'Antiques Roadshow' guest was left shaking after hearing the value of her tiny Tiffany purse

While some items on "Antiques Roadshow" can be worth their weight in gold, some turn out to be much more, despite being made of it. One such item was a tiny gold and platinum purse made by the famous jeweller Tiffany & Co., which fetched an astounding appraisal of $22,000. While the guest initially estimated it to be worth a couple of thousand dollars due to the price of the precious metals, she was left almost shaking when the expert, Katy Kane, told her it was way more precious. 

In the episode of the PBS show, the guest carried the tiny purse to the Georgia State Railroad Museum for a special appraisal. "This was a gift to me several decades ago from an old beau. Our relationship didn't last, and I got to keep the bag. It was a lovely gift. I have used it on occasion. I do think it's Tiffany, but I'm not sure," the guest shared with Kane. The appraiser then took over to confirm her suspicion and tell her that it was indeed from the famed jeweller. 

"Okay, well, your bag is Tiffany, it's marked on the inside, and it's circa 1910, maybe 1915, and it is gold and platinum," she explained. The guest gasped as she had no idea the purse was made of platinum as well. "The lighter-color stripes are platinum. There's a lot of beautiful, chased work on the frame, and in the center, you have a group of demantoid garnets and diamonds," Kane went on to add. While the purse was beautiful, it had some flaws, as the expert pointed out that a little change purse, which was originally attached to the inside, was missing.

However, the rest of the purse, including the gold chain, was almost in pristine condition. "The retail value on this beautiful bag would be between $20,000 and $22,000," she told the guest. At this point, the owner was shaking as she covered her mouth, saying, "No way! Oh, my God!" She shared that she had estimated the purse to be worth $3,500 based on the current price of gold, but she never thought it would be worth so much.

Kane then told her that the purse had over eight ounces of gold, and based on that alone, it would be worth a lot more than $3,500. "If it were to be melted, scrapped, it would still be worth $19,000, in just gold weight," Kane explained to the guest, who was shocked to hear the number. However, Kane cautioned her that the design wasn't popular anymore, so it won't be a quick sell in the market. If that wasn't the case, there would've been more of a difference between the gold value and retail value. Nevertheless, the guest was happy. "Yay! It's a beautiful bag, and I've enjoyed it. I have taken it to fancy places," she exclaimed in the end. 

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