AN ANTIQUES Roadshow contestant shunned a whopping £10,000 valuation for her replica silver shield for a very touching reason.
The lady starred in the BBC One show as it set up shop in Bodnant Gardens, north Wales.
She came armed with a silver shield depicting Milton’s Paradise Lost that had been handed down to her from her grandfather – and she was already pretty much convinced it was a fake.
The excited BBC show star, who cuddled her dog during the segment, told expert Duncan Campbell her grandfather had intended it to be a “heirloom” and she wouldn’t be willing to sell.
Explaining the situation, she said: “So I’ve brought a shield, the original is in the V&A museum in London, and it depicts Milton’s Paradise Lost.
“I don’t think it’s valuable particularly, because it’s a replica piece, but it’s interesting to find out a bit more about it.”
Wrapped up for the outside show in a chunky grey coat, she added: “So my grandad moved abroad about ten years ago and the last time that he was back in the UK, he passed it onto me. So he wants to keep it in the family.
“I think he had it for about 40 years and he’d got it perhaps from a friend.”
Expert Duncan confirmed she was going to keep it in the family and, after she agreed, stated “good idea.”
He then confirmed: “This is a copy of that original.
“They were made to give everybody a chance at looking at this wonderful thing. There’s such good copies, it’s literally identical to the original.
“There’s a little trick on the back, where they had to be marked with a badge to show that it wasn’t the original. There are hundreds of these.
“Your one’s lovely, it’s in very good condition – it good do with a clean, I’ve got to tell you! Before you hang it up on the wall, I hate to bring it up!”
Duncan then mused: “If you put that into an audition – I’m not suggesting you do because Grandpa would not be pleased – you’d walk away with about £10,000.”
With her mouth open in shock, she exclaimed: “Wow. I did not see that coming.”
Earlier in the episode, the antiques expert had told how the shield was dubbed the Milton Shield, with the item in question depicting Milton’s Paradise Lost.
He pointed out the characters of Archangel Gabriel in discussion with Adam and Eve about the defeat of the rebel angels.
It also featured Gabriel killing Satan, as well as displaying the signs of the zodiac.
Duncan added: “The original version was commissioned by a firm called Elkington & Co in 1866.
“In fact, it’s signed at the bottom here by both Elkington and the man that made it, whose name was Morel-Ladeuil.
“I probably pronounced that wrong, he was an extraordinary sculpture working in Paris. So it has all the credentials.”
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