Major funding for Arkansas Treasures was provided by the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council and the Susan Howarth Fund at the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.

Additional funding provided by Annette and Phil Herrington, the Arkansas PBS Local Production Fund and by viewers like you.

If you have any idea what the book is worth.

It's uncommon to see this.

I think you'll be surprised that it's a little bit higher, said.

I was not going to say well, but I did anyway.

I should have said what?

The lights are shining, the stage is set and the search is on for the most interesting and valuable collectibles from all around the state.

This is Arkansas Treasure.

I would value this at 20 to $25000.

Wow.

I said I am not going to say wow, but I did anyway.

I should have said.

What you truly a music lover was playing like an Led Zeppelin.

We're going to.

Welcome to Arkansas.

PBS is historic Studio B in Conway.

It may be calm now, but soon the studio will overflow with Arkansans, curious about how much their heirlooms and collectibles are worth.

We've assembled an expert team of evaluators with decades of knowledge in everything from knickknacks to jewelry to art to furniture and everything you can imagine.

Sounds like the wait is over.

Let's get started.

Thank you so much for coming to Arkansas treasures today.

I'm delighted to showcase this book.

Please tell me what you've brought us.

I have a work with The Hand by Booker T Washington that was printed in 1915.

It's part of a collection that we have that Potts Inn museum in Pottsville, and it belonged to the family of the pots.

And there was a descendant that lived in the house till 1970.

And we believe that this book belonged to James Potts.

Okay.

And this is owned by the museum?

Yes, it is owned by the museum.

All right.

So what we have here is Booker T Washington's working with the hands.

This was his fourth book.

This is the first trade edition.

There was a subscription edition first that was printed first.

So this is the first trade edition, but it's still highly collectible.

Inside, you have his printed name.

It's compliments of Booker T Washington, and it says it's from the Tuskegee University, where he was president.

Yes.

So Booker T Washington was born a slave, as we all know, and he became a great orator and statesman and advisor to several presidents.

And this book does not come up very often and in its own right is worth quite a bit.

But when you add the signature, it raises it a lot.

Do you have any idea what this book is worth?

I don't have a clue.

We keep it in the safety deposit box and we only bring it out when we have a festival in the fall.

Well, would it surprise you for me to tell you it's worth about 30 $500 minimum?

Yes.

It just does not come up very often, especially with the signature.

And he's a highly collectible author and American and I really appreciate your bringing this in.

Well.

Well, thank you.

I'm impressed.

Good.

I hope you'll come back with something just as good.

I want to thank you for coming to Arkansas Treasures and tell me a little bit about what you have brought me to look at.

Well, this is a pocket watch that I got from my father.

Okay.

He got it from his family.

This is an incredibly good one.

Now, it the watch market today there there are many different companies who have merged over time.

But we're going to look at the back of the watch in just a minute.

But this is an early version, a pocket watch.

And when I look at the back of it, I mean, start with the front, but we're going to look at the back of it.

It's a key one.

And you have the original key on the front of it.

We see Emblem emblems of a village on a river with a boat that had actually been engraved into the front of the watch.

That adds a decorative value that's pretty high.

But what we do when we look at the back of the watch that's even more important is we open this back up and we can see that we have very strong now.

Very strong becomes over time, that strong, constant, which is probably in Gentlemen's Wristwatches today, one of the most sought after on the market.

This is a key find, but it's also an 18 karat gold case, which even for the time when this watch was created, which was mid 1800s, fairly rare.

Have you ever had the watch valued?

No.

Never have.

Okay.

Well, tried.

To look it.

Up, but.

You know, in the pocket, watches as a whole don't have the same appeal as wristwatches do for collectors.

But those that do collect this would be a particularly good timepiece to add to a collection.

And I think, you know, watch auction that was featuring other comparable pieces could see between five and $6,000.

I was thinking hundreds.

No, we're in the thousand dollars.

Pretty.

Pretty now.

We don't know if it's working and we're not going to put a key to it.

Right.

But if it was working, that would probably add even more value.

But I want to thank you for bringing that just an absolutely beautiful piece of timepiece.

What have you brought for us to look at today?

I have some animated cells from a television series called The Tick from the early nineties.

And I found them in I was how I used I worked as a film maker in Hollywood for Disney, for a Disney for a while.

But I also worked as a cameraman for many years.

And so I was helping them clear out a storage locker that had props and other things.

And I found this box that was sealed and heavy, and I decided to set it aside.

