Antiques Roadshow guest ‘stunned and shocked’ by whopping value of paintings – & reveals baffling reason she’s not happy

AN Antiques Roadshow guest was left ‘stunned and shocked’ by the whopping value of her paintings – before revealing a baffling reason she was not happy.

Sundays episode saw expert Amin Jaffer meet a lady who had brought in two paintings by 20th Century Indian artists Jamini Roy and KH Ara.

One was of a naked woman, while the second as a landscape sketch of people on a beach.

Amin started by discussing the history of the items, saying: “The artist Ara is one of the great modern painters of India and he joins a group known as the progressive artist’s group.

“And they’re a circle that really defines modern art in India leading up to independence.

“These pictures were originally hanging off railings by the dockside in Mumbai.”

The Antiques Roadshow guest explained how her parents had bought the paintings and they had been part of her life as she grew up.

Amin continued: “He himself was perhaps too philanthropic and too nice.

“He often gave his paintings away. He was an incredibly nice man, not very materially ambitious, close to the poverty line you could say throughout his life.

“He had a few important exhibitions in the 40s [and] in the 50s.”

The lady admitted she had no idea what they were worth and Amin promptly told her: “Well, I would say that the landscape here is probably £5,000 to £7,000 in an auction.

“The one over here, which has a much more complicated composition, I would say £8,000 to £12,000.”

Shocked, she replied: “Crikey”.

But speaking to the camera after the valuation, she shared a surprising reason for her disappointment.

She said: “I am stunned and shocked. I didn’t want them to be worth that much because it’s a bit of a responsibility.

“But I’m so pleased that I found something out about them.”

Antiques Roadshow airs on BBC One and is available on BBC iPlayer.