18th-Century Chinese Censer
A fortunate woman in Surrey, England found a gold-rimmed bowl while thrifting a charity store in Somerset. Well, as it would turn out, the bowl happened to be a 18th-century Chinese censer (incense bowl) which was made during the Qianlong Emperor. It was made through an ancient technique called cloisonne.
“Appraisers at the John Nicholson’s auction house estimated the censer’s value at £5000 to £8000 (about $6500 to $10,000)—quite an upgrade from the £2 charged by the charity shop,” reported Mental Floss. “But the sharp-eyed thrifter who scored the item earned an even greater payday when John Nicholson’s included the bowl in their “Oriental Auction” in March 2017. Only 4.4-inches wide, the censer sold for £21,000 (about $27,000).
