DIXFIELD
— A tin spice box from the 1880s and a captured Nazi flag and
armband from World War II drew considerable attention from an
antiques appraiser at the Dixfield
Historical Society on Saturday.

Auctioneer
Tim Gould of Smithfield, who appraised antiques people brought to his
fourth annual Antiques “Road Show,” said both those items were “very
special.”

“This
is always enjoyable for me to come to Dixfield, because invariably,
someone brings in something special,” Gould said after the
four-hour educational program.

“Generally,
things tend to be mundane, but that Nazi flag was very special,” because of its history of being a captured war trophy, Gould said.

When
her turn came, Pam Averill of Carthage took a basket containing the
hand-stenciled black tin spice box to Gould, whose eyes grew big when
he saw her unwrapping it.

“This
is in ‘oh-my-god’ condition,” Gould said of the box, to laughter.

That’s he uses this phrase to describe antiques he believes to be
valuable. He said many people used them for strong boxes
in which to hold cash or valuables. On
opening it, however, his jaw dropped when he saw that it contained
six spice containers.

The scent of spices quickly filled the historical society room.
Gould valued the spice box at between $200 and $400, which drew a
smile from Averill.

Afterward,
she said she got the box, which belonged to her grandmother, from her
aunt.

“When
he said it was very valuable, I was very pleased,” she said.

Throughout
the show, Gould taught the crowd of about 50 people
important things about antiques, such as not keeping old bottles in the
window because the sun will ruin their original color.

He
appraised everything from old books to old jewelry, clocks, watches,
a toy and even a large photograph of the U.S.S. Maine burial at
Moro Castle, Cuba.

Toward
the end of the show, Gladys Carver of Carthage brought to Gould a
homemade pine box that she said her husband Robert Carver got from
his great-great-aunt of Lisbon Falls when he was a young boy.

The
aunt’s brother, C.L. Smith of the 264th Engineers Co., built the box in which to mail the Nazi flag, which had a large swastika in
the center and a Maltese Cross in one corner.

Due
to the great condition of the wool armband, Gould said it probably
belonged to an officer. 

“It
would get $200 to $500 without research, but it could be worth
several thousands of dollars if you do the research,” Gould said,
recommending that Carver could do that on the Internet.

“My
mother told me it actually flew in Germany,” Robert Carver said of
the tattered cotton flag Gould labeled authentic.

He
and his wife said they were surprised at how valuable it might be.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com

Antiques “Road Show” appraiser and auctioneer Tim Gould, right, of Smithfield, talks about a souvenir china collection of Peter Stowell, left, on Saturday afternoon at the Dixfield Historical Society. Stowell said the 100-piece collection, which took him 10 years to assemble with help from a friend, contains china depicting towns from Paris to the Rangeley area.

Antiques “Road Show: auctioneer and appraiser Tim Gould of Smithfield examines a spice container from the 1880s while appraising the hand-stenciled black tin box set owned by Pam Averill of Carthage on Saturday afternoon inside the Dixfield Historical Society on Route 2. People brought old family treasures in to have Gould determine their value on the current antiques market.

On Saturday afternoon at the Dixfield Historical Society, Linda DuBois, left, and her son Sean Dubois, and Antiques “Road Show” appraiser and auctioneer Tim Gould of Smithfield, examine a large photograph showing the burial at sea of the U.S. S. Maine at Moro Castle in Cuba. Sean DuBois said that his great-grandfather, who served in the Spanish-American War and was stationed in Havana, got the photograph and kept it in the family. Gould said it was worth about $200.