GUEST: It belonged to Frances Hodgson Burnett. She was the famous children's writer who wrote Secret Garden and Little Lord Fauntleroy, and Little Princess, among some of my favorites.
APPRAISER: Yes.
GUEST: So I inherited this from my dad. Mrs. Burnett was a very popular writer in about the '20s. She traveled a lot and had this made for her. It has her initials on it. This is part of a 97-piece set that has been passed down. My dad was orphaned in 1918 in the flu epidemic.
APPRAISER: Oh, gosh.
GUEST: So he was raised by a grandmother in Long Island and a grandmother in Florida. And the grandmother in Long Island was Edith Hodgson—her name was then Jordan, and she was Frances Hodgson Burnett's sister. And they lived together.
APPRAISER: Sister, okay.
GUEST: In Plandome, Long Island, a beautiful estate. So Edith was my great-grandmother. He should have inherited it. I have the will, actually, where it is designated that he would get everything in the house, and the house. But he did not, since his father had died, his uncle took over the business and married a woman, and somehow, through all that, he had got nothing.
APPRAISER: Oh dear, oh dear.
GUEST: So, after that aunt died, things went to auction in New York City. It was 1959. He bought just what he remembered from the house in Plandome. And he bought this.
APPRAISER: Now, how much did he pay for it?
GUEST: $410. He had it appraised in 1988. They said it was worth $5,000 then. There's 97 pieces.
APPRAISER: So how much do you think this is worth now?
GUEST: So I'm assuming, like other glassware and antiques has dropped in value. So I don't know. I would say I'm guessing a couple of thousand maybe now.
APPRAISER: It's a fabulous set. It was made by Salviati, who is an Italian Venetian firm, late 19th century. Could have been 1885, 1890. And they started in the mid-19th century, and actually continue today. The gilding on it has worn down over time. Did you use this set?
GUEST: We did use it. We used it growing up at Christmas and Thanksgiving.
APPRAISER: Oh, wonderful.
GUEST: And occasions, yes.
APPRAISER: So people's hands have been on it. So some of the gilding's come off a little bit, but that's okay. It's got all the bells and whistles. It's got this wonderful ruffled edge. Very Venetian iconography with the griffins and it's got her initials on it, which are... it's fantastic. Although, glass in general, there has been some downturn in the market. I think that this still has held its value over time. People are still very much enamored with the craftsmanship of this, this beautiful enamelware paint. It's gorgeous to look at. So right now we have eight of the 97 pieces, which is a massive set. I would say that each piece is worth at least about $100. We've got eight pieces here. At auction I would say $800 to $1,200 for what we see right here. So let's count 97 times $100. And $9,700. I would put an auction estimate on this of $10,000 to $15,000.
GUEST: Would you really? (chuckles) Well, that is more than I would have said, yes. Whoo. Okay.
APPRAISER: Given the provenance that it has from a very famous author and people's love of her, it could do better.
