Antiques Roadshow guest refuses £5k offer for ‘rare’ tiny globe inside wooden walnut
dailystar.co.ukAntiques Roadshow has been left gobsmacked after a tiny heirloom was valued at £4,000 to £5,000.The woman recently appeared on the BBC show with a small wooden walnut shell, smaller in size than a golf ball.Buried inside was a miniature globe, marked with intricate paintings of countries and old-fashioned writing.But despite its slightly unassuming nature, it transpired that the object was a valuable relic of the past.Unfolding the walnut shell, expert Hilary Kay observed: “It’s a walnut shell with a surprise, because you open it up, and the surprise is this tiny, tiny globe.”The woman explained that the object had been in her family since her grandfather had bought it, before it had been stored away in the back of a cabinet.“Until I was older I never really was allowed to open the globe,” she said.In fact, spinning the globe around to examine, Hilary observed that it was so old, that Australia was labelled as New Holland, the name it was given until 1817.And, describing how this was only the second such globe she’d ever seen, the expert claimed that it had been made by Carl Bauer, an artist active in the early 20th century.“They were in business as globe-makers in Nuremberg in Germany,” she added. “It’s a real rarity.”“Wow,” the guest replied. “I wasn’t expecting that one.”Turning to the question of how much the family heirloom might be worth at auction, Hilary noted: “It’s in really good condition.
I’d say at auction that we’d be talking between £4,000 to £5,000."The guest was left gobsmacked, replying: “[That’s] mad."But, she appeared reluctant to sell, appearing to turn down the prospect of such an offer, saying: “No thank you.
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