WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Antiques Roadshow.
An Antiques Roadshow expert couldn’t contain her excitement when she was presented with a dress far older than its owner initially believed it to be.
Much like BBC’s classic daytime series, the US version of Antiques Roadshow sees people from across the country present their unique and unusual items in the hope of finding out more about its origins and its value.
And it was no different when the show visited the Denver Botanic Gardens and expert Deborah Miller was given the job of appraising a dress.
Explaining how it came to be in his possession, the owner shared: “It was given to us by a good friend of my wife’s mother and it was from her family and we think it was from the 1800s, the dress was made.
“My wife was a home ec teacher so she was very interested in all the work that went into making the dress. It was given to my wife in about the 1960s.”
Miller then commented: “It’s earlier than you think. It is a very rare example of an indigo printed cotton dress that dates to 1798 or thereabouts.”
The guest replied: “Oh my goodness”, before the expert shared even more revealing details about the item.
“This type of printing was very complicated and so we as Americans, just a few decades after the Revolutionary War, we didn’t have that skill and that infrastructure to make this type of multi-process printing.
“So there is a very good possibility the fabric, at least, comes from England.”
She continued: “It’s in wonderful condition. It’s a glazed cotton and I can see around certain areas it’s a little shiny.
“It is lined, the bodice is lined with a very heavy linen to kind of keep body sweats away.
“It has a pull drawstring tie at the top and one on right at the bodice.
“And inside, there’s just a little opening. You can see there is sort of a flap closure inside, just for modesty’s sake.
“The aspect that really helps us zero in on the date is all in the back.”
Miller went on to point out a “tight triangle piece” of material on the back of the dress with small pleats.
She also talked about the pleating which added “a lot of fullness”.
“Later on, even 10 years later, five years later, we slowly start to see this more of a column.
“But this sort of nice sweep and fullness at the back is helping to date it to the very late 1790s.”
When questioned if had thought about the value, the owner said: “No, we’ve never really worried about it.
“My wife just said it’s just a museum piece and we need to keep it, because it’s a very valuable dress.”
It was at this point that Miller geared up to share the dress’ true value: “She is absolutely right, that’s the kind of level this dress is.
“It is a very elevated, up-to-date day dress in great condition. For insurance purposes, you would have an insurance value of $15,000.”
The guest raised his eyebrows and beamed: “Oh my goodness. That’s amazing.”
“It’s very rare”, Miller added as he chuckled: “Unsuspected.”
The expert then opened up further about her true feelings about the item: “My heart stopped when we saw it! The colour alone and then looking at it and dating it to that early, there was a lot of excitement on the table. So thank you so much for bringing it in.”
Reciprocating the gratitude, he commented: “Well we appreciate all your help and telling us more about it.”
Antiques Roadshow is available to watch on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
