Appraisal: Girl Skipping Rope Mechanical Bank, ca. 1890

GUEST: When I was younger, I would wind it up and watch the girl skip rope.

Unfortunately, one day, I think I overwound it.

GUEST: And I heard the spring break.

So, she doesn't skip.

APPRAISER: What we have here is a circa 1890 mechanical bank made by J. and E. Stevens.

Mechanical banks were produced to incentivize children to save money.

GUEST: (laughs softly) APPRAISER: The bank's official title is the "Girl Skipping Rope."

Could you demonstrate how it would work if we could wind it right now?

GUEST: If you would put the coin in here and it was wound, the rope would just go around and the little girl would go up and down.

APPRAISER: The paint is authentic on this piece, which is really coveted by collectors.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: At auction, the estimate on this bank would be about $10,000 to $15,000.

I would not be surprised if it brought more.

GUEST: Well, that's great.

APPRAISER: I do think it would be worthwhile to have a professional disassemble and repair the inner workings.

An internal repair like that would be a matter of a few hundred dollars.

I think it would increase the value a few thousand dollars.