Antiques Roadshow Primer: The Introductory Guide to Antiques and Collectibles from the Most-Watched Series on Pbs

by Carol Prisant, Chris Jussel (Foreword)

The national treasure hunt, Antiques Roadshow is, in its third season, the most popular show on PBS. Every week it draws millions and millions of viewers to the edge of their seats as independent dealers and specialists from the country's leading auction houses appraise family heirlooms and flea market finds alike. Now this knowledge, authority, and passion is distilled in the Antiques Roadshow Primer, an introductory guide to American Antiques and collectibles. Antiques Roadshow has taught us to look for fortunes in our attics--perhaps to find, as other lucky souls have, an Anna Poole Peale portrait miniature worth $5,000 to $7,000 or a Confederate sword worth $35,000. Focusing on 11 major areas--including Furniture, Painting, Silver, Jewelry, Porcelain, and Toys--the primer addresses the essential things buyers and collectors need to know, covering vital details for each category, such as shapes, styles, and patterns, provenance, periods, and motifs. A 32-page full-color section amplifies each chapter by illustrating numerous examples of styles and techniques, and individual items are fully identified, often with their appraised value. Above all, it helps even first-timers to answer the two key question every collector must face: Is it old? Is it valuable?

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, History

366 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1999

Reviews

[Vannessa Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Antiques Roadshow Primer: The Introductory Guide to Antiques and Collectibles from the Most-Watched Series on PBS will serve as a great reference for those who are interested in learning what is an antique and what is not. The photos being in black and white were not helpful.

[Michael Medlen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased this insightful book at Wesley's Auction House in Curtice. The layout is simple and Steve's as an introductory guide to antiques .though there are vintage books that I read in my childhood.

Note: I finished at Ch. 5, Jewelry

[Bernie4444 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before you price, you need to know what you are looking at.

You have seen the program. Now read the book. Reading this book gives you a better insight as to what an antique is and what to look for. The program is ok but you can not take it with you or unless you own the video you can not go back on a point.

There is a small color section. But for the most part, the pictures for the descriptions are black and white. There is a section on "Art Glass" however not enough detail to tell the difference between amberina and cobalt.

The title includes collectibles also. And the different furniture styles. I could not find anything on "Lebus" furniture.

All in all, this is the place to start. Before looking for price guides you need to know what you are looking at. However, you will need to branch out from here. There are an extensive index and lots of photos. There is a list of Auction houses, appraisal organizations, and Antiques Road Show appraisers.

[Chriss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously a book of this nature is going to be very broad in nature which is also its downfall. What categories it does list are broken down in some of the popular items so people looking for their specific attic treasure are going to be disappointed if they believe this to be an encylopedia of items. I did find some value in the hints and lessons about what to look for in specific era pieces though. So as long as you read the book without having a specific item in mind, you'll get quite a bit out of the book.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Antiques Roadshow Primer: The Introductory Guide to Antiques and Collectibles from the Most-Watched Series on PBS by Carol Prisant and Chris Jussel (Workman Publishing 1999) (745.1). Not only is this the beginner's primer, it paints its descriptions of the collectible items and categories with a very broad brush which provides barely a peek into the actual mechanics or art of recognizing value. My rating: 5/10, finished 2/12/14.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book covers a lot of ground, but it was more general than what I was looking for. It does provide a list of additional reading and resources at the end of every section, which is great. It's a good starting point - thus why they call it a primer I suppose.

Posted rating: 3 stars because good info is provided.
Personal rating: 2 stars because it wasn't what I was looking for.

[Rick Segers · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good book. It's just what is says it is. A primer and show companion. It will pont you into the direction of more in depth information. Granted it is eleven years old now. Maybe time for an update guys.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a reference text, but serves as a good, broad introduction for the novice collector, with chapters on furniture, pottery, glass, etc. I am such a Roadshow geek that I recognized many of the marginal Roadshow finds!

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK. Not likely a book you would read cover-to-cover. It is a reference manual. But if you are looking for good solid factual information about the industry that transcends all trendy fads this is it.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who doesn't want to find treasure among their trash? A great companion to the PBS series.

[Britt · Rating 4 out of 5]

helpful framework for understanding antiques. quick moving and informative. thumbs up.