GUEST: I got it from my mom.

I'm guessing I was probably five, six years old.

We were in Thailand, in the northern region.

There was a tribe, and we were staying in huts right along the river.

So that's where she got it.

(chuckles) APPRAISER: Really?

Wow.

GUEST: We used it as a punch bowl.

APPRAISER: (chuckling): Oh, really?

GUEST: We would put a glass, like, regular punch bowl in it, and fill it with punch.

APPRAISER: Uh-huh.

GUEST: And it was a punch bowl.

APPRAISER: Beautiful.

GUEST: So, I don't-- I don't actually know what it's meant for.

(chuckles) APPRAISER: Okay.

Well, bowls like this were made in Southeast Asia, in Thailand and Burma.

Oftentimes they were used as offering bowls.

So they were kept in front of temples and people would put offerings inside.

GUEST: Oh.

APPRAISER: Sometimes they were used to display flowers.

Sometimes they were purely for ornamental purposes or to store foodstuffs in.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: It is made of silver.

It's Northern Thailand.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: Chiang Mai is where it was most likely made.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: It’s really densely repousséd all around, with scenes of village life.

This kind of real deep repoussé is characteristic of Burmese silver.

I think that the date is around 1950.

You've got oxen...drawing carts.

You've got people working... Huts on stilts, water being drawn from a well, someone working a fire.

And again, another oxen cart.

People carrying water or food on yokes on their shoulders.

And just, you know, people enjoying village life.

I believe that the entire bowl is completely handmade.

GUEST: Wow.

APPRAISER: So, even though it looks like these pieces will be potentially pressed against a wooden mold... GUEST: Yeah.

APPRAISER: I believe that they're all done individually by hand... GUEST: Oh, wow.

APPRAISER: pushed out, and then they're chased back in.

One really must appreciate the time and the skill that it took to be able to produce it.

People are starting to recognize these and see the real value in them.

Obviously, you've got the silver value; silver is quite high in value right now.

It's at $33 an ounce.

I think that at auction, you'd be looking at an estimate of $1,500 to $2,500.

GUEST: Okay.

Mm-hmm.

Very cool.

Yeah.

I think I'm gonna keep it as my punch bowl though.

(both laugh) APPRAISER: Yeah, it's a great way to use it.