AN Antiques Roadshow guest was left shocked when he learned that his collection of car badges which he had been advised to bin was actually worth thousands.
The OAP, who appeared on the BBC show’s trip to London’s Crystal Palace Park, revealed that he had found the set by pure chance.
BBCThis Antiques Roadshow guest brought along a stunning collection of car badges[/caption]
BBCThey included examples from Belgium, Hungary, Bengal and Iraq[/caption]
He told expert, and fellow badge collector, John Foster that he had come across them in an attic during some building work over a decade previously.
He recalled: “The lady said ‘No it’s rubbish, throw it away’.”
But he took the box home for himself instead and decided to see what they were worth on the roadshow.
The selection included badges from the Belgian RAC, the Automobile Association of Bengal and the Automobile Club of Northern France.
There was even one from the Iraqi Automobile Club.
Based on an inscription on the back of the Bengali badge, the current owner believes that the collection was assembled by Captain T Yates-Benyon, to whom it was presented in 1932.
For his part, John was delighted by the set, saying: “There are literally the four corners of the Earth here.
“You’ve got America, France, Bengal, you’ve got Belgium, you’ve got this one which I think is Hungary.
“You couldn’t want a better collection.
“The one I find really amazing is the Iraqi Automobile Club – I didn’t even know they had one, I’ve never seen one like that before.”
And the delight was soon shared, as Jon revealed that the badges were worth a collective £1,500 to £2,000, with some capable of fetching as much as £500 individually at auction.
It comes after a BMW once owned by a Prime Minister and full of secret features like bulletproof glass went up for sale.