The craziest cash for rare cases where people got way too little

For around ten years, Horst Lichter has been welcoming candidates at Bares for Rares who want to part with (supposed) treasures from their attic or basement. With success: in some cases they can fetch up to five-figure amounts for their junk. However, things don’t always work out the way they imagine.

The biggest upsets in the history of Cash for Rares – from lowest to highest loss

There have been a few cases in the past where the pieces of jewelry were well below the experts’ estimated prices. We have now compiled five of these cases and listed them from lowest to highest loss.

Excitement 1: Emotional loss at Funkelring

Estimated value: 200 to 250 euros according to experts
Selling price: 190 euros
Loss: up to 60 euros

In 2021, Thomas Luedecke from Biebergemünd set out for Bares for Rares with a very special treasure in his luggage: a gold ring with three stones on the front, which the expert classified as two real sapphires and a small diamond (via Berliner Kurier). He once wanted to give this piece of jewelry, made in Chester, England, in 1909, to his wife, but it was too small for her.

But Luedecke had to suffer an initial shock during the expert estimate: the ring was initially valued at just 65 euros – but in the course of the conversation it was then estimated at 200 to 250 euros. But things didn’t quite go as planned for the prominent dealers either.

Only after a long discussion was Luedecke able to get a bid of 190 euros and finally sold to Elisabeth Nüdling. And that even though his pain threshold was 200 euros and he had to make a loss of 60 euros.

Excitement 2: Candidate almost fell for the jeweler’s estimate

Estimated value: 1,200 euros according to experts, 475 euros according to jewelers
Selling price: 1,050 euros
Loss: 575 euros (compared to the jeweler’s estimate)

The real scandal with the 2022 candidate Petra Zaquol is not in Cash for Rares itself, but in her previous history. Before she ventured in front of Horst Lichter and the dealers, she had the value of the necklace she brought with her from the 1960s appraised by an independent jeweler. This certified it to be worth 475 euros, which she rounded up to 600 euros because of the beautiful work.

At Bares for Rares, the expert Dr. However, Heide then informed Rezepa-Zabel that it was worth up to 1,200 euros. A (positive) shock for Zaquol. She was ultimately able to sell the necklace to Julian Schmitz-Avila for 1,050 euros. A small loss compared to the expert estimate, but a significant gain compared to the jeweler estimate.

Excitement 3: Sky du Mont fell for a rip-off with Secretary

Estimated value: 4,000 euros according to experts
Selling price: 2,000 euros
Loss: 2,000 euros

The prominent actor Sky du Mont (The Shoe of Manitu) wanted to sell a secretary to benefit a Ukraine aid fund at Bares for Rares in 2022. He previously had it restored for 10,000 euros, but this turned out to be a big mistake. According to expert Detlev Kümmel, the restoration work was so bad that the secretary was only worth a maximum of 4,000 euros.

However, the dealers still found 4,000 euros too much, which is why in the end there was a maximum bid of 2,000 euros from Daniel Meyer. This was even beyond Meyer’s personal pain threshold, but he wanted to support the people in Ukraine – just like you Mont.

Excitement 4: Flea market find turns out to be an imperial treasure – but not from a sales perspective

Estimated value: 40,000 to 60,000 euros according to experts
Selling price: 29,000 euros
Loss: up to 31,000 euros

Rares candidate Sabine once bought a bowl at the flea market for just 5 euros. When she went to Bares for Rares for an expert appraisal, she could hardly believe her ears: it was an imperial drinking vessel that was said to be worth between 40,000 and 60,000 euros. After all, it was given as an honorary gift by Catherine the Great and is made of 875 silver.

It wasn’t enough for the 40,000 to 60,000 euros, but she still received an impressive 29,000 euros. Sabine herself had previously imagined 15,000 euros. However, many of the viewers were shocked and think that they were ripped off by the dealers. Because 29,000 euros compared to 60,000 euros is a big difference.

Excitement 5: Painting worth 43,000 euros sold for a mere 550 euros

Estimated value: 500 to 600 euros according to experts, 43,520 euros according to the later selling price
Selling price: 550 euros
Loss: 42,970 euros

In the Austrian version of Bares for Rares, the father of the family, Alexander S., wanted to sell a painting by the Dresden artist Ferdinand von Rayski entitled “Wild Rabbits in the Grass”. Since, according to the appraiser Prof. Erich Tromayer, it had already been “severely mistreated” and “improperly restored,” he estimated the work of art at only 500 to 600 euros.

Alexander S. then sold it to the dealer Markus Kral. However, this turned out to be a big mistake, because a short time later it was sold online for 43,520 euros, around 80 times more expensive. This means that Alexander S. has probably made the biggest loss in the history of Cash for Rares, even though the local expert estimate was 500 to 600 euros.