He Criticized Dad For Hoarding 'Junk', Then Finds Out What He Really Had

he criticized dad for hoarding junk then finds out what he really had [Music] but before we start please make sure to subscribe to m r tv and hit the bell so you never miss any upload from us also leave a like right now when the auction started he immediately started sweating it had taken every ounce of his willpower not to accept the offer the jeweler had made but was it right to reject it in the hope of earning a bigger sum when the hammer finally fell at the auction he was left shell-shocked and on his knees george davis's son james was devastated when he passed away but he was not looking forward to the task of rooting through the old man's belongings his father was a notorious hoarder of junk so much so that his family had called him the hoarder when he was alive clearing out the attic of his upstate new york home was a challenge of epic proportions but one james would soon learn would lead to a very unusual discovery the rhinebeck attic was packed with all manners of trinkets collectibles and old appliances james didn't want to just dump it all because he knew his father was an antique lover and there may have been something valuable up there after sweating through a whole weekend of emptying the space james eventually came across a modest wooden box under some old blankets and boxes the lid of the box came open with ease leading james to believe it was nothing but another useless knick-knack but inside was a carefully wrapped figurine it was a well-crafted model soldier that struck james the second he saw it but it wasn't the model itself that caught his eye it was its piercing eyes at first glance james thought he'd come across an old toy soldier he picked it up and inspected it fascinated he searched for a logo or some other clue as to where the toy was made but found none the weighty piece fitted comfortingly in his hand but james couldn't explain the strange feeling that came over him when he turned it over the tiny eye staring up at him from the figurine convinced james to get an expert opinion he was beginning to suspect that this was no toy after all after searching for a model number or manufacturer name and coming up short he eventually decided to take it to a jeweler it was here he would make one of the most important decisions of his life the jeweler pulled out her magnifying glass and stared intently at the figurine james was left in suspense as the expert checked over his attic find after a few excruciating minutes of examining the soldier from every angle he noticed her eyebrows twitch slightly when her gaze fell on the eyes suddenly her mouth hardened had she found something i will give you eight hundred thousand dollars for it right here right now the jeweler said james could tell she wasn't joking around by the dead-eyed stare she gave him as she held the little soldier tightly in her hand as if she was reluctant to let it go strangely james could have sworn he felt the soldier's eyes on him as he weighed up his decision too james was incredulous at the enormous sum the woman was prepared to pay for the dusty trinket he'd found surely there had been some kind of mistake but a little voice in his head reminded him that he was right to trust his gut feeling he should take the cash and run but would he listen to the jeweler's horror james declined he took the figurine back and quickly put it away in the box before hurrying out of the establishment when he finally got home james put the figurine in a small safe his mind raced with a million questions he knew it was time to make some calls james was convinced this figurine would be worth more than the jeweler offered if she was prepared to drop that kind of cash on the spot but what kind of toy soldier would be covered in real precious gemstones to james they were worth an entire lifetime of savings but instead of selling the figurine when he had a chance james decided to hedge his bets but would it pay off after a few calls james was even keener to find out the soldier's secrets based on a few telltale details one of the jewelers james had gotten into contact with was able to trace the figurine's origins if the gold braid detailing on the figure's clothes wasn't obvious enough the exquisitely enamel double-headed eagle motif that was embossed onto the trimming blew the case wide open the jeweler explained that the value wasn't just based on the soldier's eyes which were real sapphires but also on the metals on his vest and the buckles on his boots they were jewel encrusted too james was stunned the stones that encrusted the piece were worth thousands in and of themselves claim the jeweler but who had made such a piece and why james learned from experts that the figurine was modeled after nikolai nikolovich paustinikov a loyal personal cossack bodyguard to empress alexandra fyodorovna it had somehow made its way into his father's attic all the way from russia in the end he decided to hire a professional auctioneer to help get the word out to collectors what antique enthusiast colin stare actually got for the piece left james dumbstruck please be enough to buy a house or something james prays silently as he enters the auction house before he knows it the bidding is on the opening bid starts at 150 000 and james holds his breath suddenly the bid climbs to 500 000 and a battle ensues wardski a london base jeweler and another collector bid fiercely against one another neither back down as the price of the soldier skyrockets any auctioneer worth his salt knows how to sell a piece to the highest bidder he'll talk about the history components and manpower behind their item in order to secure the highest price however colin stare james's auctioneer barely had to say anything before the room was whipped into a frenzy it was all over in 15 minutes within just 15 minutes the 100 year old figurine sold for a whopping 6 million dollars james had been sweating over his decision to turn down the original hundred thousand he had been offered but now he was over the moon the figurine was sold to london based jeweler watsky who was able to shed some light on the piece's origin the purchase of the figure is a continuation of our long-running tradition of acquiring imperial russian works of art said award ski spokesperson the figurine was commissioned as a gift for the empress by tsar nicholas ii the last tsar of imperial russia and the company he paid to make it raised a few eyebrows from would-be bitters tsar nicholas ii had sought out fame jeweled eggmaker faberge to create the little soldier it was later bought by u.s businessman armand hammer for two thousand two hundred and fifty dollars now equal to about thirty five thousand dollars before finding its way into james's father's attic and it hadn't been seen again until now it has little sapphires in the eyes little gold trim and gold braid and all these elaborately inlaid enamel double-headed imperial eagles auctioneer colin stare told wnyt there are only 50 in existence when asked about the reasoning behind purchasing such an extraordinarily expensive piece the wartski spokesman told the register star wartski was armond hammers prime rivals in the 1920s and 1930s in buying the confiscated imperial treasures from the soviet government that's a long time to wait to get one over on your rival you