The Antiques Roadshow audience gasped as they watched a woman discover the truth behind her ‘small but very valuable’ note in Sunday’s episode.
The woman had brought her valuable item in for the experts, who were based at Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery in the latest episode of the hit BBC show.
Appraiser Matthew Haley was almost as speechless as the crowd after receiving a small framed letter from a national treasure.
The guest read the note and dictated, “Tomorrow, 7:45 p.m., no dress. OW.’
Matthew was further intrigued and asked the woman about the backstory of the item.
Antiques Roadshow audiences gasped as they watched a woman learn the truth behind her ‘small but very valuable’ note in an episode on Sunday
The woman had brought her valuable item in for the experts based at Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery in the latest episode of the hit BBC show
The guest explained, “Well, this is a note written by Oscar Wilde, inviting one of his friends for dinner.”
She explained, “Well, this is a note written by Oscar Wilde, inviting one of his friends over for dinner.”
She added that the note came into her possession because she lived in Tite Street, where the famous playwright had lived, and her husband had given her the note.
The expert replied: ‘Absolutely beautiful. I mean, Oscar Wilde is one of the greatest playwrights, but also a poet, an author and a great letter writer, and he lived in Tite Street in Chelsea in London between 18885 and 1895.”
The guest agreed and the pair discussed the importance of the writer’s work, including his famous quotes such as ‘nothing succeeds as excesses’ and a hilarious handbag scene in The Importance of Being Earnest.
Matthew explained to the crowd: ‘He wrote The Picture Of Dorian Gray, A Woman Of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, these are super important works and Oscar Wilde’s letters are really valuable.’
He then revealed that because the letters are so rare and worth so much, the guest’s little piece of paper could be worth a small fortune.
‘So even though it’s just a small note, I expect this to fetch between £2,000 and £4,000 at auction.’
The crowd was shocked by the appreciation and gasped audibly as Matthew revealed the true value of his guest’s small note.
The expert revealed that because the letters are so rare, the guest’s note could be worth a small fortune: ‘So even though it’s a small note, I would expect this to sell for between £2,000 and £4,000 at auction yields.’
And it wasn’t just the crowd that was surprised by how much the letter could fetch at auction.
The owner was also satisfied and thanked Matthew.
She said: ‘Great, I’m very happy. Thank you. Delighted.’
But the guest seemed unsure whether to part with it and explained in a follow-up conversation that the note was very special to her.
She said: ‘It means a lot to me in two ways – firstly because it’s Oscar Wilde and Tite Street.
“And secondly, because it was a gift from my husband, it is a very precious piece of paper, and I’m glad I was able to bring it here today.”
The surprising value of the ‘small but very precious’ note comes after another guest was amazed at the five-figure value for her ‘piece of tat’ jewellery.
During an episode of the BBC show, a husband and wife expert asked Susan for her opinion on a necklace and bracelet.
The pieces brought in by the couple were clearly divisive, as the man called the collection ‘tat’, while for the woman they were beloved pieces.
But the man didn’t know his wife’s trinkets were worth up to £15,000.
An Antiques Roadshow guest was floored by a five-figure appraisal price for her ‘piece of tat’ jewelry
The pieces brought in by the couple clearly caused division between them, as the man branded them as ‘tat’, while for the woman they were beloved pieces in her collection. But the man did not know that his wife’s tat pieces were worth as much as £15,000
But the man did not know that his wife’s tat pieces were worth as much as £15,000
The woman said, “They were from my husband’s side – his mother’s – and when she died, my husband said his mother had a beautiful opal bracelet that I might like. So we dug it out and that was that.
“Among a bunch of stuff in this big box, we got to the bottom and there it was. My husband scoffed, “You don’t want that, it’s a lot of tat.” It’s just a piece of glass. But I insisted, ‘well, I like it.'”
Her partner joked: ‘We’d like to know what it is! That’s very big for a gemstone, I would have thought.’
Susan then revealed the shocking truth about the jewelry.
‘This one is from the Edwardian period and has diamonds set at the top here. They are set in platinum on the front. You need strength to support this gem here. It’s actually aquamarine. The color also penetrates completely into the stone.’
“All in all, it’s a long way from tat! The aquamarine pendant, if it came to auction, would cost between £3 and £5,000.
‘The opal bracelet is of course a beautiful piece and if it came to auction we would expect an estimate of eight to £10,000.’
The shocked couple added: ‘I didn’t expect that! I think we better take another look in that jewelry box.”