Finished?

Do they want you to put it in a dumpster?

They wanted to take the box, to put it off to the side and look inside.

I cut it open to see what was in it.

And I saw these cells and I thought, well, people collect cells, but I didn't think for a show that's recent that would be of any interest or anything.

But I hung onto them for 25 years now.

And how many of these were in that box?

About 400.

400 cells.

Exactly.

And they all look almost the same.

But there are little differences you can see, because it took a lot of cells to make the shell.

It did.

And I'm not sure which particular show this might have been on, but there were 400 of them.

And if you do them, the math word filmmaking, it's 24 frames per second and each one is a frame.

So 400 frames is about 17 seconds of film.

Takes a lot of cells.

It sure does.

And this would be only a small segment for a whole year.

Yeah, 1994.

They came out with this show and it lasted for three seasons of the Tick.

It did have a movie on the Tick, but this was the cartoon version.

I pretty interesting find, I think, to save it from the dumpster.

You did a good job there.

You know what these are worth?

No, I know.

Like I said, people collect them, but I know that people collect the big ones like the Disney or the Warner Brothers cartoons, the ones you see or the, you know, The Simpsons are pretty popular.

Right.

And you got Bambi and, you know, the Disney classics all in the last sale I could see on this particular sell at auction, sold for about $90.

And that was a while back.

And because you have so many of them and I would say the market price, if you tried to put them out, there would be somewhere between the 50 and 75 range apiece.

So that adds up to a little bit of money.

What do you think?

I agree.

Wow.

I said I was not going to say, well, but I did anyway.

I should have said what?

Yeah.

Thanks for bringing it.

It's amazing.

That's great.

I'm fantastic.

Thank you very much.

Good save.

All right.

Hello and welcome to the show.

What have you brought in for us today?

And this was a skirt set that belonged to my grandmother.

Her brother brought it back after World War Two from the Philippines.

And I think as kind of like a joke gift.

And my mom has had it at her house this whole time.

Okay, Well, when we saw this, we all thought, you know, how fun that you brought back this soldier's gift or a souvenir, rather, from the Philippines.

And it's marked here on the skirt 1948, and that it was made of parachute silk.

So a number of them were made.

This is the first time that I've ever seen one.

And we showed it to a number of the appraisers as well.

And so it was something that we had not seen a lot of.

We thought that it would be great for people to be able to actually see what your what was in your family and which was preserved.

And again, it was a souvenir from soldiers returning from World War Two.

Did you all have any idea of what the value is?

Have you ever had anybody look at it before?

No, I just kind of Googled a little bit and found out that it was the parachute.

So before I brought it here.

But that's that's a that's okay.

So when we looked out there, there were a few out there on the market that had that had results that we could give you a value from.

And so this set comes in at 50 to $125.

my gosh.

That's great.

So now you can take it back and let your mom know, let grandma know.

And we hope that you all will enjoy the fun of it.

Yes.

Thank you so much.

Thanks for bringing it in today.

303.

Vintage collectibles are serious business in Arkansas.

Whether you're a seasoned collector or just getting started, we recommend checking out some of the countless flea markets around the state like this one.

I'm Michelle and this is my son, Dillon.

We run Funky flea Market in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

This is a very old building was built in 1909.

It's just incredibly interesting as far as the beans and all of the carpentry work.

We have a lot of really cool things.

The first thing that comes to mind for me is we have a gentleman at the top of the stairs who has about 8000 different vintage records.

Another interesting bit about Funky is we actually have two cats here, funky and fair.

The previous owner almost eight years ago found them abandoned near the railroad tracks back behind us.

Happy, healthy cats.

Funky is definitely the star of the show.

We like to think of funky as a destination.

You get to walk around through the maze of booths and you'll find something funky around every corner.

Being a college town that's growing with people coming from all over the nation and all over the world, we get to draw from a lot of influences there our customers and clientele.

So it's really nice to be part of a growing community and putting our own funky twist on it.

I want to thank you for coming out to Arkansas Treasures today, and we've been seeing a number of musical instruments come across the door today.

But tell me what you brought.

Well, this is a 1957 fender, okay.

Belonged to our mother, and she bought it in 1962 from a friend that had to sell it.

And the amp as.

Well.

We have the original case, the amp, the guitar.

And she spent a week's worth of wages to be able to get our 1962.

Well, she was truly a music lover.

She played like an Led Zeppelin or Charlie Rose.

Yes.

Yes.

