Antiques Roadshow stuns guest into silence as walking stick worth 'ridiculous' fortune

An Antiques Roadshow guest was blown away as an everyday item received a six-figure valuation from BBC expert Marc Alum. The man in question appeared on the programme with a selection of very unique walking sticks. He explained his father had left them to him in his will as Marc surveyed the rare items.

In the episode the show guest learned that his great-great-grandfather was the renowned operator of Henry Howell & Co, the world's largest walking stick manufacturer in the late 19th century before the company "sadly went bust in 1936". Along with the walking aids, he also shared an album from the time period that showed the production and design process at the factory. "My father left this stick to me in his will," he began, pointing to a stick with a large dog head for a handle.



"He'd always talked about walking stick manufacturing and I thought, 'I need to know more about this.'" The expert first turned his attention to the photograph album which showed the company's process creating more than one-and-a-half sticks per year. "This is absolutely mind-boggling," Marc uttered as he turned the pages.

Picking up a stick with a bulldog head, he mused: "Now this is an absolute treasure. That bulldog is to me the epitome of English 19th century canes. Ivory, glass inset eyes, looking at the patination on that.

" The guest had brought along at least 30 canes, including one with a greyhound head handle and another with an upside down shoe. "The bulldog is about £1,500 to £2,000 at auction," the expert explained. "It's an absolute beauty.

" Marc continued: "Your exquisite shoe with an ivory sole, silver heel and silver tip, again between £1,000 and £1,500." At the valuation the guest had brought along 30 walking sticks but that wasn't all he owned. "We are looking at £15,000 to £20,000 in front of us," the expert remarked.

"You said you've got 400." A stunned Marc added: "400 at an average of £500 each is £200,000." The shocked guest couldn't believe it as he shook his head before saying, "That's ridiculous.

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