BLING BLING
I inherited jewelry from my great aunt – I didn’t think it was worth much but an expert told me it’s valued at $595k
Family members are often passed down items that they think are junk but could actually be worth thousands or more
AFTER inheriting a jewelry collection from her late great-aunt, a woman discovered that it was valued at hundreds of thousands more than she'd hoped.
The collection was revealed and valued during a 1998 airing of the famed PBS television series Antiques Roadshow.
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It featured three Burmese ruby designs, including a bracelet, pendant, and diamond-ruby ring.
The woman, a Virginia native, explained to veteran appraiser Berj Zavian that her great-aunt was given the jewels by her husband, a former United States congressman.
Upon reviewing the collection, Zavian determined that the pendant and ring were from the Art Deco period in the mid-1920s.
The Burmese rubies on each were surrounded by platinum.
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Zavian said the pendant was worth at least $12,000 and the diamond ruby ring about $80,000.
The woman was already surprised and thrilled about the value already noted by the appraiser, but the bracelet was worth considerably more.
At the center, the bracelet featured a rare 3.5-carat Burmese ruby surrounded by at least 30 other smaller rubies.
A count of 70 baguette diamonds and 144 round diamonds also filled out the piece, with a carat weight of 15.
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With its countless diamonds and rubies, the bracelet was valued at $165,000.
“Wait, you haven’t heard anything yet,” Zavian told the woman after listing the prices of the ring and pendant.
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"Now, your rubies in here are magnificent. Your bracelet is worth $165,000.”
She was stunned.
“I never thought it would be that much," she replied.
Collectively, all three were listed at about $257,000.
However, that appraisal was considering the time of filming in 1998.
Antiques Roadshow noted that by 2013, the value had increased to around $450,000.
The U.S. Sun researched a rough estimate considering inflation rates in the United States since then and concluded the collection could be worth around $595,765.
KEEN EYE
A thrifter recently had a similar experience after a $25 brooch caught their eye at an antique market in England over 30 years ago.
Flora Steel, a collector with a background in art history, said she knew it had a good design and kept it in her home for a long time before spotting an identical brooch on a YouTube clip of Antiques Roadshow from 2011.
“It just popped up out of the blue,” Steel told the Washington Post.
“I thought I was dreaming, especially after so long.”
It was valued at $19,000.
A man on Reddit who was passed down a Rolex by his late father also discovered that the piece was worth about $20,000.
Read More on The US Sun
For more related content, check out The U.S. Sun's coverage of the baseball card collection on Antiques Roadshow that was insured for a whopping $1 million.
The U.S. Sun also has the story on an over-400-year-old item found in an attic worth at least $135 million.