Heirloom Wedding Necklace Revealed as $250,000 Treasure on Antiques Roadshow
An Edwardian pearl and diamond necklace once valued at $10,000 is reappraised on Antiques Roadshow at a stunning $250,000.
A wedding necklace once appraised at $10,000 stunned its owner when an expert on Antiques Roadshow revalued it to six figures. The heirloom, passed down from her grandmother and rarely worn, was brought to the show for reappraisal, where expert Barry Weber declared it a far more precious relic than anyone expected.
The guest explained that the dazzling necklace had deep family roots. It originally belonged to her grandmother, who came from Atlanta and moved to New Jersey after marrying in the late 1800s. Passed down through generations, the heirloom went from her grandmother to her father, then to her mother, and finally to her when her mother died in 1988. She revealed that the only times it has left the safe deposit box since then were for her wedding, and once more, when her sister wore it for her own. “All we know is it’s probably late 1800s,” she said, recalling that it was appraised at just $10,000 when she first inherited it. Appraiser Barry Weber clarified that the piece was, in fact, Edwardian, made around 1905 in platinum during the earliest years of the metal’s use in jewelry, and adorned with natural Oriental pearls. “With $10,000, I’m sure you assume, and correctly so, these are diamonds,” Weber told her, pointing out the large center stone of over five carats and another of nearly two.
“We did calibrations and estimates of the size of the stones. The pendant's bottom diamond center is five carats or more. And the top diamond is close to two carats,” Weber said. That brings the total diamond weight to roughly seven carats, though Weber emphasized that the five-carat center stone drives much of the value.
“What makes this piece extraordinary,” Weber told the guest, “is that it's authentic and in its original condition and in its original box.” He also pointed out the provenance: the box is embossed with Phelps & Perry of Maiden Lane, New York, anchoring the piece to New York’s historic jewelry trade district.
Considering the gem quality, design, provenance, age, and recent shifts in the diamond market, Weber estimated that this necklace should conservatively bring $250,000 at retail. The guest couldn't utter a word apart from, "Wow," before Weber added, “And that’s a conservative estimate because of the volatility of the diamond market." The guest, visibly stunned, could only utter "Oh, boy. Thank you very much. That's amazing."
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