A guest on Antiques Roadshow fought back tears after learning the whopping value of her grandmother’s ‘magical’ pendant with a hidden trick.
Sunday’s episode of the BBC show was hosted at the Botanic Gardens in Belfast and saw jewellery expert Susan Rumfitt presented with two very special items.
The guest handed over a necklace, a brooch and a black and white picture of a glamorous woman.
‘Little bit of magic here today. Pearls in the pendant, diamonds in the brooch, and a rather glamorous lady. Tell me about her,’ Susan said.
The guest explained: ‘She’s my grandmother, her name was Irene Picks, and she married my grandfather before the First World War. He was killed in France at the very beginning of the war.
‘After he died, she went to England and married somebody called Robin Buxton and I think he probably gave her these jewels, and then my father gave them to me after my grandmother died.’
A guest on Antiques Roadshow fought back tears after learning the whopping value of her grandmother’s ‘magical’ pendant with a hidden trick
The guest handed over a necklace, a brooch and a black and white picture of a glamorous woman
Jewellery expert Susan Rumfitt dated both of the items to the latter part of the 19th century to the early 20th century
She added that her grandmother was a ‘theatre girl’ when Susan commented on how ‘glamorous’ she was.
Beginning the appraisal, Susan turned her attention to the ‘delicate flower brooch’ first, commenting on its ‘gorgeous cut diamonds’.
Despite not being signed or hallmarked, she could tell that it came from a ‘good jeweller’.
Pointing out the intricate engraving around the border, she said it helped to date it to the ‘latter part of the 19th, early 20th Century’ and would have been a ‘very lovely thing to have’.
Susan said the necklace came from a similar time period and is known as a lavaliere pendant, with two drops which are slightly different lengths.
Revealing a secret feature of the piece, she said: ‘Have you noticed there are some fittings at the back of the drops?
‘Well those fittings enable you to take the drops off and actually wear these drops as earrings as well.
‘So it’s very much a multi-functional pendant, isn’t it? It’s really great.’
She also theorised that the little diamond coronet at the top of the piece indicates that it could have been made for a special royal occasion.
Susan added: ‘The period we’re looking at, there were cultured pearls starting to creep into the market, however, these are more than likely going to be natural pearls.
‘They have a beautiful lustre to them, they’re slightly different in shape and size which, again, I think is just gorgeous, absolutely wonderful.
‘With natural pearls, of course, it really is an X-ray that’s going to tell us for sure, but I’m very, very confident that these are natural pearls.’
Moving on to reveal the value of both items, Susan continued: ‘I love the diamond brooch. If that came up at auction, I would expect it to be between £5,000 and £7,000.’
‘Wow. Right. I wasn’t expecting that. Not at all,’ the guest responded, visibly shocked.
Despite not being signed or hallmarked, she could tell the brooch came from a ‘good jeweller’
Susan explained that the necklace is known as a lavaliere pendant, with two drops which are slightly different lengths
She also revealed the secret feature of the pendant, pointing out the fittings behind the drops which enable you to take them off and wear them as earrings
However, it was the appraisal of the pendant which really took the woman and the audience by surprise.
‘Then we have the beautiful pendant, it’s absolutely stunning. So, auction estimate, £20,000 to £30,000,’ Susan said, prompting a gasp from the woman and the crowd.
The people watching began to clap as the guest welled up and covered her face in shock.
‘Oh my God. Wow. Never entered my head,’ she said as she fought back tears.
In an interview, she added: ‘It’s just one almighty shock. I just always thought it was a nice pendant, and it’s worth, maybe, not a lot, not a lot, no.
‘It really took my breath away, that’s all I can say. Unbelievable.’
Antiques Roadshow airs on BBC One and iPlayer.
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