'Antiques Roadshow' guest says her late husband 'would be so happy' after hearing value of his 1875 cup
Even the simplest items passed down in the family not only hold a special place in people's hearts, but some of those may also hold significant monetary value. "Antiques Roadshow" is one platform where people discover how much such heirlooms are worth, along with fascinating stories behind them. One guest found out that a "Princess Cup," which her husband had left to her, was not a cup at all. What appeared like a cup with holes was actually an Ottoman zarf that was used to hold coffee cups. Irrespective of the function, it was found to be worth more than $5,000, and the overjoyed guest nearly broke down thinking how her late husband would have reacted.
In the episode, the guest shared that the item had been a mystery in her family as she and her husband, who inherited the item, didn't know much about it. "It is something that my husband and I inherited from his aunt. Aunt Jean and her husband lived in Eureka, and they did a lot of collecting and collecting art glass, and this was in her collection," she shared with the expert, David Walker.
She further noted that they called it a "princess cup," and it was one of her husband's favorite things in the world. "I believe he called it a princess cup because probably his aunt called it a princess cup," she shared. She further added that it was her late husband's birthday today, which made it ever so special. "I just feel like it's all meant to be, that we're here with one of his favorite things, and I'm going to find out what it truly is," she said.
Walker then took over to explain the real story behind the special item. The expert noted that the cup had a lot of holes in it, and it is known as Zarf. "It's a very unusual-sounding word, but it's coming from the Arabic for 'envelope,'" Walker noted. The appraiser further explained that the cup once acted as a holder for a glass typically used for coffee. "Coffee was introduced into Istanbul in the mid-16th century, and it's an Ottoman zarf. The Ottoman Empire spread across the Near East. It incorporated Syria, parts of Iran, Iraq, and so on, until the Ottoman Empire fell in the 1920s. And so this was made during the Ottoman Empire, probably towards the end of the 19th century," Walker explained.
The guest who was already amazed was further delighted when Walker revealed that the item was made of 18-karat gold, and it had been enameled. "It also has a profusion of these old mine-cut diamonds," he noted. He added that for a coffee cup, the item was exceptionally beautiful, and there was a reason behind it. "The reason being is that just with tea, and with other drinking cultures across the world, coffee was seen as something that was still imbued with a lot of ceremony," Walker explained. "This would have probably been used, even though it is such a luxury, high-status thing," he added.
Coming to the appraisal, the expert claimed that at auction, the item could sell for between $3,000 and $5,000. This left the guest stunned, and she broke into laughter. "Wow. I'm... really surprised. Pat would be so happy," she said before breaking down nearly into tears.
