BBC Antiques Roadshow guest baffled by £12k Faberge necklace's survival
An Antiques Roadshow guest was left speechless as they declared "oh my goodness" after discovering the staggering value of her friend's necklace, one that had luckily survived a house fire.
Filming at Chatham Historic Dockyard for the BBC show, expert Geoffrey Munn was clearly astounded by the exceptional and unusual piece. Munn couldn't hide his intrigue, noting: "A beautifully made wooden presentation box, probably of Hollywood, and for me, there are no prizes for guessing what is within," before having a more detailed discussion.
"There are three pretty little enamel blue eggs. Tell me about them with you." The visitor revealed that her friend inherited the necklace, believing it to have Russian roots as reported by the Mirror.
Responding, Munn explained: "Well I think she probably guessed that they were Russian from the lid satin and it is written in cyrillic but it's clearly eligible to enthusiasts of this subject, that it actually says the name of an important Russian jeweller.
"But I'd just like to discuss this in a back to front way and tell you about the eggs which are sky blue enamelled Easter eggs on a necklace.
"And they are mounted by tiny, tiny diamond laurels and that's quite important in a way, because in the tradition of jewellery, the colour blue is for love and it's something borrowed, something blue."
The expert delved into the necklace's symbolism, explaining that the petite diamond laurels represented the Latin phrase "the triumph of love over all".
He continued: "So here are the triumphal laurels surmounting the colour blue but there's another message coming across here, because they are Easter eggs.
"This is a gift from someone at Easter in holy Russia, presenting to someone they love and it's the triumph of love over everything.
"I think it is a triumph, because it's survived in absolutely pristine condition which is wonderful for all kinds of good reasons but let's return to the lid satin once again."
The expert then unveiled that the jewellery was actually a Faberge piece, leading the guest to exclaim: "Oh gracious. Oh wonderful." He observed: "And we don't need any explanation beyond that to know that this is by far the most famous goldsmiths workshop that's ever existed, so it's very, very exciting stuff."
Munn further clarified that the blue "eggs" were crafted from a silver core, engraved and filled with blue enamel. He continued: "And there's a great tradition in Russia to give Easter eggs. In the countryside, you'd have painted white chicken's eggs to give and in the towns they'd be wooden eggs, perhaps ceramic eggs.
"But in this curious, claustrophobic world of the Romanov court and its orbit, only Faberge would do. It's a whiff of pre-Revolutionary Russia.
"And in 1917, catastrophe struck when the Russian Revolution decimated Faberge's empire, leaving it completely destroyed forever," the antiques expert recounted, emphasising the significant historical impact on these prized artefacts.
"And so when we see these items come through, the excitement really builds and thankfully your friend has taken great care of it because it's in almost perfect condition and it's kept in this box which frames it like a picture."
The specialist then left the owner astounded with the valuation: "Your friend has an object which is undoubtedly worth £12,000." Overwhelmed by the necklace's substantial valuation, the guest shared its emotional significance after enduring a tragic incident.
"Oh my goodness! Oh she'd be thrilled to pieces," she explained. "Because quite recently she had a big fire at her house and there was quite a lot of things lost and this is one thing that survived."
Munn offered a sympathetic response, suggesting a silver lining: "Well that's wonderful and maybe it's some small compensation. But how exciting it is to see it here today."
Wrapping up the conversation, the expert shared his own delight: "I'm thrilled to pieces! I'm exhausted now, I don't know about you! Wonderful."
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