Eau Claire (WQOW) - Chippewa Valley residents had a chance to find out
if their antiques were trash or treasure Sunday.
"People bring in
all kinds of things, from fine art to ceramics and glassware and toys,"
said Mark Moran, who appraises items for a living.
From teddy bears to bibles, everything
has a price. To help people figure the dollar amount, the L.E. Phillips
memorial library invited Mark Moran for a special appraisal event. Moran has
over thirty years of experience -- he's even been on the PBS show "Antiques Roadshow."
"I started out as a
collector of antiques in the 1970's. In the 1980's I became an antiques dealer,
and in the 1990's I started writing books," said Moran.
He says there are two reasons people
bring things like this cuckoo clock in for close evaluation.
"People just want
to know the truth about the item, and about the age. And if they find out that
its valuable, or more valuable than they thought, that's just gravy for them,"
Moran said.
Some of the items end up having more
decorative value than actual value.
"I was just
interested. I've never done this before so it was kind of cool. I figured maybe
there might be a nice price on there. I could make them look nicer and have
them sit out," said John Sorenson of Eau
Claire.
While others could be worth hundreds
more than expected---like this lamp base bought at an auction for $20.
"I was hoping it
would be worth $70 to 80 dollars, because I thought it might be a mission lamp
from the early 1900's. And he said it's valued at approximately $400 dollars,"
said Cindy Brummond of Eau Claire.
"I know that the value
of so many things has declined, so I didn't have real high hopes. So it was
quite a surprise," Brummond said.
If you missed your chance to have
your unique household items appraised, you still have another chance. Mark will
be back in the area Thursday January 17th at the Cadott Community Library.
