Antiques Road Trip crowd gasps as item breaks records | UK News

Antiques Road Trip knowledgeable Charlie Ross revealed the record-breaking item he discovered on the BBC show which landed him a large sale. Charlie, along with fellow knowledgeable and competitor James Braxton, made the largest sale of the sequence as he discovered a Staffordshire elephant – an earthenware determine made around 1815 – of which there’s mentioned to be only 5 left in the world.

Charlie, informed Daily Mail: “The antiques were stored in a converted chapel and an outhouse. James and I tossed a coin to see who should go where, and he got the chapel while I headed for the outhouse,” where he then discovered the elephant. He continued: “I knew as soon as I saw him he was something special. I picked him up and looked at the wonderful detail. The price tag was just £12, although I knew this elephant was worth hundreds of pounds. But I wasn’t thinking about the profit I would make; all I could look at was the tiny figure sitting on top of the elephant. He was so charming – he seemed to be calling out to me.’

“The proprietor of the store informed me he’d discovered the elephant in a home clearance, sitting at the back of a cabinet. I don’t know who had owned him, but he’d clearly been cherished and cared for. At £12, it was a discount, but I still had to haggle – and I purchased him for just £8.

“I hoped to raise as a lot as £500,’ says Charlie. ‘But the auctioneer had put an image of the elephant on the website and suddenly there was an extraordinary explosion of worldwide interest.”

The elephant was spotted by antiques expert Myrna Schkolne, who was desperate for her the Staffordshire elephant. She said: “I saw this elephant on the website, and it was love at first sight.

“One had come up for sale but he was albino [the elephants are normally grey], which didn’t do it for me. Another got here up at public sale a few years in the past but had been closely restored. Then I noticed this one and knew we have been meant for each different.

“One had come up for sale but he was albino [the elephants are normally grey], which didn’t do it for me. Another came up at auction a few years ago but had been heavily restored. Then I saw this one and knew we were meant for each other.

Myrna placed an email bid, but didn’t want to risk losing it, so, because of the time difference, she got up at 5am to bid over the phone. She said: “The bidding took ages, but when it ended he was mine – and the room, to my shock, broke into applause.”

She continued: “My elephant had value Charlie £8 and me an terrible lot more [£2,700]. But it’s attainable to have two winners, and both he and I have been comfortable.

“There was a large buzz in the public sale room, and when the hammer went down, there was whooping and hollering – not least from me. The £2,700 paid is an Antiques Road Trip report. Of course, what I didn’t realise until later was the customer had spent 25 years looking for this item.