Two Antiques Roadshow guests were blown away when their effigy "doll" was worth over £10,000.
The antique expert estimated the item dated back to 1715 but had darker undertones than its appearance suggested. Despite its similarities to a typical child's doll, it was actually a wax funeral effigy linked to a tragic death centuries ago.
After going into detail about the potential worth of the effigy, the owners were left reeling. The expert said: "I must admit this is the most interesting and unusual doll I've seen in 36 years of doing Antiques Roadshow, but it's not a doll.
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"I think his body shows he's not a doll and I'm going to show you why, because this is a very different form of body. It's not a doll at all, it's an effigy body. I believe it's a funeral effigy."
The owners purchased the effigy at an auction house in the 70s and kept it for over 50 years. They said it was a "beautiful thing" and she liked to think that it was "smiling".
The show's regular expert added: "I believe it's a funeral effigy for the three-year-old son that died of the Duke of Buckingham, and he was the first Marquez of Normandy. He died in 1715 so in those days, the monarchy and aristocracy would make wooden and wax effigies to put on the funeral cask going to the funeral.
"It was sort of the belief that they could be in touch with their ancestors through these effigies." Of the item, she added: "I do believe it's 1715," as she asked how much it had been purchased for. As the guests revealed their mother paid "somewhere in the hundreds" for the item, they were left gasping as the expert told them: "If we can prove this is correct and it is 1715, I think should we should put something like £10-20,000 on it. It's historical."
Viewers were also blown away at the evaluation as they couldn't believe it was worth so much. One viewer said: "The effigy doll is in brilliant condition…whaaat…£10-20k…"
Another added: "£10-20k for the doll." Others were taken back by how "creepy" the doll was as some suggested to "bin it" despite the hefty price tag.
A third viewer said: "The stuff is nightmares!" Another added: ""Creepy doll/funeral effigy. Bin it."
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