'Antiques Roadshow' guest says 'never in a million years' could she have guessed the value of her item

The guest had no idea how valuable her grandfathers Dutch tinware coffee pot was.

PUBLISHED SEP 10, 2025

Screenshot showing the expert, the Dutch Tinware Coffee pot, and the guest on the show (Cover image source: YouTube | Antiques Roadshow PBS)

"Antiques Roadshow" does feature things such as vintage paintings and antique jewelry that can be perceived as valuable. But at the same time, some guests walk in with things that just look like everyday items, but turn out to be valuable beyond their wildest imagination. Something of that nature happened to a guest, who was left gobsmacked after getting a $9,000 appraisal for her ordinary-looking, old tin coffee pot. While she remembered it as the 'hot chocolate' pot from her childhood, the expert, Kelly Wright, explained to her that it was a great specimen of Pennsylvania Dutch tinware made between 1860 and 1890. This left the guest gasping for breath as she couldn't think her tin pot was so valuable, even "in a million years."

Screenshot showing the guest's reaction to the appraisal (Image source: YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)

The guest shared how her childhood memories were associated with the item, and it was eventually passed down to her in the family. "I saw this object at my husband's grandfather's house, and he always had it displayed on his hutch, except when someone would come, like a repairman or something, and he would wrap it up and hide it in the blanket chest when that happened, so I knew that was a special object to them, and the family always called it the 'chocolate pot.' I don't really know why, because I can't imagine making hot chocolate in it," she told Wright.

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

When asked if she knew where the coffee pot was from, she told the expert that she had an idea that it was from the Pennsylvania Dutch region, but she didn't know anything more about it. "I don't know where they got it or how long they had it, except that it was my grandfather's mother's family that it came down from," she added.

Wright then took over to explain the significance of the item. He explained that the coffee pot was indeed from Pennsylvania Dutch, he explained that it was a great example of Pennsylvania Dutch tinware, and it was made using the unique technique called "tole." "This is a European tradition of painting on tin and wood in this sort of whimsical folk manner. And this would have happened throughout the Pennsylvania Dutch region, which we're right in the middle of here. And a number of objects. You'd have spoons, plates, cups, canisters, tins, a whole variety of utilitarian wares. And these would be done in workshops," he added.

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

He then added, "We would attribute it to its 'lighthouse' form. It has this wonderful gooseneck spout. The only real area of concern is the finial here on the top, which has been dented in a bit, so it had a tumble at some point. But the base is round and symmetrical, and the paint is generally even. We do believe it's been varnished at some point."

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

When he asked the guest if she had an idea of its value, the guest said, "I like it just because it's pretty, but I don't really think that it has a whole lot of value." Wright then shocked the guest by delivering an auction estimate of $7,000 to $9,000 on the item. "Are you kidding me? Never in a million years would I have thought that!" the guest said in response.