Well, this is a beautiful guitar.

And it is is one of the early Fender telecasters.

There were several things that we were in discussion that tableside about originality and near production.

There are some things we've arrived at.

Yes.

We think at some point this whole body was refinished and it was refinished by somebody who maybe wasn't the best refinish because the the the the depth of the grave and finish work on it is just not quite what it would have been a coming out of the factory.

We think that is is a point against it a little bit.

The cover here, we were going back and forth whether there was a cover.

I said there was and indeed there was a cover at one point that was called, I think, the Ashtray.

Yes.

A lot of musicians took that off because they didn't think it looked good.

Yeah.

But I think it also had some interference here with the string work.

There are some other condition elements.

The face you hear is coming up, rising up off the the wall a little bit.

I think that also is because of a less than adequate finishing job.

You know, we've also got the original amp.

And what I love about the original and this is how I grew up most musical instruments and recording devices, things that you play on only went to ten.

This goes to a 12.

Spinal Tap, you know, and that's why I can't hear anything anymore because I played everything at a 12.

Have you ever had it valued?

We had a guy look at it and he said he thought the amp was worth like 5000 itself.

Just the.

Amp.

Okay, We don't know.

Was that really the guitar there together?

No.

The amp needs a little work.

Which.

Which I know you said the last time it was played.

It was played, but I think it's got some.

We think it does have a couple of issues.

But if they came on the market together, even in the condition that the guitar is currently in, we think it would bring about $8,000, the amp, another $2,000.

But if they were refinished and properly kind of put it in working order, 14, $16,000 for the pair would not be uncommon.

Okay.

So we're really think we really think this is a great example of some of the early rock and roll guitars and and we hope your brother enjoyed it over long.

Yeah, she did.

All right.

Very good.

Thanks for bringing it out.

Thank you.

Thank.

Welcome to Arkansas Treasures.

Hi.

I'm so happy to have you here.

Please tell me what you brought for us.

Well, I have some political cartoons.

I'm guessing pen and ink drawings by George Fisher from the Arkansas Gazette back in the seventies.

And they were part of a collection that were given to my stepfather by I don't know, by the artist or by someone at the paper.

How many of these drawings do you have?

Over a hundred.

wow.

he pulled out just a few.

Have you pulled out for us to see today?

I pulled out ones that are particular to Arkansas.

WILLIE Ouch.

Orval Faubus, Bumpers and Pryor.

Wonderful governors.

Yes.

Thank you so much.

Well, George Fisher is just an Arkansas treasure himself.

And he was a fabulous political cartoonist and started drawing political, political cartoons for the Arkansas Gazette.

Around 1974, he had been drawing on for other people before that, and he was very well known.

He had 15 books came that came out of his collections.

So everybody loved George Fisher.

These are not original drawings.

They are prints.

Great.

But you have a hundred of them.

Yes.

And we're not quite sure who gave them to your stepfather, but what a nice collection.

Yes.

Do you have any idea what they're worth?

I don't.

I have no clue.

Well, neither do I. I'm going to tell you.

I don't know how much they're worth either.

They don't come up very often for auction or sale.

And I think they are priceless.

Arkansas treasure.

Yes, they are.

Thank you so much for bringing them in today.

Thank you.

Linda and Jessica, you brought in a beautiful face.

When I got a picture of this, I knew exactly what it was.

Only one factory did this sort of thing and did it well.

Wow.

Then you brought it.

And what did I say?

The other.

what is this, Mark?

Yes.

Well, it rang a lot of bells, but it didn't ring the bells.

I thought it was ringing.

It's the mark.

I'll tell you the secret is only turned up on a handful of things from three different makers.

And it's probably a retailers, Mark, where it was sold into the American market.

you don't?

Well, I think it's pretty good.

That's good.

I was fascinated because this was kind of easy for people who know their glass and their ceramics.

Well, in the art deco period, Louise Marcia Rail, who's famous for his art Nouveau furniture every major museum has some of his furniture in the collection.

Did these medal mounts for one of the better known French art glass makers, which was done in Nancy France.

And so they designed the metal mounts, had metal Smiths ironworkers create the metal shape.

Then the glass players blew the base blown out process.

You saw this done somewhere.

Tell me about that.

Well, I knew it had to be blown inside this because there was no possible way to get it in there.

Right.

And for people that live in the north, in Arkansas, in Missouri, we know of Silver Dollar City in Branson, and I would always go to the Glassblower shop and watch them make blown glass.

