‘Antiques Roadshow’ guest says ‘you’re kidding’ after hearing the value of her family heirloom

The guest had absolutely no idea that the Ching Dynasty snuff bottle could be worth so much.

PUBLISHED SEP 30, 2025

Screenshot showing the guest, the item, and the expert on the show (Cover image source: YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)

Sometimes, the value of an artifact defies its size. This happened when an "Antiques Roadshow" guest who brought in a tiny Chinese snuff bottle got a stunning appraisal that left her in shock. The owner of the Japanese embellished, Ching Dynasty bottle, who had no sense of its value and provenance, was enlightened by the show's expert, Richard Cervantes, who ended up appraising it at about $6,000.

Screenshot showing the item (Image source: YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)

In the episode, the guest shared that the bottle was passed down in her family for generations before it made its way to her. "This is a snuff bottle that was passed down from my great aunt Selena, and she and her husband traveled extensively, probably in the 1920s. They went overseas, and they were in the Orient a fair amount," she told Cervantes. The expert then took over to explain the provenance of the tiny snuff bottle. "Well, there's a reason why snuff bottles were made so prolifically during the Ching Dynasty in Chinese history. Smoking was illegal, so it actually came down from the emperor that if you wished to take tobacco, you had to do it in snuff form," he explained.

Thus, he added that a snuff bottle became a status symbol like a nice watch or jewelry. "We can separate it into two components. If we can look past the embellishment for now and just admire this beautiful white jade snuff bottle, I can tell it comes from the 18th century. Now, during the 18th century, during the Quianlong Emperor's reign, they mined this wonderful milky white nephrite in the western part of China," he added.

Screenshot showing the expert talking to the guest (Image source: YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)

He further noted that the bottle had several desirable features that gave it character despite its flaws. He then explained that the bottle once travelled to Japan as well, as the decoration wouldn't have been enough for the owner at the time. "Whether it was taken to Japan or found its way there by some other means, it was embellished with the decoration you see in Japan," he shared.

He added that the bottle probably dated from the 18th century, and it went to Japan in the 19th century, where it got "soapstone, hard stone, lapis lazuli, lacquer, and even some seed pearls". "On the side here, it was given this very, very beautiful figural scene with these cherry blossom trees, a little child bringing some Lingzhi fungus. It is a very lucky symbol to have on the bottle," Cervantes added.

Screenshot showing Cervantes pointing out the details (Image source: YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)

Before coming to the appraisal, the expert asked the guest if she had any idea of its value. "I've never had it appraised, and no sense of the value or even what was paid for it initially," she shared. Cervantes then added that the snuff bottle market was strong at the time, and if the item were to come up for auction, a "conservative and reasonable" estimate would be of $4000 to $6000. "You're kidding! Oh my gosh!" the guest said in response to the appraisal.