Have suitcase, seeking appraisal

HURON – Although he had pinned his hopes on four Indian peace pipes and an ash burl wood covered dish after winning tickets to an Antiques Roadshow filming, Andy Gross was surprised to learn reaction to a Louis Vuitton suitcase he brought along to carry the other items to Florida.
“Everybody loved that,” the antique dealer said of the 1930s-era case.
A camera crew pulled him aside and asked Gross questions about it, and he learned the footage may be used in a commercial at some point.
He said he not only decided to carry the peace pipes and dish in the suitcase to Sarasota, but also hoped to hear an expert’s opinion as to its value.
He did.

It’s worth $1,300, about the price he paid for it years ago, he said.
Gross had discovered the Indian peace pipes and dish among the contents of his Miller antique store when he purchased the building. The previous owner had clipped a newspaper story that indicated the ash burl dish could be worth thousands of dollars.
Unfortunately, that’s not the case.
Antiques Roadshow experts told Gross he can expect to get $400 to $600 for what he learned is a 1960s folk art piece.
As for the four Indian peace pipes? They’re 1920s reproductions worth from $20 to $100 each.
Gross said he plans to sell the peace pipes and dish, but hold onto the suitcase.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDY GROSS
Huron antique collector and dealer Andy Gross displays the Louis Vuitton suitcase he took to a taping of Antiques Roadshow in Florida recently.