The most amazing and expensive finds in the history of Antiques Roadshow

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The recent series of Antiques Roadshow has uncovered an extremely rare and valuable Faberge ornamental flower.
Jewellery expert ­Geoffrey Munn gasped: “It is the rarest, most poetic manifestation of Faberge’s work that one could ever hope to see.

"A sensation beyond our wildest dreams.”
The gold, diamond and jade ornament was brought in by Honorary Colonel ­Stamford ­Cartwright on behalf of B (Staffs, Warwick and Worcs) Squadron The Royal Yeomanry.
It stands at just five inches tall but what it lacked in height it more than made up for in value – it was estimated to be worth a whopping £1million – only the third item in the show’s history to be valued so high.

Small but perfectly formed (Image: Roland Leon/Daily Mirror)

The flower, shown at formal events, was a gift to the cavalry quadron, then the Queen’s Own Worcestershire Hussars, in 1904.
Although now owned by a charitable trust, it used to be stored under an ­officer’s bed.
There are no plans to sell it, despite its worth.
Here’s the most expensive and rare items to have been found on the BBC show.

Shakespeare notepad

His hands were visibly trembling holding the tiny book (Image: BBC)

An expert on Antiques Roadshow admitted his hands were "trembling" when he was shown an incredibly rare 17th century antique on a 2017 show.
The tiny notepad, containing notes on Shakespeare's plays from the time they were performed, was brought in by a man who believes one of his ancestors owned the book as part of his impressive library.
Specialist Matthew Haley gushed over the item during the episode, which was filmed at Caversham Park, that included quotes from various plays of the famous Bard.
He said: "There is so much research that can be done on this item. It's absolutely extraordinary. My hands are trembling now, just looking at it."

The owner of the notepad was shocked (Image: BBC)

He went on to explain that because the value to scholarship was so enormous, the commercial value also had to be great, eventually predicting the tiny pad would fetch more than £30,000 at auction.

Here are some of the most amazing finds that have appeared on Antiques Roadshow:

Incredibly rare 300-year-old dolls

Antiques Roadshow's expert Fergus Gambon made the discovery of his career (Image: PA)

One of England's oldest and most valuable doll's houses (Image: PA)

• Antiques Roadshow expert Fergus Gambon had the find of his career when incredibly rare 300-year-old dolls were brought to Tewkesbury Abbey in 2016.

In a first for the BBC1 series, when Fergus discovered that the owner also had the original doll’s house at his home, he commandeered a car and a camera-crew and rushed off to see it.
The dolls house and figures, which were made in 1705 on the Isle of Dogs, London, drew gasps from the audience as they were valued at £200,000.

Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema Victorian portrait

One of the "best pictures ever seen on Antiques Roadshow" (Image: BBC)

The painting by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema (Image: BBC)

The portrait of engraver Leopold Lowenstam , painted by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, was brought in by the subject’s great-great grandson.
The discovery, which was made during filming at Arley Hall, near Northwich, Cheshire, in June last year, left expert Rupert Maas thrilled.
While he revealed Alma-Tadema holds the record for Victorian painting at £27.4million, this smaller example was still valued at a respectable £200,000 to £300,000.
Rupert said: "I think this might be one of the best pictures we’ve ever seen on the Roadshow in its history."

The FA Cup trophy

The third cup to be used after the 1872 original (Image: PA)

An FA Cup trophy, the longest-serving ever in the league, was valued at more than £1millon by silver expert and football aficionado Alastair Dickenson.
Brought in by BBC Sport's Gabby Logan and Leeds United's former manager and 1972 FA Cup winner Eddie Gray, the item received the highest valuation ever given by Dickenson during his 20 years on the programme.
Appearing at the Royal Hall in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, the item broke previous records held on the show after be found in 2015.

Model of the Angel of the North sculpture

The model was a fraction of the size of the famous sculpture (Image: Internet Unknown)

Before the FA Cup trophy, the record was held by Antony Gormley's design model for his Angel of the North sculpture.
Discovered in 2008, the model was the first object to be valued at £1million on the Antiques Roadshow.
Fine art expert Philip Mould broke the shocking news about the 6ft high and 17ft across model at a recording of the show at The Sage in Gateshead.

Van Dyck masterpiece

Fiona Bruce with expert Philip Mould and Father Jamie MacLeod with the Van Dyck portrait (Image: PA)

It was valued at £400,000

Priest Father Jamie MacLeod bought the portrait in a Cheshire antique shop for £400, but was stunned as it was revealed as an Anthony Van Dyck masterpiece.
The portrait of a Magistrate of Brusells was the most valuable painting identified in the show's history when it was spotted at Newstead Abbey near Nottingham in 2012.

Father Jamie planned to sell it to raise cash for new church bells, after it was valued at a staggering £400,000.