Top 10 Surprising Antique Roadshow Discoveries
Since Antiques Roadshow premiered in the UK in the late 70s its roving band of Antiques appraisers have been helping everyday people discover the true value of their possessions the American version of the show premiered in 1997 and quickly became the most popular show on PBS helped along by a number of truly awesome and even newsworthy discoveries made by its appraisers if you happen to have some old family heirlooms in the attic you might want to check to see if they're coming to your town you just may end up a lot richer for the experience here are 10 of the most amazing discoveries ever made by Antiques Roadshow US.
10-Seymour card table
Claire Wiegand Beckman had no idea what she had on her hands when she brought her find a small mahogany card table she had found at a garage sale 30 years prior to the Secaucus New Jersey Roadshow way back in 1998 she described it as a moldy mess but she was so taken with its style that she paid $25 for it after talking the owner down from 30 appraiser Lake Kenna notice that the underside of the table featured a faded label which could still be read John Seymour and Sons of Boston whom he described as very distinguished cabinet makers who made fine furniture for some of the wealthiest families in Boston at the time it turned out that the time he was speaking of was the 18th century and after restoration the table was in remarkably good condition with its original finish and craftsmanship quino's ton Wiegand Beckman when he appraised the piece of an astonishing 250,000 dollars however he was a little off the mark when the unassuming card table went up for auction at South base it fetched over twice that the final sale price 541,500 dollars.
9-Navajo Blanket
Appraiser Donald Ellis could hardly contain himself when he laid eyes on the expertly woven Navajo blanket which Arizonian Ted Koontz had brought to the roadshow in 2001 Koontz told Alice that the blanket had been given to the foster father of his grandmother by the legendary frontiersman Kit Carson and Ellis recognized it immediately as an excellent example of what he called a ute first-phase wearing blanket made by the Navajo between 1840 and 1864 a ute chief the blanket was among the first of its kind since it didn't feature any of the jewelry or adornment seen in later blankets of the same type with obvious excitement Ellis went on to call it an extremely rare find and the most important item he had ever seen come into the rode shelf Koontz who hadn't the faintest idea what the piece might be worth was absolutely floored to hear Ellis appraisal of 350,000 to $500,000 the blanket which had sat on Koontz bed as a child and had spent years draped over a chair in his house was sold at auction to an anonymous buyer who proceeded to donate the piece to the Detroit Institute of Arts Koontz and his wife were able to pay off their house help some friends and relatives and put away a sizable security net but other than that their lifestyle didn't change much Koontz even continued to work until the age of 74.
8-Chinese cups horn cups
Collector Douglas Huber brought his collection of Chinese cups carved from rhinoceros horns to the Rhode show Tulsa Oklahoma in 2011 he collected the 17th and 18th century pieces in the 1970s paying a total of about five thousand dollars for the five piece collection Huber came with high hopes that he might have a hefty appraisal on his hands an Asian art appraiser lark Mason didn't disappoint explaining the history behind each piece Mason went on to put each of the cups values at between 185,000 $250,000 estimating that the entire lot could go for as much as 1.25 million dollars at auction Huber was understandably blown away but when the collection went up for auction in March 2012 it was a bit of a letdown three of the pieces failed to sell but the other two went for prices right in line with Mason's appraisal the total sale price for the two centuries old cups $329,000.
7-Auguste rodin bronze sculpture
James Ken R came to the Dallas Roadshow in 2016 with a bronze sculpture which had belonged to his father's great aunts and currently belonged to his parents the piece was an original Auguste Rodin the great French sculptor whose work in the late 19th century is considered highly innovative and influential appraiser eric silver was visibly excited while describing the history of the casting which was titled eternal spring and was what he described as a lifetime casting meaning it was created while Rodin was still alive likely from his original sculpture silver noted that virtually every similar piece that comes through the roadshow is a fake or reproduction but not Kenner's after deeming it the real deal he appraised the piece at 450,000 to 500,000 dollars a verdict that a shocked Kenner was obviously not prepared for further authentication on the piece was later performed by the committee Auguste Rodin in France the official committee tasked with verifying the artists original work they confirmed that the pieces indeed an authentic lifetime casting and will be added to the register and Kenner and his parents hoped to hit the jackpot when it goes up on the auction block.
6-1907 robert henry oil painting
Pat Welsh didn't think she was sitting on any hidden treasure when she brought an old family portrait to the San Diego Roadshow in 2011 the portrait of her grandmother was created by the influential American painter Robert Henry commissioned by Walsh's grandfather in 1907 for $4,500 a princely sum over a century ago but Welsh had contacted experts on the artists work who had told her that it wouldn't be worth much more than that today since it wasn't a portrait of anyone particularly notable according to appraiser Peter Fairbanks they had been way off the mark as an early work and an interesting blending of styles Fairbanks recommended that Welsh ensure the peace for no less than 250,000 to 300,000 dollars Welsh was astonished to say the least but told interviewers after the appraisal that the portrait was going right back where it had been before hanging over her fireplace at home.
