Taking the Gothic Pressure

Last week I visited Petworth. It's an attractive little town with winding streets and a variety of old buildings, and the local economy seems to rely mainly on the antique trade. Or at least it once did. Even though now one shop in every three seems to be an antique shop, until recently there were obviously many more because one of the other two is a closed antique shop. In one of these I discovered this sweet little Gothic barometer- sorry for the poor photo, it was impossible to get any closer through the display case.

I didn't buy it. Clearly this kind of thing is 'highly collectable' to judge by the three-figure price, and not just into three figures either.