An Antiques Roadshow guest was left shocked when she found out the staggering value of a ‘forgotten’ teapot she dumped in the garage.
Sunday’s episode of the BBC show was hosted at the Botanic Gardens in Belfast and saw expert Gordon Foster presented with very special items.
‘Well you’ve brought along this teapot and milk jug today’, he started.
‘People at home will be shouting at their screens, people who know what it is.
‘It’s designed by Christopher Dresser, a pivotal designer at the end of the 19th Century.
‘And I heard someone saying ‘it looks art deco’ and it does look art deco from the 1920s or 1930s but it’s actually early 1880s.’
An Antiques Roadshow guest was left tearful when she learnt the staggering value of a ‘forgotten’ teapot she dumped in the garage
On Sunday’s episode of the BBC show was hosted at the Botanic Gardens in Belfast and saw expert Gordon Foster presented with a very special item
The expert stated that the items before him were highly recognised by those in the know.
When asked how she came to own these items, the owner replied: ‘Well I found it one day when I went to sort out the children’s football boots in the garage.
‘There was a bit of crumpled up newspaper so I took that out thinking it was going to be football boots and I came across this. I’d forgotten about it completely.’
Foster asked: ‘So it was amongst other things that you’d inherited? ‘, to which she confirmed: ‘Yes, it’s actually from my grandmother’s family.’
The expert explained that the piece was ‘so ahead of its time’, with the designer created Art Deco pieces before they even became popular.
‘At this same time, 1880s, Victorian era, tea services were much bigger, covered in floral decoration. So this was completely in contrast to all of that’, he explained.
‘Christopher Dresser went to Japan in 1876 as part of a trade delegation and he was inspired by Japanese shapes that he saw there.
‘He saw early Japanese teapots, cooking vessels, and this is what he drew inspiration from.
The expert stated that the items before him were highly recognised by those in the know
When asked how she came to own these items, the owner replied: ‘Well I found it one day when I went to sort out the children’s football boots in the garage
As it came to the valuation, Foster revealed the items were worth an eye-watering £3,000 – £5,000
‘It was completely against the flow of fashion at the time so he was really, truly, avant-garde in what he was doing.’
After examining the piece closer, Foster said its silver-plated finish and handle bar design was influenced by Japanese bamboo handles.
He also described the handle of the teacup as ‘very decorative but also functional’ because it ‘will pour perfectly’.
‘I love it, because it’s so simple. So when would he have started getting the ability to make these sort of things? ‘, the guest enquired.
Foster responded: ‘He trained at a very young age. He went to design school in London in his teens.
‘He had an eye for design and it culminates in something just like this. It’s a work of art really rather than a teapot.’
As it came to the valuation, Foster revealed: ‘Well, we come to the valuation. If this were to turn up on the market, there would be many people interested in buying it.
‘You are looking at, comfortably, £3,000 to £5,000.’
Surprised by the large sum, the guess laughed before Foster added: ‘It’s an outstanding example’.
The guest replied: ‘No idea! If I’d known that, I wouldn’t have put it in with the football boots!
‘I don’t know how they got into the football boots.’
When asked what she plans to do with the item, the guest quipped: ‘Take it to the bank maybe’, as the expert chuckled.
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