Antiques Roadshow guest breaks down in tears as she learns eye-watering value of ‘ugly’ lamp she got for free
AN Antiques Roadshow guest burst into tears after discovering her beloved lamp's whopping value.
The guest appeared on the latest episode of the US version of the antiques show, broadcast on PBS Network.
During a classic episode of Antiques Roadshow USA, one woman was overwhelmed with emotion after expert Arlie Sulka gave her verdict on a bespoke Louis Comfort Tiffany table lamp.
Upon arriving on the show, the guest gave the expert a detailed explanation of how the precious lamp became hers.
She disclosed: "I was taking a walk in the morning, and I got about four houses down from where I live, and there was a sign that said, ‘Free’.
“And so I walked by it the first day and then the second day. I thought about it again, and I thought, ‘Well, I'll take this, and it's pretty ugly, but I can give it to somebody, but it's a lamp, so I'll just take it.’
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“So, when I brought it home, I ran over to my neighbour and asked him if he could cut the cord off and fix it."
She added: “He said the plug alone is really old and that I should wait and find out about the lamp before I cut it off,” she went on.
“He could always cut it off if I wanted to, but I should wait and find out about it before I do."
Arlie then went on to inspect the lamp further before giving her valuation.
She was able to tell the guest it was a Louis Comfort Tiffany lamp.
The expert disclosed to the guest: "It's actually made by Louis C. Tiffany Furnaces Inc, which is one of the names of Louis Comfort Tiffany's companies.
“He had several names starting in the late 1870s going into the early 1930s. This is the next-to-last name of the company. So, this would date from 1920 to about 1928."
After receiving this information, the guest was floored and shook her head in disbelief as the expert revealed further details about her beloved item.
Arlie added: "And you have a gilded-bronze base with the enamel design around the foot, and then what we call a damascene blown-glass shade with wonderful iridescence on the outside.
“These came in several different colours, and there's sort of a hierarchy of value in the colours. This one is the caramel colour.
“Something like this is very desirable because it's intact, and the shade is one of the better colours. This comes off.”
However, when Arlie came to disclosing how much it could fetch at auction if the guest were to sell it, she broke down in tears.
The expert then finally gave the woman the estimated price at auction, saying: “In a retail venue, something like this could sell for between $10,000 (£7,958) and $15,000 (£11,937)."
While trying to wipe tears from her eyes, the guest responded: "Oh my God."
Before the guest left, Arlie explained that despite how much it was worth, she would need to get the lamp rewired "because there's absolutely no value in original wiring."
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On Monday’s instalment of the BBC show, a guest was left speechless after her collection of vintage compact purses were valued anywhere from £700 to £5000.
Antiques Roadshow is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
