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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 26, 2012, 09:10:37 pm »

She bought this lot from a dealer we met in Zanzibar who collects African art. Our house is very crammed with stuff, there's barely any wall space left! Most of our masks are on display in our house, but around 25 are in storage I think. My parents hope to eventually add to our house and future plans include a sort of gallery. That being said, they often buy "for the future house" then end up having to find a way to fit it in our current house, it's a bit of a mess.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 26, 2012, 01:07:48 am »

Here are some more photos I found on my mom's phone. A few of the items we have bought within the last year or so:

1) A sample of the large group African masks my mother bought recently
2) A Chinese vase, not sure of the details
3) Carved and beaded wooden "tusks" (no ivory)

I have several more photos of the masks if anyone is interested in seeing them in more detail. Hope this answers the requests for a few photos adequately!

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 25, 2012, 10:44:14 pm »

Here are a few photos! I am currently in Southeast Asia on a trip with my family, so these are just photos of purchases on this trip since I am not home to take any pictures in my house. Due to regulations, I don't think any of these items are more than around 80 years old, but just to give you an idea of the type of items my parents like to buy.

1) A silver statue of Shiva standing on Garuda from Cambodia
2) A Taoist wall hanging from Vietnam
3) A wooden coconut grinder in the shape of a tiger from Cambodia

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 25, 2012, 07:51:01 pm »

Thank you everyone!

It's encouraging to hear that museums could be such a great resource, going from the feedback I'll probably start by contacting more local museums then moving further afield if needed.

Regularjoe2, thanks for the great advice. My parents have been meaning to document everything for a while, it's just one of those projects that always gets pushed back. You're right though, it would be a great help to have that info organized. Also, the organization you suggested sounds like a good back up option if I can't find a museum that can help. Obviously I'd like to avoid huge charges, but it sounds like a great place to start if I need to find some more options.

Thanks again! You have a wonderful and helpful forum here, congratulations.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 25, 2012, 12:00:28 pm »

Thanks!! I had considered looking into museums but was worried curators would be too busy. But your reccomendation to check out Dallas and Houston museums is excellent, I'll look into it.
Thank you again!

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 25, 2012, 11:25:57 am »

I realize that the above post is super long and a little daunting, and I don't want to scare any potential helpers away.

To sum up: My parents have a lot of tribal antiques from around the world, and our looking to hire someone to appraise them. Perferably someone who would be able to fly to Texas relatively cheaply.

Any reccomendations are greatly appreciated!

Sorry for my earlier rambling post, hope this simplifies it.

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Antique Questions Forum / Looking to hire a professional- reccomendations?

« on: July 25, 2012, 11:14:32 am »

Hello all,
This is my first time to this forum, so I apologize if I do anything wrong. I'm not even sure if this is the rigjt website to be on, but I'm starting here in the hope that someone can point me in the right direction.

The reason I'm here is because my parents are avid collectors of antiques from around the world. The two of them have traveled for years and all across the globe. This means that many of the antiques they have bought haven't necessarily been from certified stores and have come with little information. Our house is filled with a vast and varied assortment of items, ranging from many regions of Africa to south pacific islands to Asian countries, and a few others. My parents are in particular fascinated with older tribal pieces. My mother's passion is collecting masks from various cultures. Not all the items are old, but we are under the impression that many are. We also have other pieces like carvings and furniture.

My parents are interested in hiring a professional to come to our house and appraise our pieces. We are not looking to sell, but rather trying to get a better understanding of what quality of work we have and more information on time period. Some of the pieces might even be replicated and we have no idea. However, there are a few that my parents have been led to believe are "museum quality specimen" and it would be great to have this confirmed or denied. 

I know this is a wide range of pieces that include various fields of expertise so it will be hard to find one person who knows it all. My parents also aren't sure how much money they are willing to spend on this endeavor, seeing as we live in Austin, Texas so flying someone in will get expensive. However, they want to look into it. Any reccomendations on people who would be qualified to appraise all, or at least part of, my parents' collection will be greatly appreciated. There are simply too many items to do it online. I haven't attached any photos since I am currently abroad and also I think it would be difficult to capture the entirety of my parents' pieces in a few photos.

Sorry for how long winded this is! But thanks again for any feedback. I can possibly upload some photos when I get home if that is thought to be helpful.
Thanks!
Danielle