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An Antiques Roadshow guest was left in tears after hearing about the huge value of a glass case she bought online for just £32.
The precious object surprised expert Joanna Hardy after inspecting it during a repeat episode filmed at the Scottish Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh.
The Scottish guest and appraiser were amazed by the intricate and detailed box, and Joanna commented: “The skill of a goldsmith and the skill of an enameler are the same when making jewellery.”
She then asked the guest the story behind the intriguing piece and the woman explained that she had found it at an online auction in England and was so captivated by the crystal that she purchased it immediately.
He went on to confess that he loved browsing online auctions, before noting that the box is no longer in perfect condition, but it was still beautiful.
She said: “I think they described it as glass, a glass box, and I knew there was something unusual about it, with the designs and things like that.”
An Antiques Roadshow guest broke down in tears after learning the true value of a glass case she bought online for just £32 during a repeat episode filmed at Edinburgh’s Scottish Gallery of Modern Art.
The Scottish guest and appraiser were amazed by the intricate and detailed box and Joanna commented: “The skill of a goldsmith and the skill of an enameler is the same whether they are making jewellery.”
Joanna traced the history of the piece to the Viennese goldsmiths of the mid-19th century, famous for their beautiful enamelling work.
“I couldn’t really see much of the silver, I had a feeling that might be it, so we polished it all off to reveal the beautiful enamel on the surface and the beautiful colors.”
The guest then revealed she had originally bought the piece for just £32 and expert Joanna was left stunned.
The BBC appraiser then explained why she was so surprised and told the guests and the assembled crowd that it was a very special piece.
She said, “This is rock crystal, which belongs to the quartz family,” and commented on the impressive bubble-free surface that indicated its authenticity.
And he added: ‘And you can see the inclusions inside the stone, which are its natural inclusions; no bubbles; If you saw bubbles, you’d know it would be glass.’
Joanna then traced the history of the piece to the Viennese goldsmiths of the mid-19th century, famous for their beautiful enamelling work.
He added: “Now, around 1850 in Vienna, Austria, there was a group of goldsmiths who also did a lot of enamelling work in the Renaissance style, and this is in the Neo-Renaissance style.”
The guest was stunned, burst into tears and told the auctioneer she couldn’t believe her £32 investment could now be worth up to £6,000.
Joanna then concluded that the impressive piece had been made between 1860 and 1870 and that it had been made by an expert enameller.
She told the excited guest: ‘So this dates from about 1860 to 1870, but there was one person who was really the head of this, he was the leading enameler in Vienna at the time and he did the Neo-Renaissance work. ‘
And that’s when the BBC expert revealed how much the £32 glass pot was actually worth, revealing it could fetch up to £6,000.
She said: “If that was at the right auction, I think you’d get between £4,000 and £6,000.”
And the guest was stunned, bursting into tears and telling the auctioneer she couldn’t believe her £32 investment could be worth so much.