5-Frederic remington portrait and letter
Ty Dodge also brought a family portrait when he paid a visit to the roadshow in Birmingham Alabama in 2014 the portrait was of his grandfather who had been a friend of the artist American painter and sculptor Frederick Remington although painted in 1896 the painting could almost be mistaken for a photograph if not for the abstract background a Remington trademark which contrasts with the use of shadow and the subjects textured realism appraiser Colleen fess Co called it a great example of Remington's characteristic style of the time which had been preserved in remarkably good condition and along with the portrait was a letter from the artist to the subject reminiscing about their friendship and adventures dodge had had the painting appraised in the 1960s at a value of $7,500 but as fess Coe put it the years had been kind to dodge and to Frederick Remington she placed the paintings value between 600.000-800.000 dollars recommending the dodge insure the work for no less than the higher amount dodge described himself as wildly exuberant which was already pretty obvious from the look on his face but he ended up donating the piece to the Birmingham Museum of Art to add to their collection of Remington's works.
4-1904 Diego rivera oil painting
Vesko also presided over the appraisal of an early work from an important artist at the Corpus Christi Texas Roadshow in 2012 Rowe Ferguson told her that the painting by the famed Mexican artist Diego Rivera had been in his family for 80 years and had spent much of that time hanging on the wall behind a door in their house but fess Coe positively gushed over the piece titled al-albani or the laborer pointing out that the artist created it when he was only a teenager and calling attention to a child earlier version of his signature on top of that it was one of only a handful of mill Rivera works from this time period and although art scholars have been aware of its existence nobody had known where it was for nearly 70 years Ferguson had been aware of Rivera stature as an artist and had had the piece partially restored and exhibited a few years earlier but even he was shocked when fess Coe appraised the piece at 800,000 to 1 million dollars calling it a painting trifecta a piece by an important artist with a great history that's highly aesthetically pleasing Ferguson was literally speechless and has said that he intends to make sure that the piece finds its way to a museum where it belongs.
3-Red stockings baseball archive
One visitor to the New York Roadshow in 2014 who withheld her name for security reasons knew that she had something special her grandmother had run a Boston area boarding house in the 1870s and had once housed the Boston Red Stockings the franchise which is today the Atlanta Braves in 1871 when they were among the very first teams ever to get paid for playing professional baseball the woman presented appraiser Lela Dunbar with a collection of baseball cards given by the team to their landlady that were among the very first ever to feature photographs also part of the collection was a letter with humorous sentiments from each team member complaining about the meals and accommodations a piece that Dunbar called the crown jewel of the collection it featured scribbles and autographs from three future Baseball Hall of Famers including future sports equipment giant Albert Spalding and brothers George and Harry Wright Dunbar recommended that the woman ensured the entire archive were absolutely no less than the cool million dollars calling it the greatest archive she had ever had at the roadshow quite a bit better than the $5,000 Alfred the woman had previously received from a private collector.
2-18th century qianlong jade collection
In Raleigh North Carolina in 2009 jinx Taylor came to the roadshow with a collection of ornate Chinese jade carvings from the 18th century which her father had collected in the 1930s and 40s Taylor said that she always thought her father had great taste but she didn't know just how good until appraiser Jim Callahan an expert in Asian art began pointing out details that suggested the pieces true value of particular note was a large bowl featuring the inscription by imperial order suggesting that the piece had been commissioned for the Emperor himself Callahan praised the workmanship of all the pieces and Taylor's jaw dropped when he began offering his separate appraisals starting on the low end at 30,000 to 50,000 for one of the smaller bowls and ending with the bowl with the Imperial inscription which he appraised at a whopping 400,000 to 600,000 dollars Callahan called all of his estimates conservative and put the value of the entire collection between 710,000 and 1 million $70,000 Taylor was absolutely floored but later told The Washington Post that she would have to sell the collection and she wouldn't be able to afford the insurance of course there's a considerable silver lining they're a gigantic financial windfall which Taylor says she'll split with her brother.
1-Patek philippe pocket watch
Swiss watch manufacturer Patek Phillipe is among the most prestigious in the world and even today their timepieces can retail for thousands of dollars a visitor to the 2004 Roadshow in st. Paul Minnesota blew away appraiser Paul Hart Quist with the vintage model that had been handed down from father to son for three generations Hart Quist noted that timepieces complex features including a front face split chronograph and a rear face perpetual calendar that even adjust for leap years and the pieces excellent working condition the man told hard Quist that he'd had the watch appraised about 15 years prior at a value of about six thousand dollars which Hart quiz sarcastically called a little low he put the watches value more in the neighborhood of a quarter million dollars but as it turned out he had been a little low himself further authentication revealed that the man's grandfather had had the watch specially made making it a one-of-a-kind piece that was worth significantly more than Harkless initial appraisal at an auction at South bees in 2006 the family heirloom fetched a staggering 1,541,212 dollars one of the highest prices ever paid for an Antiques Roadshow item.
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