AFP Photo
Did you hear in the news about John Webber, whose grandfather
gave him a mug to play with, when he was a child in 1945, and found
it to be an ancient artifact worth almost one million dollars? He had
always assumed the 5.5 inch mug, decorated with the heads of two
women, was made of brass. When he decided to have it appraised last
year, he was told it was actually a rare piece of ancient Persian
treasure, beaten out of a single sheet of gold, hundreds of years before
the birth of Christ.
The auction house, Duke's, in Dorchester, England, will put the cup
up for auction on June 5, with an estimate of 500,000 pounds.
Webber admitted, as a child, using the cup for target practice with
his air gun! Notice the little dents? This reminds me of some of those
featured on Antiques Roadshow, who find out the item they have
been using as a trash can for years is worth a fortune. Okay, now if
you will excuse me, I need to go give all my vintage stuff a good
second look...
Janus?
ReplyDeleteIncredible repousse work.
What a shock to find out a childhood toy (and target practice, no less) is worth so much money!
Willow: Great story, I love the part about the target practice.
ReplyDeleteWow! Wouldn't you like to know all the places that cup had been! So many years of history it has experienced. That is an amazing story.
ReplyDeleteThis is sensational. But I'd like to know how gramps got a hold of the mug in the first place. Was he an archaeologist?
ReplyDeleteWillow...can you just imagine how he must have felt upon learning the value of this piece? I love the Antiques Road Show... hmmmm I'll just run take a quick look at my collectibles :)
ReplyDeleteLavinia, the article I read said that the grandfather was an antiques dealer in Taunton, a town in southwest England. Who knows how he might have acquired it.
ReplyDeleteDiva, yes, it looks more like Janus to me, with the double faces, since he could look forward and backward at the same time.
ReplyDeleteWow! I'm sure none of my stuff has any great value except to me, but I may never again poke through a yard sale with the same attitude.
ReplyDeleteThe only vintage in our house is Husband!
ReplyDelete:-Daryl
Mmm, must get my antiques valued. Then I could come over and visit. Oh, no, I could never bear to sell a single favourite thing, even to Sotheby's! By the way, my late husband was the ultimate Woody Allen fan! Have you seen that documentary on Woody where he played the sax (I think) all over the world.It's brilliant better than the fictitious movies. And talking of trees, didn't you love the scene in 'Lord of the Rings' where the trees come alive and take on the enemy? Have a really good day and thanks for the visits. Love Eleanor
ReplyDeleteEleanor, yes, Woody Allen is a favorite around here, too! I am working up a blog on him to post soon.
ReplyDeleteWow, what a story! Just imagine the artisan who fashioned that cup out of a sheet of gold - what would he (I assume it was a "he") think to know how his work has been living in the 20th and 21st centuries!
ReplyDeleteAmazing! Hmmmm, I wonder what treasure disguised as a cluttery knick-knack is lurking at my house!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you'll find many treasures at the manor!
ReplyDeleteHow interesting! What a neat piece. One of my favorite friends who's very artistic painted a garden statue/fountain that was faces on both sides and this reminds me of her image. What a story--can you imagine--target practice! Hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI have some very old cups myself. They came from a cafe surplus store. I guess if they were appraised they would probably bring, who knows, maybe four dollars. They are pre-chipped and everything. Really authentic looking. I keep them in a cup rack built by my Uncle Dewey with a coping saw somewhere back in the thirties.
ReplyDeleteA million bucks? I'll drink to that!
ReplyDeleteWillow,
ReplyDeleteI better go through those old boxes once again... you just neva neva know!
The Bach
Dayum, I'd have loved to seen the expression on his face when he was told! LOL
ReplyDeleteOh to have a grandparents with ancient artefacts!
Oh my gosh! What a story. I loved it. I thought about some of the stories I had heard on the road show just like that. Great post Willow.
ReplyDeleteNope, no golden chalices around here! Incredible story though.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of the "Search for the Holy Grail" Indian movie where Indy chooses the wooden cup instead of the golden cup the other guy picks who then suddenly rots away and dies!
Darly's comment above is hilarious! LOL.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing discovery! I'm so happy that the cup didn't end up in a landfill somewhere --I can only magine how many treasures have been thrown away over the years because the owners, or inheritors, thought they were "junk"!
ReplyDeleteGroooooan! What was grandfather thinking??
ReplyDelete