Antiques Roadshow guest almost collapses over | TV Shows

During a visit to Tulsa, Oklahoma, Antiques Roadshow made one of its most remarkable discoveries when a guest became an instant millionaire.

The man brought in a set of five Chinese cups, carved from rhinoceros horns, to the city’s Convention Centre.

The owner confessed he had no idea of their value, having owned the set since the 1970s. However, he was soon to find out that the cups would receive a record-breaking appraisal on the show.

Lark Mason, an expert in Chinese art, told local news station KTUL that the items were “worth between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000.

“As each one came out of the box, my jaw started to drop a little more. Then my colleagues looked, and their jaws dropped as well,” Lark admitted.

The guest disclosed that he found the first cup during a trip to an antiques shop in Bath, England, and subsequently acquired the rest of the collection through auction houses, antique dealers, and private individuals.”

Lark disclosed that in the late 17th to early 18th centuries, the million-dollar cups were bestowed upon the affluent during significant occasions, a period when rhinoceros horn was believed to hold mystical properties.

Yet, it is China’s dominant role and status in the international arena that today bestows such high value on these objects.

The connoisseur elaborated: “I certainly wasn’t expecting this in Tulsa, Oklahoma, although Tulsa is a wonderful place and now it’s even more wonderful as far as I’m concerned.”

“I am no longer surprised by what I’m going to find anywhere, but yeah, okay, a little surprised to find it in Tulsa, but delighted,” Lark summarized.