Antiques Roadshow expert David Harper was stunned (Image: BBC)
aficionado Izzie Balmer was utterly dumbstruck after her damaged Humpty Dumpty pottery piece turned a staggering profit.
In a gripping segment of the much-loved programme, experts Izzie and David Harper found themselves in Fife, Perthshire, where a blue tobacco pot caught Izzies eye behind a cabinet glass. Despite being initially enamoured with the find, her heart sank on noticing its imperfect condition.
Undeterred by the blemish, Izzie took a provocative punt on the tobacco pot which paid off handsomely.
“I was really excited when I saw this, and now, I’m really disappointed, so this is probably a tobacco jar, although you could use it as a tea caddy or a biscuit barrel”, lamented Izzie. “We’ve got this Humpty Dumpty type figure on the top, smoking a pipe and holding a mug there, and then it’s got this lovely silver rim”, reports .
Antiques Roadshow expert Izzie Balmer loved the Humpty Dumpty item (Image: BBC)
Affinity for the exquisite tone of the item was evident as she continued, “So it’s London, 1920, and we have here the Royal Doulton stamp. Now, the reason I was excited is firstly (because I) absolutely flipping love that colour, isnt it stunning?”
Yet, discovering the damage was a blow to the expert who had never come across such an intriguing Doulton tobacco jar until then.
It’s obviously been dropped and smashed, and it’s just such a shame because it was probably in pristine condition, quite a good rare item, she reflected with regret.
Despite the price tag of £145, Izzie remained skeptical, as she said: “It’s priced at £145, now everything is telling me that that is too much money for this being a broken item.”
Antiques Roadshow expert Izzie Balmer was thrilled with the results (Image: BBC)
Izzie, after a bit of haggling, walked away from the shop with the tobacco pot at a negotiated price of £90.
But the real surprise came at the auction, where the bidding kicked off at a modest £45 and quickly rose through online bids. The price inched upwards with each anxious increment.
The tension mounted for Izzie as the stakes got higher with bids flying in. “55. 60 for you? 60, thank you, the internet and 70? 70 is bid – 75. Internet, we need 75? ” echoed the voice of the auctioneer through the room.
Impatient for progress, Izzie couldn’t contain herself and exclaimed, “Oh, come on! “.
As the online bids continued to surge, the auctioneer’s chant rolled on, “£80 online. 85 is the bid. Online at 90, 95 is next.”
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Izzie couldn’t help herself, as she called out: “Come on. Come on, come on. Come on! “.
The rising figures showed no sign of stopping until the auctioneer finally called, “240 is bid. At £240, I will sell, are we all done? At £240, gavels up, fair warning, sold!”