BBC Antiques Roadshow crowd gasp in disbelief as guest’s grandmother’s jewellery fetches £70k price tag: ‘Very rare’

The BBC Antiques Roadshow audience was left stunned to hear the astonishing £70,000 valuation of a guest’s treasured family heirloom during Sunday’s instalment.

Fiona Bruce and her experts were hosted once again by Beaumaris Castle in Anglesey, north Wales.

Fine jewellery expert Johanna Hardy was particularly taken by a set of “fabulous, elegant jewels” brought in by a guest.

The two pieces were an exquisite bracelet and a set of earrings.

Hardy gasped as she marvelled at the items, observing they were “handmade” with platinum fittings, baguette-cut diamonds and cabochon rubies.

“The movement… It’s almost like lace,” she said in awe and added: “The craftsmanship is amazing”

“Oh my gosh,” Hardy exclaimed as she examined the “exceptional” and “beautiful” ruby at the centre of each earring.

The expert explained it was “very rare to find jewels of this quality today”.

She was confident that the items, despite having no makers’ marks, were by jewellers Mappin and Webb to match the box they were held in.

The guest then revealed the heartwarming story behind the heirlooms. She explained they had belonged to her grandmother originally.

Her grandmother established a tradition of wearing the fabulous jewels to weddings of the next generation, which the guest has continued to do.

“I have worn them for my daughter’s wedding. So, they’re very, very special,” she beamed.

Reflecting on the jewellery also conjured a childhood memory for the guest.

She recalled her grandmother showing off her extensive collection of jewels, hidden away in a safe when she was a little girl.

“There she would open drawer by drawer of the safe with the rubies, and then the emeralds and the diamonds and the pearls,” the guest told to the amazement of Hardy and the audience.

The expert estimated the bracelet could be worth as much as £50,000 while the earrings would fetch £20,000.

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“Collectively you’re looking between £50,000-70,000 for the two,” Hardy revealed.

As the valuation was given, the gathered crowd gasped while the guest simply uttered: “Crikey.”

“They’re a lot more valuable than I thought they were,” she added with a laugh.