In one episode Antiques Roadshow episode, viewers were a little surprised when a guest refused to sell his gold watch after being warned by an expert.
Yep, when the person rocked up to Windermere Jetty Museum in the Lake District, they were holding on tight to their luxury piece.
One guest on the show was previously so surprised by the value of his watch that he “passed out”, while in another episode an expert refused to value an item.
But it seems that the valuation of this golden object depended on an important factor – whether it actually worked or not.
Antiques Roadshow expert Richard Price received a “very beautiful” piece known as a “hunting case watch”.
The watch may be “very rare”. (BBC)
“If it also has a very beautiful dial that it has, look at that beautiful silver dial, I can say quite categorically that it is for the Spanish market,” he explained.
The guest seemed to confirm this as it was given to them by a “Spanish lady” who was a family friend.
“Well, what a happy couple you are. Totally typical of the Spanish market, beautiful dials, it’s 18k gold, dating back to the 1860s,” Price responded.
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After being asked if they remembered anything special about the piece, the guest revealed that its previous owner “proved there was a ringing” but was a bit confused as to what that meant.
It made sense to Price when he noted the watch’s design before explaining: “A very, very clever horologist called Joseph Barolos who worked in London came up with a form of quarter repeat, which means the watch will fit. hours and quarters, turning left for hours, releasing and turning right for quarters.
Apparently they don’t sell. (BBC)
“That doesn’t work and all that very complex repetitive work will be under the dial and we can’t see if it’s there. The very fact that you remember the ringing, in other words, some sort of repetition, almost certainly suggests to me that this watch had and may still have that function.”
While the guest seemed excited that the watch was worth a decent amount, the expert warned them that the value of the item depended on whether this “quarterly repeat” feature was just a fluke.
“If it’s Joseph Barolo’s patent. We’re talking about a very rare thing,” Price explained. “If there is, I’ll tell you £7,000 to £10,000. If not, we will be looking at a minimum right of £2,500 to £3,000. Either way, a nice gift.”
But suddenly the stunned guest replied, “Oh yes. And it’s not for sale.”
“That’s what everyone says,” Price quipped.
The strangest objects that have appeared on Antiques Roadshow
Some of the items on display were just downright bizarre…
Human hair from famous poets
(BBC)
Have you ever dreamed of owning the castles of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge?
Well, it will cost you the same as when this item was brought Antiques Roadshow last year it was valued at over £40,000.
The clippings were a family heirloom and according to expert Justin Croft, one was taken on his deathbed.
Yuck.
Nightmare fuel Teletubbies concept art
It turns out that Tinky-Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po originally looked pretty scary.
Jonathan Hills drew concept art for future children’s TV icons. Sadly he passed away in 2020 and his wife brought some of his original sketches to the 2022 show.
Expert Mark Hill admitted some of the drawings were “spooky” but went on to estimate individual pieces at between £500 and £2,000 and the entire collection of 80 drawings at up to £80,000.
A bottle of pee
Who could forget time expert Andy McConnell who accidentally drank urine in 2016?
A guy named John found the bottle in his garden and McConnell used a taste test to find out what was inside, thinking it was port.
Fast forward to 2019 and Fiona revealed to Bruce McConnell: “Inside were these brass needles, all dating from the late 1840s, and a liquid – urine, a small bit of alcohol and one human hair.”
It turned out to be a “witches’ bottle”, buried on the doorstep of the house as protection against curses and bad luck.