Appraisal: 1852 Abraham Lincoln Document
Clip: Season 30 Episode 17 | 2m 20sVideo has Closed Captions
Appraisal: 1852 Abraham Lincoln Document
In Vintage First Finds, Hour 2, Marsha Malinowski appraises an 1852 Abraham Lincoln Document.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Funding for ANTIQUES ROADSHOW is provided by American Cruise Lines and Ancestry. Additional funding is provided by public television viewers.
Support provided by:
Appraisal: 1852 Abraham Lincoln Document
Clip: Season 30 Episode 17 | 2m 20sVideo has Closed Captions
In Vintage First Finds, Hour 2, Marsha Malinowski appraises an 1852 Abraham Lincoln Document.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Where to Watch Antiques Roadshow
Antiques Roadshow is available to stream on pbs.org and the PBS app.
Buy Now
ANTIQUES ROADSHOW's 2026 Production Tour
Enter now for a chance to win a pair of free tickets to one of the three stops on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW's 2026 Tour. Sweepstakes entry deadline is April 6.Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipAPPRAISER: What you have is a Lincoln manuscript, and I'd love for you to tell me a little bit about what you know about the document.
GUEST: Well, my great grandfather, uh, O.L.
Davis, practiced law with Abraham Lincoln from 1842 to 1849.
APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.
GUEST: And this document, which is the only one that has survived, has been passed down through my family, is a contingent fee contract, signed-- uh, written by Lincoln, and signed by the client.
APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.
GUEST: And Carl Sandburg, in his "Prairie Years," said that Lincoln was so ethical, that he never took a fee on a contingent basis.
Well, I hate to tell Mr.
Sandburg, who's now deceased, that he was wrong.
APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.
GUEST: And it's a document that I've had a lot of fun showing people and... APPRAISER: Well, it-it certainly is a lovely document.
It's dated from the May 15, 1852.
It has an integral signature, that means that Abraham Lincoln's name is within the text.
He wrote his name within the text... GUEST: Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER: ...and someone else signed off on it.
Um, it looks as if it's been well-repaired.
I gather that your grandfather must have shown it around quite a bit... GUEST: (laughing): Yeah.
APPRAISER: ...because, um, as we look on the back here, there seems to be tape repairs on the back of the document.
There seems to be also some repair work, almost what we would call some silking, which is, um, a repair technique on the front.
Um, Lincoln material has been doing extremely well at auction, and an early piece from his law years would make it a very, very special piece.
Um, my... do you have any ideas as to the value of an item like this?
GUEST: (chuckling): I... I have no idea.
APPRAISER: Well, I would say that something like this would probably be in the price range of $8,000 to $10,000.
GUEST: Oh, well, good.
APPRAISER: Um, because it is completely in his handwriting.
Mostly we will see documents by Lincoln that are just signed by him, but being that this actually is fully in his hand, gives it a good, sturdy estimate at auction.
GUEST: Oh, good.
APPRAISER: And I think that it would do extremely well.
So you've got a nice little piece here.
GUEST: Yeah, well, I'll never sell it.
Take it off the shelf and not keep it in my closet.
APPRAISER: That's right.
But don't put it in too much sunlight because that will only damage it a bit more.
GUEST: No, I won't.
NewAppraisal: 1893 Dutch Silver Wager Cup
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 32s | Appraisal: 1893 Dutch Silver Wager Cup (1m 32s)
NewAppraisal: 1940-1941 RKO Pictures Book
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 34s | Appraisal: 1940-1941 RKO Pictures Book (1m 34s)
NewAppraisal: 1961 - 1964 Kennedy Memorabilia
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 3m | Appraisal: 1961 - 1964 Kennedy Memorabilia (3m)
NewAppraisal: 1979 Marc Chagall Etching
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 22s | Appraisal: 1979 Marc Chagall Etching (2m 22s)
NewAppraisal: 19th C. Canadian Hutch
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 40s | Appraisal: 19th C. Canadian Hutch (1m 40s)
NewAppraisal: Anna Hyatt Huntington Bronzes, ca. 1915
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 42s | Appraisal: Anna Hyatt Huntington Bronzes, ca. 1915 (1m 42s)
NewAppraisal: Arroyo Hondo Santero Retablo, ca. 1840
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 30s | Appraisal: Arroyo Hondo Santero Retablo, ca. 1840 (1m 30s)
NewAppraisal: Babe Ruth Home Run Baseball, ca. 1930
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 4s | Appraisal: Babe Ruth Home Run Baseball, ca. 1930 (2m 4s)
NewAppraisal: Bippart, Grisom & Osborne Pin, ca. 1895
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 25s | Appraisal: Bippart, Grisom & Osborne Pin, ca. 1895 (2m 25s)
NewAppraisal: Boston Inlaid Highboy, ca. 1740
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 22s | Appraisal: Boston Inlaid Highboy, ca. 1740 (2m 22s)
NewAppraisal: Chinese Ceramic & Spode Copy
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 48s | Appraisal: Chinese Ceramic & Spode Copy (2m 48s)
NewAppraisal: Chromolithograph Advertising Cards, ca. 1895
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 15s | Appraisal: Chromolithograph Advertising Cards, ca. 1895 (2m 15s)
NewAppraisal: Daum Nancy Cameo Glass Vase, ca. 1913
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 3m 2s | Appraisal: Daum Nancy Cameo Glass Vase, ca. 1913 (3m 2s)
NewAppraisal: English Pocket Globe, ca. 1800
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 3s | Appraisal: English Pocket Globe, ca. 1800 (2m 3s)
NewAppraisal: German China-head Doll, ca. 1860
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 45s | Appraisal: German China-head Doll, ca. 1860 (1m 45s)
NewAppraisal: Gibson Style H-2 Mandola, ca. 1918
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 21s | Appraisal: Gibson Style H-2 Mandola, ca. 1918 (2m 21s)
NewAppraisal: History of the Indian Tribes of N. America
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 26s | Appraisal: History of the Indian Tribes of N. America (2m 26s)
NewAppraisal: Mini Half Dime Silver Teapot, ca. 1900
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 44s | Appraisal: Mini Half Dime Silver Teapot, ca. 1900 (1m 44s)
NewAppraisal: New England Schoolgirl Samplers & School Book
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 4s | Appraisal: New England Schoolgirl Samplers & School Book (1m 4s)
NewAppraisal: Newhall Family Register, ca. 1820
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 56s | Appraisal: Newhall Family Register, ca. 1820 (1m 56s)
NewVideo has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 19s | Appraisal: Painting, ca. 1920 (2m 19s)
NewAppraisal: Robert Henri Oil Painting, ca. 1900
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 1m 15s | Appraisal: Robert Henri Oil Painting, ca. 1900 (1m 15s)
NewAppraisal: Tiffany Studios Daffodil Lamp, ca. 1906
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 19s | Appraisal: Tiffany Studios Daffodil Lamp, ca. 1906 (2m 19s)
NewAppraisal: WPA Puppets, ca. 1935
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S30 Ep17 | 2m 19s | Appraisal: WPA Puppets, ca. 1935 (2m 19s)
Preview: Vintage First Finds, Hour 2
Video has Closed Captions
Preview: S30 Ep17 | 30s | Premiere vintage finds from ROADSHOW’s first season! Do values hold up in today’s market? (30s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
- Home and How To
Hit the road in a classic car for a tour through Great Britain with two antiques experts.
New Episode
New Episode
Support for PBS provided by:
Funding for ANTIQUES ROADSHOW is provided by American Cruise Lines and Ancestry. Additional funding is provided by public television viewers.