On this premier episode of Dealers, sellers from across the globe bring incredible historical treasures to be assessed, and hopefully bought, by five top international dealers. The dealers have no idea what will come into the dealing room next and no opportunity to research the items. So they rely on their knowledge and expertise as they make their bids. Jenny makes a shock bid on a 200 year old plesiosaur fossil which has been lovingly restored by a self taught palaeontologist. A post-war diamond watch causes tension between Gillian and Scott. Richard believes an incredible artefact from a moon landing has been tainted and a collection of African masks belonging to a seller’s late father causes emotions to run high in the dealing room.
A dedicated meteorite hunter enters into tough negotiations with Scott over some rare rocks from outer space. An imperial Russian helmet raises some difficult questions from Richard. Artwork from a Picasso contemporary evokes a strong reaction from Nik; and Gillian’s criticism of some iconic, vintage costume jewellery made by Coco Chanel costs her an important deal.
A passionate fan of all things Japanese sparks a bidding war on a 600 year old Samurai sword; Scott and Gillian clash over a world class collection of X-Men comic books; a seller who hopes she picked up a bargain in China hears some shocking home truths about her Qing dynasty wedding chair; and Richard and Jenny go head to head as they bid to buy models from the Aardman Animations feature film Chicken Run.
The dealers salivate over a museum-quality Penny Farthing on sale for only the second time in its 100 year history; a 10,000 year old woolly mammoth fossil sets Jenny against Gillian; the dealers question the value of some Damien Hirst artworks; and Nik and Scott get into a bidding war over a pristine example of an early Rolex watch dating from the Second World War.
A poker player pits his wits against the dealers and sees Richard and Gillian battle it out over his signed print by the world famous sculptor Henry Moore; a young man from the UK, whose great uncle died in the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, brings 4 copies of the Daily Mirror covering the immediate aftermath of the tragedy and sparks a bidding war between Nik and Jenny; a recently married couple hope to raise funds for their honeymoon as they try to sell a family heirloom from the Caucasus; and a chess enthusiast flirts with Gillian and Jenny as he presents a fascinating antique chess set used in the 1883 London chess tournament.
A superfan, hoping to raise funds to emigrate to Australia, brings artwork by rock legend David Bowie as well as a Christmas card signed by his hero and Scott comes to blows with Jenny as they fight to buy the painting; an extremely rare convertible Rolls Royce Silver Cloud brings offers of hundreds of thousands of pounds; two Japanese netsukes spark a bidding war between Nik and Jenny; offers on a pair of candlesticks owned by Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe bring the seller down to earth; and in an update on items the dealers have sold in the international market we find out if they have turned a profit.
In this episode of Dealers more fascinating treasures are brought in from all over the world to be assessed by 5 top international dealers. A collection of vintage Playboy magazines, found in the seller’s grandfather’s shed in Ireland, spark a bidding war between Jenny and Gillian; an historic pocket watch, brought in by a seller from Poland, brings strong bids; a specially-commissioned Faberge diamond egg is offered for sale for the first time; Elton John’s sunglasses, Stetson hat and piano stool get all the dealers bidding; and in more updates we reveal whether the dealers turned a profit on items they bought in the dealing room.