Antiques Roadshow guest lost for words as expert reveals staggering value of item ‘usually faked across the world’ – leaving BBC crowd gasping
An Antiques Roadshow guest was left speechless during Sunday’s episode, which took place in Dundee.
Expert Mark Smith met a man whose father was an SAS soldier, showing him his papers, medals and badges – which are often ‘forged all over the world’.
The man showed a black and white photo of his father, David Cargill, before he was sent to France with the BEF.
Mark was impressed by the collection on the table and said: ‘You said to me this morning, ‘My father was a soldier’. Then you went and got this stuff and I got so excited because this man was in the SAS. This is fantastic.’
“We have a Territorial Medal here. He went to France and started his war by coming off a beach, somewhere called Dunkirk because he has the Dunkirk Medal too. Where did he join then?”
An Antiques Roadshow guest was left speechless during Sunday’s episode, which took place in Dundee
Expert Mark Smith met a man whose father was an SAS soldier when he showed him his papers, medals and badges
The guest replied: ‘He joined the Parachute Regiment, did his training and after he got his wings he immediately applied for the SAS and was accepted.’
Mark continued: ‘Now, when you see these badges and things that you have here and you see SAS wings, they are usually fake. You have a Kings Crown Parachute Regiment badge.
‘Even today they are hard to find and usually they are copied. You have two of the shoulder titles for the 1st SAS. Now I’m not sure I’ve ever seen those before, in person to touch them, but here they are.’
Mark was particularly impressed by the guest’s father’s beret. It had authentic details, such as the small emblem that he said was ‘forged all over the world’.
Mark adds: ‘These things just aren’t available on the market, so it’s fantastic to be able to stand here and touch the real thing!’
The BBC star estimated the value of the items as follows: the medals alone are worth around £200, while the entire collection is worth almost £8,000.
The guest was stunned by the appreciation and said to Mark, “My father would be very surprised.”
The man showed a photo of his father, named David Cargill, before he was sent to France with the BEF
When it came to putting a value on the items, the BBC star said the medals alone were worth around £200
The guest was stunned by the appreciation and said to Mark: ‘My father would be very surprised’
This came after an Antiques Roadshow guest was left holding back tears when he heard about the ‘shocking’ value of a vase he had received from his late boss.
Lee Young, the show’s resident expert, was surprised to see an object brought in by a man from Dundee.
He told viewers in Sunday’s episode that the vase may have come to the UK from Japan more than a century ago.
The guest told the RRS Discovery expert in Dundee that he had been given the ship as a gift by someone very close to him.
He said: ‘I inherited it from someone very dear to me who passed away about 10 years ago. It was a very fortunate circumstance that I passed it on to my late boss.
“It means a lot to me. He was determined that I get it.”
He said he had admired the vase for years, even when the previous owner was still alive, and explained that he first saw the vase when he was still working for his boss.
The guest told Lee, “When I worked for him, I always admired it and he asked, ‘Well, what do you want when I die? Do you want the mirror in the hall or the vase?’
I said, ‘I just don’t want you to die, I’m not going to tell you.’
He then explained that before he became ill, his boss had promised that the vase would be passed on to him.
And Lee was clearly impressed. He said to the guest who was crying, ‘Well, it’s a very nice gift in sad circumstances, but it’s a very nice gift.’
He then went on to tell us about the history behind the beautiful vase.
He said, ‘This is a kind of pottery called Satsuma pottery, from Japan.’
It comes after an Antiques Roadshow guest was left holding back tears after discovering the “shocking” value of a vase he was given by his late boss after admiring it for years.
The show’s resident expert Lee Young was surprised when a man from Dundee brought in an object and revealed it had likely travelled to the UK from Japan
The guest told the Dundee expert on the RRS Discovery in Sunday’s episode that he had inherited it from someone very dear to him and that he was emotional remembering his owner
Lee provided further context by saying that Satsuma pottery was first introduced to the West in Paris in 1867.
He said: ‘We went absolutely wild, to say the least! They were decorated with this beautiful rich gilding and just very lavish, rich decoration. And what we see here, a popular subject, was actually processions and we see a procession here.’
While looking at the vase, the BBC star explained the importance of the figures that covered the vase, both on horseback and in carriages.
But what shocked Lee most was the size of the vase.
He said, ‘What I like about it is the scale. I mean, it’s just enormous. I mean, for a Satsuma vase of this type. I mean, often the ones we see are very small, very fine.’
He then suggested that the vase may be over 100 years old, dating from the late 19th century.
Lee pointed to the base of the vase, emphasizing its authenticity. The maker’s mark also indicated that the vase was made by Ryozan and Kyotio.
Speaking about the value, the antiques expert said: ‘It’s such an impressive thing. It’s such an impressive size. I think if that came on the market today it would easily fetch £3,000 to £5,000.’
The guest was visibly shocked by the appreciation and became emotional.
Holding back tears, he said, “It’s very special. That’s very – I get emotional because it reminds me of the man [who gave it to him].
“For me, that’s the most important thing. But it’s a huge amount, it’s quite astonishing. Shocking, actually. It’s quite shocking.”
An Antiques Roadshow guest was left completely stunned when he discovered the staggering value of his £45 watch in last week’s episode
His ‘extremely rare’ watch left the BBC audience staring in awe at their prized possession after learning of its value
This wasn’t the only exciting discovery. In last week’s episode, one guest was left completely stunned to discover that his £45 watch was now worth more than his pension.
The guest’s ‘extremely rare’ watch left the BBC audience in awe of his prized possession after hearing its value.
The guest said he received the watch as a gift for his 21st birthday, shortly after joining the Merchant Navy.
The watch, of which only a few hundred were made, is now worth a staggering £40,000 and the guest told appraiser Richard it was worth more than his pension.