Antiques Roadshow

GUEST

I was setting rat traps in a house that I used to live in in Norwalk.

APPRAISER

Rat traps?

GUEST

Rat traps. We had a bad rat problem. I must have been about 13, 14 years old. And while setting the rat traps I had to get into, like, a small crawl space. And I was digging around with my flashlight, trying to get a good spot to put the trap down. And crawling back out, and I looked up, and it just... an odd shape caught my eye. And I didn't really want to put my hand in, because there's spider webs and all kinds of stuff. But I pulled it out, and it was this bank. So I don't know exactly who the owner was, but I took it as my fee for setting the rat traps.

APPRAISER

So you've had this bank for over 20 years, then.

GUEST

Yes.

APPRAISER

Wow, well, let me tell you a little bit about the bank. This is one of the first banks ever made by J&E Stevens out of Cromwell, Connecticut. J&E Stevens is probably one of the best-known bank makers for mechanical banks.

GUEST

It's actually from Connecticut? Oh, that is too cool.

APPRAISER

And they started making banks for themselves in 1872. This is one of their earliest. This has a patent date of just about that, 1872, 1873. And you'll start finding it in jobber catalogs in 1877 and 1880.

GUEST

Wow.

APPRAISER

And it's called-- and I know this is shocking-- Frog on Latticework Bank. And what's great about this... this is not a rare bank. They made a number of these. What's unusual about it-- A, it's got this wonderful pink latticework. Most of the time the latticework is in different colors. And I'm sure you know how this works. You press his foot.

GUEST

Ribbit.

APPRAISER

You feed it, and ribbit, there it goes.

GUEST

I like the fact the eyes move, also.

APPRAISER

Exactly. Originally he had brighter eyes. And this paint up here was brighter. If you clean this, I think a lot of this paint would come out.

GUEST

I didn't want to touch it. I never did anything with it. I had it in an old wool watch cap.

APPRAISER

Really? Well, the fact that mechanical banks are so collectible today, even though there are a lot of them out there, with this paint level it's worth between $800 and $1,200.

GUEST

Oh, my God.

APPRAISER

So this frog truly is a prince.

GUEST

Wow.