Antiques Roadshow guest gobsmacked by value of 'beautiful' ring with secret
Antiques Roadshow expert Hugh Scully was in awe of one guest's ring which had an unusual feature upon closer inspection
Antiques Roadshow expert reveals she couldn't read a letter
In an archive episode of BBC’s Antique Roadshow, viewers were taken to Mansion House where people brought in their unique items to be valued.
Although Hugh Scully was gobsmacked over an unusual ring one lady was given for her 21st birthday from her grandfather.
Questioning whether or not the item was a family ring, she replied: “Going back probably only to the 1900s. It belonged to my step-grandfather.”
Inspecting the piece of jewellery, the expert highlighted the similarities the head of the ring had to a box.
He said: “What a pretty garnet in the middle there isn’t it? That purple colour garnet. Looks a bit like a ruby, but I think, looking at this purple colour, it's going to be a garnet in a surround of tiny diamonds that form almost like a star."
Touching on the ring’s other features, Hugh mentioned the sky-blue enamel which surrounded the purple stone in the middle.
The Antiques Roadshow star told the guest that that particular combination of stones and colour was popular in the Victorian era.
However, Hugh mentioned there was something unusual to the ring that many may not realise.
Separating the golden band, he said: “The whole thing is like a concertina. Instead of just having a ring, it’s a lady's bracelet.
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“I mean it’s beautiful as a ring but as a bracelet it is a dimension that is just fantastic really! They used to do this in the Victorian period.”
Asking the woman when she believed the ring was made, she told the expert she thought it was from the early Victorian age around 1840.
He replied: “1845 to about 1850 would be about the latest I would put on it, it’s very much 1840s, it’s very pretty jewellery I have to say. It sounds an odd thing to say but jewellery of that period was very feminine.”
In the episode, which was originally broadcast back in 2002, Hugh told the lady the ring was saleable.
Although he highlighted her lack of interest in selling it due to the family connection.
Nevertheless, he decided to tell the woman how much it would sell for at auction and revealed: “I think such a ring like that, because of its features you can do so many things with it.
“It means that buyers would be very excited to see one like this, I think in auction £1000 to £1,500 I think.”
Thrilled the woman nodded and agreed with the price that Hugh had estimated it selling for.
Antiques Roadshow is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.