One guest was blown away as her “rusty” item was valued at £1million.
One 2008 episode was the first in the series to ever reach such a staggering value, and it was a small-scale model of Antony Gormley’s Angel of the North, brought in to be valued by art dealer Philip Mould.
The tiny replica of the statue ended up being worth more than Gateshead Council paid even for the real, life-sized sculpture. At just 6ft high and 17ft wide, the bronze model eclipsed the real thing, which cost £800,000 to build.
Gormley initially made several models to pitch his idea to the council, which eventually left him with the commission. This particular statue was owned by one of the councillors who worked on the coal mine where the full-size monument stands today.
The statue had been gathering dust in a council office for 13 years, and was finally brought to be valued at the Sage Centre in Gateshead for the programme.
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Antiques Roadshow’s first ever £1million find left one guest stunned (Image: BBC)
Expert Philip explained: “It’s easier to value than a lot of things of this stature, of this iconic resonance, because another version did sell very recently. Admittedly it was taller and it wasn’t of bronze and that made about £2million.
“So I think on the basis that this is half the size, I would comfortably value it at £1million.”
The miniature Angel of the North was valued at a staggering £1m (Image: BBC)
The guest was left speechless, eventually managing to say: “Amazing, absolutely amazing.”
Series editor Simon Shaw said at the time: “This is one of the most exciting moments that we’ve ever had on the roadshow. The item is very rare and the owner knew it was valuable but they were speechless when the valuation turned out to be seven figures. This will undoubtedly become a favourite moment with viewers.”