Antiques Roadshow guests laughed when they told of the extortionate value of their sculpture if it had been real.
The beloved BBC programme set its scene at Scarborough Grand Spa Hall, where expert Christopher Payne encountered a couple with a striking statue.
He initiated the appraisal by saying: “Here we have a good, powerful, gutsy piece of sculpture by a very good, gutsy, powerful sculptor, Auguste Rodin. What do you know about this?”
The owner’s response was modest: “Not a great deal really, apart from what my mother’s told me.
“My father bought it in Exeter, she thinks in 1966, he paid £250 for it. And that’s basically all we know about it.”
Payne continued to commend the piece: “It’s a great piece of sculpture. It’s a very well known piece by Rodin.
“It was modelled in 1908 and it’s called Cathedral Hands, so basically, I can’t really do it with these hands, because you know it’s actually two right hands, so it’s difficult for me to emulate.
“But it’s copying the idea of power and force. The force of the hand and Rodin almost made it into a gothic architectural form, so it’s very, very powerful and of course he was, the most amazing sculptor that he was.”
He further mentioned that Rodin’s talents extended to ceramics and furniture, though these were not his most celebrated works.
The moment of truth arrived when Payne highlighted a detail that proved crucial in determining the true value of the artwork.
He went on to say: “But this is a great, great piece of sculpture. It’s interesting, because it’s got the signature there, A. Rodin, and on the back it’s got this stamp, 1953, and Rodin died in 1919, so it’s post-mortem.
“Which is quite common for Rodin. And it’s got the ‘Alva Museum Incorporated’, in New York.
“Ah, is that where it is? Right,” the guest responded.
Payne then awkwardly admitted: “So that makes it very interesting, but it also makes it very difficult to know what to say to you.
“Because it is not an authorised museum cast by the Rodin Museum. It is just a copy made in New York so I’m afraid it’s not an authentic [piece].”
Upon hearing this, the guest said: “No, that’s fine. We didn’t think it would be anything of a spectacular but we just wanted to find out exactly its origins really.
“It is spectacular in itself, isn’t it? It’s highly decorative, very powerful,” Payne observed.
“I mean, it’s just as powerful as a non-authorised copy as it is an authorised copy, it’s just the value is rather different I’m afraid.
“It’s worth, I’m sure, an auction value of at least £2,000 to £3,000, just for what it is as a decorative item.”
He then asked: “Do you want to know what it might have been worth if it had been a museum authorised cast? Or would you rather not know?”.
Uncertain, the owner replied with a grin: “Mm, oh go on then. Yes, go on then.”
Payne revealed that the item could have fetched “half a million pounds”, a figure that made her chuckle and her husband, seated next to her, grimace.
“In one way I’m glad it’s not worth that really,” she commented.
Adding further, Payne said: “As I said, it still does a wonderful job, fantastic. Power of the hand.”
Antiques Roadshow is available to watch on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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