And for years, I kept looking at this and I finally was like, somebody blew this.

Somebody made this metal frame and then blew it in there.

So, I mean, this is a major designer, a very talented metal smith, a glass artist, and then it gets made in France in the twenties, maybe the thirties were shipped out to the American market.

How did it come to you?

It came to me through my partner's mother.

My partner's grandfather was a doctor in Ozark, Arkansas, in the early 1900s.

Passed away in the pandemic flu pandemic in 1918, while his bride was pregnant, and I had seen it years later when she passed it on down in Katharine's house.

And I just knew it was unique and I loved it.

And she gave it to me about ten years ago.

Well, I love a puzzle.

So y'all made my day this.

This was fun to try to research and make sure I knew what I was talking about.

And the mark for those who haven't seen it, you can probably find it online.

It'll take you a little bit, but it looks sort of like a mercedes and symbol with a B and S and an F acid etched into the surface.

If anybody knows what that mark actually means or who the retailer is, I hope they'll contact me because the glass world wants to know.

So you never know where a tip will come from.

It's a beautiful thing.

They came in a lot of shapes and sizes.

We talked about the fact there's more elaborate metal styles that were done.

This one's nice, though, and it's beautiful.

And in the market today, I think this is probably 8 to 1200 dollars.

We're going to.

Thank you so much for coming to Arkansas treasures today and for bringing what is truly a treasure.

Please tell me what you've brought today.

Well, this book is called Aristotle's Masterpiece, and although it was not written by Aristotle, it's a kind of a medical book of so called printed in Boston in 1766, I believe.

Okay.

And I just bought it online a number of years ago for $15.

my gosh.

So, wow.

Well, the interesting thing about this book is it is Aristotle's masterpiece, and it's called a pseudo Aristotle book, because Aristotle didn't write it.

Right.

It was it was written anonymously.

And the first time this book was published was about 1684 in England.

And it circulated around and around and many different forms and publications and publishers.

And it had a habit of getting shut down because it was basically the first sex manual.

Yeah.

And it also gave a lot of advice on midwifery and of the time was very advanced in describing medical conditions around sex and having babies.

Right.

So it says here that it was printed in 1766 in London by Zachary.

Feeling Zachariah Feeling?

Yes, actually, as you said, it was printed in Boston by Zachariah Fowles.

So why do you think the publisher, Fowles, didn't put his name on it?

Well, he just didn't want to be associated with it if it.

Went bad on.

It.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Deniability.

Yes.

Because it was often considered an obscene publication.

Right, Right.

And so I think about this book, even though it was printed often in England in 1766, this would have been the first American printing of this book, which makes it very significant.

Right.

Early medical books are from that time are rare.

This is considered to be the first or thought to be the first medical manual illustrated printed in America.

It is very scarce.

It is very it is very rarely seen.

Yeah.

Do you have any idea what it's worth?

Well, not really.

I've seen a number of prices, but.

I don't know.

Well, when something doesn't come up, hardly ever.

It makes it a little bit hard to value.

Right.

But because it is an early medical manual printed in America and an early just printed book in America.

Right.

It makes its value greater.

It's a cross collectible for people who collect early printed books and early medical books.

I would value this at 20 to $25000.

That's.

That's amazing.

So I think you did really well for your $15 investment.

Yeah.

I'll never do that again.

You have a great eye, and you never know.

Okay.

So much for bringing that.

Thank you.

It's amazing.

I love seeing this book.

That's incredible.

Well, take care.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Wow.

What an incredible collection of heirlooms and oddities and some of those appraisals.

Amazing.

It kind of makes you think what riches might be waiting in your attic.

We'll see you next time.

On Arkansas Treasures.

Have you had fun this week, Jim?

I've had a ball.

Amory, it is everything you said it would be.

And more for our first Arkansas treasures.

People ask me, what is the best thing you saw?

The best thing I saw are the people of Arkansas.

Right.

It has been a charming time.

I've had so much fun.

And even the people who didn't get on camera, I got to hear the most delightful stories about their lives and their parents and their grandparents.

50 and $75 apiece.

400 of them.

That makes it anywhere from 20 to $30000.

I was very shocked.

But they saved it from the dumpster.

would I sell it?

Yes, I probably will.

Major funding for Arkansas Treasures was provided by the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council and the Susan Howarth Fund at the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.

Additional funding provided by Annette and Phil Herrington, the Arkansas PBS Local Production Fund