The Lamm Jewish Library of Australia was transformed into an “Antiques Roadshow” on 26 October as the community came together for this unique event.

There were books, lace, bric-a-brac, paintings, silver, jewelry and Judaica galore as the community embraced the opportunity to learn about their family pieces and have them appraised by the specialists from Mossgreen Auctions.

The experts, including Mossgreen Managing Director Charles Leski, decorative arts specialists Harry Glenn and Sandy Bruce and jewelry expert Patti Sedgwick, were not disappointed in the quality and variety of the objects presented for evaluation.

Chanukiot, samovars, tapestries, Lladro and silver candlesticks were brought to the various experts for appraisal and information. The stories behind the items were incredible, and the experts were astounded that so many of these pieces had survived the passage of time.

We heard about a candelabra from Cracow that survived after being hidden during the war, and a Chanukiah from the 1850’s that was both saved from pogroms and survived hidden in a cupboard in Slovakia during WWII. These finds were even more astounding and miraculous as neither the Nazis nor the Russians had discovered their hiding place.

Each piece had its own unique story to tell and there were some treasures among the items as well. These included an original Chagall watercolour painting and a museum quality Faberge Kiddush cup.