Sotheby's
Imagine attending a yard sale because you’re poor and you enjoy purchasing other people’s throwaways. You weed through all the VHS tapes and shitty records and stumble across a modest jewel that you purchase for $13 in hopes that it gives people the impression that you’re not broke. You wear this jewel around your neck for 30 years, until 2047.
Then, after decades of wearing the jewel around your neck daily, you are told that the jewel you bought for the price of a Chipotle burrito is worth half a million dollars.
Welp, that’s exactly what happened to a woman in Isleworth, west London, who bought an “exceptionally sized” ring at a car boot sale (an outdoor market where people sell personal possessions out of their cars).
The jewel that the woman thought was fake is actually a 26-carat, cushion-shaped white diamond from the 19th Century, according to the BBC. Head of Sotheby’s London jewelry department Jessica Wyndham called the ring is a “one-off windfall, an amazing find.” It is expected to be auctioned for $456,000 at a Sotheby’s auction in July.
The owner of the jewel, who of course preferred to remain anonymous, is pretty stoked her investment paid off 35,000 fold.
“Anyone would be in this position, it’s a life-changing amount of money,” she said. “No matter what your background is or what your past experiences have been, it’s going to revolutionize someone’s life.”
I’m really happy for the lady. No, really.
[protected-iframe id=”c09eb74f0237b440eec3b4160993eb5d-97886205-37946113″ info=”https://giphy.com/embed/12gVgnMoy17RYc” width=”365″ height=”480″ frameborder=”0″]
[h/t Business Insider]