APPRAISER: I play five-string banjo, and when I was about 18, I had a friend of mine draw a bird on it. Birds again. Nothing like this. I mean, I think this would be banned in Boston, quite frankly. But wonderful, racy, racy illustrations here. They're really terrific. Equally, I think, as important is the instrument. It is unsigned, unlabeled, but we know what it is soon as we pull it out of the case. It was made by S.S. Stewart in Philadelphia, Philadelphia being one of the more important schools of banjo making. Classic Philadelphia school is this sort of pediment head on it with a combination of pearl and silver wire inlay. Wonderful fingerboard here with pearl and abalone inlay. I date it... Looking here at sort of the quality of this carving, I'm thinking more 1900, 1910. Though these gals here look a little bit more like 1930, or the 1920s. Today, this banjo, $800 to $1,200.
GUEST: Wow. Cool, cool.
APPRAISER: Yeah, very nice. Nice quality. Great for frailing, traditional-style banjo playing.
