TV star in Lieboch
Pauritsch: “Even my grandpa was a hunter!”
Hundreds of visitors queued up at the flea market in Lieboch when "Bares-für-Rares" star Wolfgang Pauritsch took a close look at rare items. From Rolexes to ancient soaps, everything was on offer. And recently Pauritsch, who grew up in Styria, has also been listed in the Guinness Book of Records.
Google, they say, knows everything. But Wolfgang Pauritsch, the antiques dealer and TV favorite from "Bares für Rares" apparently does too. The 52-year-old proved this these days at a Sunday matinee in Lieboch, to which organizer Manfred Zierler was able to lure him.
With mom at the flea market
Mama Maria Pauritsch can be found in Lieboch every Sunday with her stall at the flea market - and thanks to her son, this time the flea market became a mecca for young and old alike. The first art lovers with their exhibits were already sitting in the hall of the Diesel Cinema two hours before the start, and Wolfgang Pauritsch then spent more than three hours examining all kinds of "treasures".
"It feels like coming home," laughs the West Styrian, who spent a lot of time with his grandmother in Pölfing-Brunn when he was a boy. He normally collects several thousand euros for such performances - "but this time I didn't take a cent. The organizer has promised to waive my mother's stand fee until the end of the year," he smiles.
"Nothing is worth anything to me"
And it is something special that he makes time for such an event. Pauritsch spends 60 days a year filming for the ZDF edition of "Bares für Rares" alone, and another 20 for the Austrian version on Servus TV. He then inspected everything with a lamp and magnifying glass. Where does Pauritsch see the threshold between art and junk? "For me, there's no such thing as worth nothing," he said, "some things are worth more, some things are worth less."
Some visitors had up to ten exhibits with them - in between, Pauritsch was allowed to pose for a souvenir photo. Then he had to bend down again for autograph cards under the table. The 250 cards were soon gone. Quite a lot of squats for a fee-free Sunday morning.
Russian silver and a Rolex watch
The highlights among the rarities brought along? Russian silver from 1888, for which Pauritsch would have promptly paid 3000 euros. However, the bidder did not want to give it away for less than 3,500. Then there was a rare Rolex, a painting from the 19th century and a neat seafaring pocket watch. Even a chamber pot with an Emperor Franz Josef motif was held under Pauritsch's nose. "Yes, a Potschamperl," he grinned, "that's what it's called in Bavaria."
An 85-year-old gentleman then unpacked accessories relating to the landing of the famous British Airways Concorde at Thalerhof in Graz in 1981. "Look, two original soaps from the on-board toilet. They even still smell."
"Nobody buys furs these days"
Pauritsch also had some advice to offer. "Nobody buys furs these days. If you still have one, it's best to have a fine blanket made from it." And: "Ladies and gentlemen, please stop buying coins on TV. They often sell very small ones for 50 euros and they're not even worth ten euros!"
Sometimes Pauritsch also had to deal with disappointed faces. For example, when a gentleman presented a bronze chicken family, only to receive a skeptical look from the expert. "Look, it's from Taiwan and unfortunately doesn't even fetch 400 euros." Follow-up: "I can't and won't lie to anyone." It was a similar story with a doll's pram that a lady had brought with her - "a nice piece, but not an antique."
"Even my grandpa was a haggler"
The 52-year-old art dealer clearly has haggling and bargaining in his blood ("Even my grandfather was an old haggler"). Wolfgang discovered his love for porcelain as a boy and used to go to the rag markets in western Styria. This gave him years of experience. "My brain is my search engine," he smiled. "It's also difficult to look things up on my cell phone because I have an ancient model that only works for making calls and texting."
But he's not thinking about quitting for a long time yet. "I won't stop until I'm lying in my wooden pyjamas. It's fun and you learn something new every day." What's more, Pauritsch is now in the Guinness Book of Records thanks to a record-breaking sale of a 100-year-old Leica camera. The "Bares für Rares" star auctioned off the valuable piece for an incredible 14.4(!) million euros at his auction house in Allgäu. It was the personal camera of Oskar Barnack, the inventor of the 35mm camera. World record!
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