GUEST: This is a
soldier's memorial that
my great-great-grandfather
received after the
Civil War. And I also brought
in a blanket that he carried
during the war. And these
items were passed down to my
grandmother. And because I
was such a Civil War buff as
a young child, she
passed these on to me.
APPRAISER: In collecting, we run
across things that are fairly
common, and then we run across
things that are special.
You've brought in one of each.
These, even though it's very
beautiful, are fairly common,
because the soldiers were
proud of where they served.
They would buy these that had
their men that served in the
regiment with them. And they
had a good history. They
fought at Second Bull Run. They
fought at Antietam. They fought
at the Battle of Winchester.
Good unit. It's nice, it's
pretty. But the common-looking
thing is the rare thing. This
is one of the most elusive of
all pieces that you can get
that went with a Civil
War soldier. And it's
a simple blanket. But
it's a very important
thing during the Civil
War, because they ran
out of them. And when you
hear the word "shoddy,"
you think of poor craftsmanship,
very hurriedly made. This is
what's referred to by collectors
as a shoddy blanket. Do you
know what the lines are for?
GUEST: I do not know, no.
APPRAISER: To know where to
cut them. They would run about
100 of them, and then cut
along the center. So you
actually have two blankets. And
you notice the hole where his
head would go through.
GUEST: Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER: He wore
it as a poncho.
GUEST: (chuckling)
APPRAISER: (chuckling): So...
GUEST: I never would have
guessed that. I would
not have guessed that.
APPRAISER: To a collector,
even though it's missing some
sections, it's got the hole,
it's got a lot of wear...
GUEST: Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER: It's beautiful
because you don't see
them. Have you ever had
the pieces appraised?
GUEST: No, I haven't.
APPRAISER: Well, today,
the soldier memorials--
we do see a lot-- these
will sell in the $300
to $400 range. The blanket is
a little different. This one is
full of character, and it would
probably retail today
for about $2,000.
GUEST: Wow. (laughing) Wow,
that's really amazing. I
would never have guessed that.
You know, you're, you're
exactly right. I kind of thought
this would be the piece that
maybe was, was more attractive.
Um, that's incredible.
APPRAISER: Thank you, Grandpa.
GUEST: Yes, absolutely.
(laughs) What a great gift.