Vase discovered in Purbecks worth a fortune (From Bournemouth Echo)

Vase discovered in Purbecks worth a fortune

8:00am Friday 29th January 2010 in

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A lost Chinese vase owned by an elderly couple and used as an umbrella stand has turned out to be worth up to £500,000.

The 18th century lantern vase was found in the spare room of a Purbeck property by a stunned antiques expert.

The 18.5 inch masterpiece had been owned by the unnamed couple for 50 years.

They had no idea how valuable it was or that it may have once belonged to Florence Nightingale.

Matthew Denney, of Duke’s auction house in Dorchester, saw past a crack it had in the porcelain and the fact it had been splashed with emulsion paint.

Further research showed the blue and white piece was an imperial vase and almost certainly made for the Emperor Qianlong in about 1740.

Although it is thought it could be worth as much as £500,000, its value could have been double that price had it not been damaged.

The find is identical to a plot from the TV series Lovejoy, in which Ian McShane’s character spotted a valuable Chinese vase being used by an old lady as an umbrella stand.

Guy Schwinge, from Duke’s, said the couple had been given the vase as a present and when it is sold it could change their lives.

Mr Schwinge said: “This vase exemplifies the best porcelain of the period.

“The vendors had owned it for 50 years but had no idea what it was. They had relegated it to a spare bedroom with other items of furniture.”

It will be auctioned at Duke’s on February 11.