In what appears to be a series first, a guess appearing on the “Antiques Roadshow” collapsed backwards after learning that a watch he purchased in 1974 for about $345 was now worth about 2,000 times as much.
The contestant, known only as “David,” told appraiser Peter Planes that he had seen the Rolex watch when he was in the Air Force and stationed in Thailand nearly 50 years ago, The Washington Post reported. David was helping to clear land mines from the roads and to clean up munition storage areas. While working, he noticed the airline pilots were wearing fancy watches that he could not afford.
David eventually decided to purchase an expensive watch that he could use while scuba diving, and was able to get a 10% discount on a Rolex watch through his base exchange. The watch ended up costing him $345.97 (about one month’s military salary back then and about $1,794 with today’s inflation). The Post reported he rarely used the watch once it arrived, and had storing it in a safe-deposit box for the past five decades.
David brought the watch to the “Antiques Roadshow,” and his segment appeared on Monday as part of the show’s tour in Bonanazaville in West Fargo, North Dakota.
Planes looked over the watch and first told David that it looked like a Rolex model once worn by Paul Newman. Newman’s version of the watch sold in 2017 for $17.7 million. Planes told David that models similar to the one Newman wore sold at auctions for $200,000.
David kept his cool and simply nodded.
Planes then showed David that the watch had the word “oyster” inscribed on its face in tiny letters. He said that made the watch “extremely, extremely rare” and could sell for $400,000.
That’s when David fell backwards, hitting the ground with his feet flying into the air. The Post reported that staff for the show said they’d never seen a guest collapse like that before. Laughter broke out when David fell, and someone asked if he was okay.
Planes wasn’t done, he estimated the total value of the watch to be between $500,000 and $700,000 because of its pristine condition. He had noted that the numbered foil sticker on the back of the watch, which would usually be worn away, was still there. David even had the original paperwork and warranty for the watch, which are estimated to be worth about $2,000 on their own. The model of the watch, known as the Daytona, had also been popularized by Newman in his 1969 film “Winning.”
“Half a million dollars, 700,000 dollars — that’s life-changing for somebody,” Planes told the Post.
Planes told the Post that the watch was likely a season highlight. He also said this was the highest-valued Rolex that had ever appeared on the show. It was not the most expensive watch on the show ever, however. That honor belonged to a watch that appeared on the show previously and had an updated estimated value of $2 million to $3 million.