Antiques Roadshow is known for surprising people with the hidden value of their treasures, and a recent episode filmed in Baltimore was no exception. Two guests walked away with life-changing news about a painting and a guitar that turned out to be worth much more than they ever imagined.
A Beautiful Painting by Ed Clark
During one of the Baltimore episodes, a guest brought in a colorful painting by famous artist Ed Clark. On the back of the artwork was a handwritten date from April 1976. The guest explained that his late wife, who passed away in 2019, was an art collector, especially of African American artists.
Appraiser Myrtis Bedolla from Galerie Myrtis was full of praise. She told the owner that Ed Clark was a major African American artist who gained more recognition later in life. His work is now displayed in major museums like the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
She explained that Clark’s signature style features bands of color and that his paintings have become highly sought after in recent years. Then came the big reveal: the painting could sell for between $50,000 and $65,000 at auction.
“You have a really beautiful piece here by Clark, and it’s quite a gem,” Bedolla told the stunned owner.
Who Was Ed Clark?
Ed Clark was an abstract expressionist known for his bold brushstrokes and bright, radiant colors. Although he had a long, successful career spanning seven decades, Clark often faced racial barriers that limited his early recognition. Today, art historians acknowledge his important contribution to modernist painting.
A Guitar With an Incredible Story
In the same series of Baltimore episodes, another guest learned about the incredible value of a family heirloom — a 1941 C.F. Martin 000-42 guitar.
The guitar originally belonged to the guest’s great-uncle, known as “Cowboy Slim,” who played music live on the radio during the early 1950s. Slim got the guitar through a friend in 1952, paying only $50 for it when he could afford it, a bargain even back then.
Slim passed away in 1989, leaving the treasured guitar to his nephew, who has carefully kept it ever since.
Why the Guitar is So Valuable
The guitar is made from Brazilian rosewood, a rare and prized material known for its amazing sound quality. It also features an ebony bridge, an ebony fretboard, and ivoroid binding, all adding to its value.
An expert estimated the guitar’s current worth between $65,000 and $75,000, shocking the guest who had only heard of a $10,000 valuation decades ago.
Baltimore Episodes Continue to Surprise
The Baltimore episodes of Antiques Roadshow have been airing every Monday in April on PBS, with the final episode set to air at 8 PM on the last Monday of the month. As these stories show, you never know what hidden treasures you might have in your attic or inherited from a loved one.
Whether it’s a colorful Ed Clark painting or a classic Martin guitar, Antiques Roadshow proves that history, art, and music are often worth far more than sentimental value — sometimes they are true hidden fortunes.