Tuesday, 5 Nov 2017

Sheila’s task was to do a lightning assessment of small articles of interest that U3A members had brought in, tell us what she thought, and then suggest a value. Would there be any mega-buck items? Would there be an item of exceptional an unusual interest. We would find out!

Sheila introduced herself as a former secondary school teacher and lady golfer from Oldham whose passion is for antiques. She emphasised that she is not an expert, but has a fair few years of practical experience to be able to suggest a realistic sale value for many things. 

She told us what pushes up an object’s value is whether it is quirky and whether it’s in vogue. Currently, the fashion is for Art Deco, Art Nouveau and the Arts and Crafts movement.

Anyone who is a natural ‘chucker’ was advised to think twice before hurling out something they think valueless because it might not be. And ‘hoarders’ should sift through their stuff to see if there is anything that might command a good price. 

Whatever you do, check it, don’t chuck it!

So, without more ado, it was down to business and a trawl though our pottery. A Royal Doulton figurine attracted Sheila’s eye and led to a disquisition on the designer, Harry Nixon, whose early designs command a good price. Our article, alas, was worth a mere £75, and an Alfred Meakin trio a mere £10.

Several gold and silver items were adjudged probably worth little more than their bullion weight. Nevertheless, a silver sovereign case made in Birmingham would have got £55 on a good day, and a pair of solid bronze Victorian vases might have fetched £450. 

But it was quirky items that most caught Sheila’s eye. In particular she selected a wooden snuff box in the form of a pair of boots (£55), a miniature Art Deco camera made from plastic (£55), a Scottish silver brooch set with Scottish stones like carnelian (£75), and an unusual, fragile Victorian fan (‘must be kept in tissue paper’) at £75.

There were two curious guns, which Sheila confessed to knowing nothing about. But their owner told us that one was a stage coach blunderbuss with a flick dagger and the other a Naval Very Pistol.

By the end of her talk, Sheila had covered every item in the hall and told us a good deal about antiques in a hugely enjoyable, informative and entertaining presentation. A tremendous afternoon.

Our Vice Chair, Gill Radford, thanked members for their contribution to the afternoon and for bringing their membership cards as requested. The hearing loop and the video screen enabled all members attending to enjoy the presentation.

Other news includes a brief report of our Let’s Go group’s recent trip to Kiplin Hall in North Yorkshire, a Jacobean Hall now furnished as a Victorian home, and a visit to the lovely market town of Richmond with its Norman castle, Georgian architecture and large cobbled market place.

The Hall was built in the early 1620s for George Calvert, Secretary of State to James I and founder of Maryland, USA.  Baltimore, its capital, was named after his peerage.  Most of the furnishings and personal memorabilia belonged to the four families who owned the Hall, all connected through blood or marriage, between 1620 and 1971 when it was handed over to a Trust.  The house is filled with family portraits and paintings and the Rose Garden, the White Garden and Walled Garden have been lovingly restored. Refreshments served in the Jacobean Hall rounded off the day.

Let’s Go is one of our most popular groups and is provides members with both a social and educational (in the widest sense of the word) occasion.

U3A Todmorden’s next meeting will be held on Thursday, 16th November in the Central Methodist Hall in Todmorden at 1.45.  Our speaker will be Heather Davis whose talk is titled ‘Frogs, Firearms and Flames: Hazards in Modern Museum Collections’.

Our contact details are (website) www.u3atod.org.uk, (email) enquiries@u3atod.org.uk, or (phone) 01706 812015.

Many thanks to Anthony Peter for this report

 

Previous U3A reports on the HebWeb

HebWeb News: Greenwode to Gibson to National Trust with speaker Trevor Moody (10 Oct 2017)

HebWeb News: Music for Pleasure and Food for Thought with speakers Neil Smith and Geoff Tansey (13 Aug 2017)

HebWeb News: The Political and Social satire of Gilbert and Sullivan (7 July 2017)

HebWeb News: Professor Scott Scores a Euro-Hit with speaker Professor Derek Scott of Leeds University (10 May 2017)

HebWeb News: Old Flames and Steamy Memories. With speaker Granville Dobson (9 April 2017)

