Antiques Roadshow fans were left gobsmacked as a battered old briefcase received an eye-watering valuation.
The latest episode of Antiques Roadshow US, filmed at Shelburne Museum close to Lake Champlain, Vermont, saw one guest bring in what looked to be “just an average man’s briefcase”.
However, that didn’t turn out to be the case – as the case actually belonged to assassinated president John F. Kennedy before he was elected in 1960.
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The guest explained to expert Philip Weiss: “He frequented my uncle’s cobbler shop in Boston when he was renting the apartment above. He came in for weekly shoe shines, and when he did that he left [the briefcase] there.
(Image: Antiques Roadshow)
“There were no cell phones back then, my uncle couldn’t get in touch with him,” she said.
“He came back for the next shoe shine and my uncle tried to return it to him, and [JFK] said, ‘Oh Charlie, I’ve already replaced it, you keep it’. Inside were some handwritten notes and his lunch of a liverwurst sandwich and an apple.”
The guest said: “It’s been in my family ever since.”
Sadly, the papers inside went missing when a child of the family was allowed to take the briefcase to school for show and tell.
(Image: Getty Images)
Commenting on the brown leather bag, expert Philip said: “You can see inside we have a compartment where his lunch and his papers were.
“When we look at things like this […] two words always come up, and that’s provenance and comparables.
“The provenance is great – it’s been in the family, you’ve had a chain of custody for a long time. His initials are right here [embossed on the front].”
Philip went on: “I’m fairly comfortable with it being John F. Kennedy’s briefcase.”
(Image: Antiques Roadshow)
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Speaking about valuing the briefcase, Philip explained that presidential memorabilia is always a “hot collectible.”
However, the briefcase was not unique, as a few of JFK’s previous briefcases already came to auction in 1998.
And when it came to the final valuation, Philip suggested the briefcase could fetch “somewhere between $20,000 and $30,000”.
Fans went wild in the comments section, with one writing: “A teacher knew that the papers were worth something and stole them!”
As another agreed: “I would have seriously ripped up that school with lawyers and lawsuits until the papers were returned.”
“This is totally awesome,” somebody else said – despite the missing documents.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
