Antiques Roadshow guest shocked after high valuation on 'rare' item (2024)

One Antiques Roadshow guest was stunned to discover that one of her most prized pieces of jewellery was worth an eye-watering four-figure total.

Joanna Hardy, who has over 30 years worth of experience in the Gemological Association, left one woman grinning like a Cheshire cat after she revealed the ring was a 'very rare' find.

Gazing at the red and black box, the antiques expert quipped that the packaging often gives her a good idea of what's inside, adding: 'The box itself is a work of art.'

Opening up the package on the lawns of Alexandria Gardens in Cardiff, the antiques pro revealed a stunning blue stone sandwiched between two sparkling clear diamonds on a gold band.

Pressing the owner about the origins of the beautiful ring, the guest said: 'It is a tanzanite diamond ring. It was purposely made for me, it was made for my ring size.'

Discussing the ageless piece of jewellery and 'charming' piece of jewellery, Joanna dropped the bombshell that the gorgeous blue stone has already become globally scarce after its fairly recent discovery.

'Now tanzanites are very rare. They only come from one place - Tanzania. And they were actually discovered in 1967, so in the gem world, [it was] very late,' she said.

'Tanzanite's mine is very nearly running out. So actually this stone is not going to be around forever.'

Praising the woman - who had kept the ring in the box for years - for her investment, Joanna pointed out the four-carat value of the tanzanite gem as well as the carat of diamonds adorning the gold band.

The ring, which was seemingly in immaculate condition was estimated to be worth upwards of £9,000, according to Joanna.

The owner let out a loud gasp, quipping: ''Wow! Really? 9 [thousand pound]?'

She added: 'That was a good investment then, wasn't it?,' to which the antiques expert responded with a smile and a thumbs up.

This comes after another guest on the show was stunned to discover his gruesome family heirloom was worth a staggering five-figure sum.

During Sunday's show set at Sefton Park in Liverpool, the repeat episode from last summer, unearthed some shocking antiques - including a collection of items previously belonging to an executed Earl.

The life of James Stanley, the 7th Earl of Derby, came to a grisly end after he was accused of treason following the Battle of Worcester.

Despite support from Oliver Cromwell in his appeal to Parliament, he was later beheaded in Churchgate, Bolton on October 15, 1651.

Even though the collection of items relating to the Earl's gruesome end was estimated to be worth between £18,000 and £22,000, the owner believed selling the items would be a 'travesty'.

The antiques were brought onto the popular daytime show by a descendant of William Prescott - a man who was present at the Earl's execution.

Explaining his ancestor's connection to James Stanley, the guest said: 'William was a great friend of the 7th Earl of Derby and served in the army with him.

'And then in 1651, the 7th Earl by decree of Parliament for high treason was executed. So [William] went to the scaffold with him.'

Expert Adam asked the guest if he had received the items as a 'keepsake' to which he replied: 'Exactly that.

'He handed everything over and he asked [William] to put his foot on him to make sure he didn't wriggle at the execution.'

Looking at the late Earl's belongings, which included a skull cap, suede gloves and a portrait attributed to Cornelius Johnson, Adam described the antiques as 'powerful'.

He added: 'It's an amazing little archive of things. And the fact you can marry your ancestor to these things just makes it particularly potent.

'And the actual execution took place not 20 miles from here in Bolton. So a really powerful local story involving local men.'

Without a full attribution to artist Cornelius Johnson, antiques pro Adam estimated the portrait of the guest's ancestor William Prescott was worth anywhere between £10,000 and £15,000.

The smaller portrait was valued at slightly less, raking up a predicted worth £2,000 to £3,000.

The collection of grisly items at auction could fetch anywhere between an eye-watering £18,000 and £22,000, according to Adam.

Although the guest was seemingly blown away by the estimated value of his family heirloom, he was steadfast in not putting the collection up for sale.

He said: 'I think it'd be a travesty to sell them,' with the antiques expert firmly agreeing.