'Antiques Roadshow' guest says 'thank you to the Duke' after hearing the value of her Royal gift
Receiving a gift from royalty is surely a major milestone in anyone's life, but these days getting such items appraised on "Antiques Roadshow" brings even more joy. One guest on the show was in shock after the expert revealed that her old gift from the Duke of Wellington was worth nearly $12,000. The lady who brought along a multipurpose gaming table made of rosewood with a Sheraton flair was beyond surprised by the expert, Hugh Scully's estimate. However, he assured her that the appraisal was rather conservative given the item's provenance and the materials used in it.
"It originally came into the family through somebody who was either the secretary or the valet to the Duke of Wellington," The guest told Scully to begin with. She shared that when the person got married, the Duke gifted him the table and a set of willow-patterned tea sets to go with it. "My cousin said that she very well remembered when she was a young girl, she and her father were playing, and he lost," she shared. She added that he never liked losing, and he had a bad temper, so he threw the original cards that came with the table into the fire.
Scully told the guest that it was a remarkable story, and provenance is everything in the market today, so she should write the story down and tuck it inside the table. Coming to the item, Scully noted that it was a wonderful piece of furniture from the 1780s or the early 1790s. "Pure Sheraton in design, and of course, the latest fashion at that time was to show off all these exotic timbers," he told the guest. He added that the table was made from rosewood, which at the time was probably imported from the West Indies. He then showed the guest that it was a multipurpose gaming table that had a backgammon board, a chess board, and a green board for playing cards.
However, the only problem that Scully could find was that one of the boards was not original, but he assured the owner that it wouldn't be of much consequence. "It's excellently well done. Such a pretty table and with family history, which makes such a difference," he noted. Coming to the appraisal, Scully told the guest that the materials were quite popular in the market and the item's provenance was of great importance as well. It is so valuable that if it gets damaged or stolen, then one should have some form of compensation through insurance.
Hearing the amount, the guest briefly went into shock as she planted her palm on her head. After making a recovery, she looked at the camera and said, "Well, thank you to the Duke of Wellington!"
In the end, Scully thanked the appraiser for bringing in the item and told her to keep the story with the table forever. The guest assured him that she had already written it down, and she took it out before bringing it to the show.