HebWeb News: Titus Salt – Philanthropic Paternalist or Capitalist Villain? With speaker Maria Glot (2 March 2017)

HebWeb News: Shaking Hitler's Hand (by proxy) - with speaker Alun Pugh (12 Feb 2017)

HebWeb News: Masterclass on Gilbert and Sullivan at U3A Todmorden - with speaker Bernard Lockett (28 Oct 2016)

HebWeb News: Moses Holden, Autodidact of Preston - with speaker Steve Halliwell (7 Oct 2016)

HebWeb News: Volunteering in Palestine and Guatemala - with speaker David Gilman (9 Aug 2016)

HebWeb News: Snow, Permafrost, Insects, Iron - with speaker Dr Frank Nicholson (7 July 2016)

HebWeb News:Stranger in a Strange Land - with speaker Gill Russell (7 May 2016)

HebWeb News:Life with polio and a career as a TV and Radio presenter. with speaker Jane Shepherd (12 June 2016)

HebWeb News:Small in a Tall Person's World with speakers Hamish Willis and Penny Dean OBE (31 March 2016)

HebWeb News:In the Footsteps of Norbert Carteret (22 February 2016)

HebWeb News:Gallivanting on Public Transport - a Bus Pass from Berwick to Land's End (30 September 2015)

HebWeb News: Magna Carta - A (Mostly) Light-hearted look at 800 Years of History (1 September 2015)

HebWeb News: Summat a' Nowt - talk by Steve Murty (28 April 2015)

HebWeb News: My Convict Ancestors (12 April 2015)

HebWeb News: Aquaponics Lab - A Radical Solution (16 January 2015)

HebWeb News: British Professional Cycling – Tykes and Le Tour de France (11 December 2014)

HebWeb News: Life in La Serenissima, Venice - Kathryn Ogden (9 July 2014)

HebWeb News: University of the Third Age: The Machine that Changed the World (25 February 2014)

HebWeb News: University of the Third Age: Music and the Deaf (12 February 2014)

HebWeb News: University of the Third Age: Psychology and You - Part Two David Groves made a welcome return as a speaker at the October Todmorden U3A (26 October 2013)

HebWeb News: Hebden Bridge Little Theatre, A Short History was recounted by Ray Riches to the University of the Third Age. (28 Aug 2013)

HebWeb News: John Sheard, retired land agent to the Duke of Devonshire, gave his third talk to members of the U3A, this time on Sir Joseph Paxton, Knighted Gardener (26 July 2013)

HebWeb News: Off Stage Choices: Andrew Rawlinson recounts his theatre experience from Tod Operatic to General Manager of a leading Theatre Group. (18 July 2013)

HebWeb News: The Story of the Hebden Bridge Calendar (April 2013)

HebWeb News: Changing Times in the Press (March 2013)

HebWeb News: Cancer from Both Sides (Nov 2012)

HebWeb News: Steve Halliwell outlined the history of the Woodland Trust (Sept 2012)

HebWeb News: Ray Riches talks on Walking the Pacific Crest Trail (Aug 2012)

HebWeb News: Pitch and Pythagoras - Pulse and Prison (July 2012)

HebWeb News - Lord Shutt explains the workings of the House of Lords (May 2012)

HebWeb News - Claire Benedict talks acting to Todmorden U3A (April 2012)

HebWeb News - Kate Moreton-Deakin spoke about her day job as Associate Director - Corporate Social Responsibility with Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust. (Feb 2012)

HebWeb News - Fair Trade Movement (Feb 2012)

HebWeb News - Fancy a cruise to the Antarctic? (Feb 2012)

HebWeb News - Gail Allaby, U3A's Queen of the Underworld (Dec 2011)

HebWeb News - September meeting report - Report of meeting about Walking the Pacific Crest Trail

HebWeb News - August meeting report - Bolton Abbey

HebWeb News - May and June meeting report - Keep Learning: Live long and prosper and the role of the Lord-Lieutenant

HebWeb News - April meeting report - Belt and Braces - An Everyday Guide to Risk and Chance

HebWeb News - March meeting report - Growing Old in the Twenty-First Century