Antiques Roadshow star comes to Grygla

You may recognize Mark Moran from his appearance on the popular PBS series, Antiques Roadshow. He has been an active appraiser of antiques for more than 20 years and has authored and co-authored more than 25 books on antiques and collectibles. Last Wednesday, Mark made a stop at the Grygla Community Center to offer a variety of appraisals to interested guests!

The program was brought to the community by the Northwest Regional Library and was made possible because of the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment. The legacy amendment was passed in 2008 in MN to fund arts and cultural heritage projects. Funding is received by the state (about $50,000/year) to provide programs such as this.

The way the event worked was Mark asked each guest about the object they brought in and how they acquired it. He did his best to explain the history, intended use and details about the maker or country/region of origin, the era when it was made and any design influences. Conditions of each item were noted, which Mark would then explain how that affected its  value. He made suggestions on how they can have an object repaired or restored, if desired. Finally, his opinion of value was given and he would then answer any questions about how they might sell it, if that’s their goal. He never offers to buy or arrange a sale.

Some items brought in last week were given a decorative or sentimental value only. A few others were a bit luckier and found out an old book was going for $3500, for example, or an early 20th century painting was by an artist whose work has sold for up to $9,000!

The attendees seemed to enjoy the fun and educational event!