GUEST: Well, I know very little about them. I found them in a garage sale in Seattle.

APPRAISER: Wow.

GUEST: bout two years ago. And I assume they are a child's headdress.

APPRAISER: They are, and they're from mainland China, and they were probably made in the 1920s, 1930s.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: And these brilliant-colored dyes were aniline dyes that were introduced from Europe in the 1890s, and spread basically all over China within a matter of ten or 15 years because the Chinese loved these brilliant colors here.

GUEST: Right.

APPRAISER: But they're both done as tigers, and tigers are there as spirits to ward off evil.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: And they're also done as women's hats, but they're intentionally for young boys. They used to dress up young boys as women.

GUEST: Oh!

APPRAISER: In order to prevent evil spirits from taking them.

GUEST: Wow.

APPRAISER: That's why the flowers and the feathers. And if you notice on this one on the side, there are centipedes on the side, and they're, like, one of the five evils. So they're there to protect the kid from scorpion and centipede bites.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: They're rather bizarre and attractive with the big, bulging eyes with the gold brocade, and all the little metal appliqués. But quite a handsome piece of work.

GUEST: A lot of work.

APPRAISER: Exactly. And the kid probably outgrew them really quick, too, had to have them made again and again. (laughing) And did you have any idea what they were worth?

GUEST: No, I don't. I paid $15 for the pair.

APPRAISER: $15 for the pair. Well, they're not worth a whole lot of money, but they're still worth about $200, $250 apiece.

GUEST: Oh, that's good.

APPRAISER: And Chinese textiles like this are growing even more collectible. I love those bulging eyes on them, staring down evil.