A guest on Antiques Roadshow was left gobsmacked after a jaw-dropping valuation of her sapphire brooch.
BBC One’s Antiques Roadshow stunned their guest after she learnt the truth about a brooch she thought was “worthless”.
John Benjamin gave a guest on the Antique’s Roadshow a jaw-dropping valuation
The brooch appeared to boast a large sapphire
The guest believed the brooch was worthless
Antique’s expert John Benjamin gave a jaw-dropping estimate on how much the piece is really worth.
The guest revealed she had the item valued by several jewellers who questioned the authenticity of the sapphire brooch.
It appeared to be a large blue sapphire encrusted with sparkling diamonds and set in gold.
John explained: “Well the brooch itself was made about the mid to the end of the 19th century so it is about 130, 140 years old.
“The style of it is actually quite ordinary. It’s a cushion and it’s got a big blue cushion stone surrounded by white stones.”
In the episode that first aired in 2020, the owner explained the history behind the antique, stating: “I inherited it from my grandmother, who gave it to my father, who gave it to me to wear on my wedding day, which I did.”
John continued: “So you’ve been told by a number of jewellers that it’s an inconsequential piece of costume jewellery mounted on a piece of blue glass worth nothing.
“So if I were to say whoever these jewellers were they were talking absolute rubbish, would you be happy to hear that?
“This is not a piece of jewellery of no consequence at all it is a piece of significant consequence because the stone in the middle is an absolutely enormous sapphire. Cushion-shaped sapphire.”
The guest gasped and appeared amazed as John went on to gush: “Now I have to be honest with you, I’ve done this show for so long I’ve never seen a sapphire of this size ever bought onto the Antiques Roadshow, this is a real first time for me.
“If I were to take such an item of jewellery and consign it to an auction I would expect it to make between £40,000 to 50,000.”
“Oh my word, I don’t want to swear,” the guest exclaimed: “Blooming heck!”
This isn’t the only time the show has offered a life-changing valuation , with a recent episode revealing the six-figure value of a “history-making” piece.
The owner of the sapphire was left gobsmacked
