'Antiques Roadshow' guest struggles to speak after expert reveals the value of her 150-year-old coffee cup

Sometimes things that loved ones leave behind aren't just special because of their memories, but these items have a rich history that makes them valuable. That is the story of a zarf that was brought to “Antiques Roadshow” by a guest, who at first believed that it was a cup since her husband always called it a princess cup. However, the presence of several holes on its surface made it clear to her that it was not made for holding beverages.

According to antique expert David Walker, the word zarf is Arabic and it means an envelope. Hence, what this so-called princess cup really did was act as a holder for a coffee cup in the Ottoman Empire's era during the late 19th century. The expert revealed that such items were often gifted to people in high positions of power or bought by people who had great wealth at their disposal.

The guest came into possession of this item thanks to her dear departed husband’s uncle and aunt. “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 collected art glass, and this was in her collection,” she said. The object holds a high historical significance since it gives an insight into the leisurely habits of the wealthy and powerful during the later stages of the Ottoman Empire in present day Turkey, Syria, and parts of Iran and Iraq. “For a coffee cup, it’s exceptionally beautiful and handsomely crafted. The reason being is that just, with tea, and other drinking cultures across the world, coffee was seen as something that was still imbued with a lot of ceremony,” the expert explained.

The zarf was made of 18-karat gold, and enamel, and even had profusions of old mine-cut diamonds. That’s pretty fancy for an item that was made to simply a cup of coffee. “This would have probably been used, even though it is such a luxury, high-status thing. It would have obviously shown the status of the owner,” Walker added. The guest was fascinated to learn all this about something she had in her possession for some years. “I would have never guessed that that was its purpose,” she said. It was then time to place a valuation on the item. At the time of recording, the expert stated that the zarf’s value at an auction would be somewhere between $3000 to $5000. 

The guest was not expecting such a high appraisal and was left speechless for a little while. “Wow, I’m really surprised,” she said. “Pat would be so happy. That’s amazing…to hold a cup of coffee.” The expert then proceeded to thank the guest for bringing such a beautiful and historic item to the show. The craftsmanship on the zarf was something to marvel at and it’s no wonder that it was appraised as high as it was.