BBC Antiques Roadshow guest collapses after expert reveals 'ancient' item is fake

Daily Record

26-05-2025

BBC Antiques Roadshow's archaeology student guest was left in bits after finding out the truth about their rare find.
Antiques Roadshow aired chaotic scenes after one guest collapsed when they were told by a BBC expert that her ancient artefact was actually a fake. The guest was an archaeology student, who had spied the item at a flea market for just £30 after bartering the owner down from £50, explaining they thought it was an ancient death offering used in funerary rituals.
Antique expert David Battie gave his own assessment of the so-called 'offering', explaining that on the surface it would date back to the Han Dynasty, the Express reports. Giving it a look over, he said: 'It's a very unusual thing, where did you find it?'
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The owner replied: 'Unfortunately it wasn't in my family. I found it in a flea market in south east London, a few years ago on a Sunday afternoon. It was among loads of house clearance things and the guy didn't really seem very interested in it.
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"I'd just finished a part-time archaeology course and I was just really intrigued by it. Because it had sandy earth I presumed it was some sort of funeral offering.'
David replied: 'Indeed, these were grave goods. Almost invariably they were buried and having been dug up you get all this wonderful colour building up here.
"This is cast bronze and the copper is coming through – that's because of acid attack by the soil.
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"The thing that worries me is that this would normally be what we call a B disc, the eye, which actually has a hole in the middle.'
The expert said the item would have likely have belonged to a 'highly important official' when it was buried with them.
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However, the real shock came when the guest asked: 'How old is it?' and David answered honestly: 'A couple of years.'
The guest could not hide their disappointment as she collapsed onto his shoulder in response to his expert appraisal.
Burying her face into him, she exclaimed: 'Oh no! You're joking? Are you joking? Oh no, I'm so upset! I'm really upset.
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"My life is over. It's like a stab to the heart.'
Keen to reassure her, David said: 'I haven't finished yet. Listen, we are looking to the future.
"This class of wear is coming from China, they are casting it, they are carving it, because they still can afford the skilled craftsmen to do it. It's a fantastic bit of work.
'This is my prediction for the future. You will not normally hear an expert predicting that a forgery is something to buy, but if you can buy that for £30, go out and buy them! Your children are going to thank you.'