BBC Antiques Roadshow expert left stunned during show first as guest reveals worrying fate of heirloom
Ronnie Archer-Morgan was left stunned over the throwing clubs
BBC
Antiques Roadshow expert Ronnie Archer-Morgan was left stunned when one guest brought along her partner's parents throwing clubs and admitted he had never seen such worn down clubs before.
During a brand new episode on Sunday night, Fiona Bruce and her team of experts went along to Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery in Ealing, west London, where treasures include a royal paintbox, a stylish collection of Italian jewellery and a rare wartime medal awarded to a carrier pigeon.
Frances Christie was thrilled to find a moving work by eminent 20th-century sculptor Dame Elisabeth Frink, while a couple of eerie Victorian cut-out figures, known as "dummy boards", brought a smile to Mark Hill’s face.
Fuchsia Voremberg was intrigued by a pair of soup bowls that have been to the Antarctic and back, leaving Cristian Beadman enjoying a chair from 19th-century Germany that’s become a design classic.
Elsewhere, Hilary Kay admired a portable set of watercolour paints that belonged to Queen Victoria, and Fiona Bruce delved into the history of Pitzhanger Manor and found out about 18th-century architect Sir John Soane and the celebrity friends he entertained in the house, including artist JMW Turner.
However, it was Archer-Morgan who was left blown away when one guest brought along some Polynesian throwing clubs to the table, leaving the expert to ask: "I love these clubs that you have brought to my table. So tell me, how have you come to have them?"
The guest bought along her partner's parents throwing clubs
BBC
The guest explained: "Well, my partner, he is from Bermuda and unfortunately he lost his parents in the last couple of years and we flew out there and we have been going through all his family belongings and we found these wrapped in some cloth.
"I immediately thought 'Wow, these are obviously very old' but all I can find online is that they could be African, used in war and that is literally all we know."
Knowing full well what they were and where they came from, Archer-Morgan revealed: "I am fascinated by how they got to Bermuda, they didn't get to Bermuda from Africa, they got to Bermuda from Fiji.
"In the Pacific, they are Polynesian and they are called Ula's. They are throwing clubs, they were used in warfare and they would throw the clubs and then collect the clubs once they hit the men.
The Antiques Roadshow was left stunned with the history of the items
BBC
"They would have a brace of them in their belts and these are just wonderful examples. I love this lobed type here and as you can see, you have got this decoration around there and then smaller lobes within the big lobes.
"This is sort of the rudimentary type, with just simple basic lobes and you can see it is more simple than that, and they have all god this chip carving on the handle.
"But this one is made from the root of a tree where the wood is very dense. I have never seen one with a loop for a thong, that is very unusual.
"These look old enough to be 18th-century these are so old, I have rarely seen chip carving worn, almost to a point where you can't see it. And they have a value, as I am sure you have probably guessed and I would value these gorgeous throwing clubs at £2,000 to £3,000."
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Ronnie Archer-Morgan was stunned by the intricacy on the clubs
BBC
The guest laughed and joked: "Glad we didn't throw them in the skip."
Before the guest left, Archer-Morgan added: "Exactly! They are fabulous and I am so glad you didn't use them as fire wood when you found them in the cupboard."
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