type.
GUEST: Wow!
APPRAISER: It's a type of coconut, but only found in one place in the world: in the Seychelles. So it's a very complicated thing. It's difficult to say exactly where it's from. They're found throughout much of the Islamic world. But it's a late 19th century example. Any idea what it's worth?
GUEST: Oh, heavens, no.
APPRAISER: Have a guess.
GUEST: I don't know, maybe $50?
APPRAISER: Um, I think conservatively, a retail price of $600 to $800.
GUEST: Really?
APPRAISER: They're quite collected. They're great objects, don't you think?
GUEST: That's cool, yeah. I finally know what it is.
