In Tucson, Arizona, a man presented his seemingly unassuming blanket to the antiques expert, Donald Ellis, on the PBS program and was left stunned by what he had to say.
The guest, called Ted Kuntz, explained he didn’t know ‘an awful lot’ about the blanket, other than it was given as a gift from the notable 19th century fur-trapper and explorer, Kit Carson, to the foster father of his grandmother.
Ted had no idea the blanket was worth so much (YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)
Donald asked Ted if he knew the origins of the ‘weaving’ or if he knew what kind of blanket it is.
The man said he hadn’t had anyone assess the materials before and shrugged saying: “It’s probably a Navajo, but that’s about all I know.”
He guessed the blanket perhaps belonged to a chief.
Visibly excited by the find, Donald, who founded a renowned gallery in the field of historical Native American art, then asked Ted: “Did you notice when you showed this to me that I kind of stopped breathing a little bit?
“I’m still having a little trouble breathing here, Ted.”
The appraiser went on to say it was much more than a chief’s blanket, explaining it is ‘the first type’ of a Ute chief’s blanket ever made, in about 1840 to 1860.
Donald couldn’t contain his excitement with the find (YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)
Donald said the ‘pure’ design of the fabric indicates it was dated at the beginning of Navajo weaving, with ‘valuable’ indigo dyes and hand-woven wool that is done with such skill it feels ‘like silk’ and repels water.
The expert then pointed out a small patchwork, which he said dated to the 1860s, having been repaired with raveled bayetta, and making it ‘extremely rare’.
Donald added: “They were very, very valuable at the time.”
But what value did he give the precious item at the time Ted appeared on the show in 2001?
Well, the pro said the blanket is in ‘unbelievably’ good condition and not only made for an ‘extraordinary piece of art’, but the greatest thing he’d seen on Antiques Roadshow.
He teased by asking Ted if he was a ‘wealthy man’ before admitting he was nervous to reveal the textile’s value, which he estimated to be $350,000 ‘on a really bad day’, to a whopping half a million dollars.
The revelation visibly shocked Ted, who said choking back tears that he had ‘no idea’ it could be worth so much as the blanket had been discarded, ‘laying on the back of a chair’.
Donald said: “You have a national treasure.
“When you walked in with this, I just about died.”
The man was moved to tears (YouTube/Antiques Roadshow PBS)
And that’s not including if they could prove Kit Carson’s connection to the Navajo blanket, which could increase the value by 20 percent.
Wiping away tears, the guest said: “Wow. My grandmother, you know, were poor farmers. There was no wealth in the family.
“Boy, I can’t believe it.
“I’m amazed and flabbergasted.”
Amazingly, the value of the blanket was estimated to be in the region of $750,000 to $1million as of 2016.
The heartwarming scene is considered by fans as one of the ‘all time classic Roadshow moments’, while PBS has lauded it as one of the show’s most valuable objects it ever appraised.
Ted later revealed to AZPM that the blanket was sold to anonymous buyer who donated it to The Detroit Institute of Arts – and he lived out his retirement a bit more comfortably.
