£5 Charity Shop Brooch Turns Out to Be a 20-Ct. Diamond Piece Worth £1,000

By Annie Davidson Watson | September 24, 2026

An 18k Italian gold tulip brooch set with a 20 ct. brilliant-cut diamond (valued at over £1,000, or approximately $1,330) was identified at a WeBuyVintage roadshow in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, after arriving in a bag of possessions a family was sorting through ahead of a move to Australia.

Their mother had bought it at a local charity shop for £5 ($6.65). Nobody had thought much of it since. “We could have easily packed it away or given it away without ever knowing,” a family member said in a statement.

Continental gold hallmarking—in this case, Italian—differs from British assay office marks in ways that can make pieces look ambiguous to an untrained eye. Pieces that appear to be costume jewelry because of unfamiliar stampings regularly pass through estate sales, yard sales, and charity shops at costume jewelry prices.

WeBuyVintage specialist Ella Vasey was able to read the marks accurately—and that’s precisely what turned a casual clean-out into a meaningful find. “It’s so rewarding to share with a customer that the item they’ve paid only £5 for is actually a treasure worth a substantial £1,000,” Vasey noted in a statement.

WeBuyVintage operates weekly roadshows across the UK, functioning as a direct buyer with same-day payment offers. The Letchworth event is a reminder—as was the Oxfordshire car boot ring story from July—that significant pieces continue to circulate well below market value, and that hallmark literacy remains one of the more practically useful skills in the trade.

As for the family? They’re relocating to Australia. The brooch, presumably—and its 200-fold return—is now worth packing carefully.

Top: Hallmarked Italian tulip brooch in 18k gold with a 20 ct. brilliant-cut diamond valued at £1,000 after purchase of £5 from a charity shop (photos courtesy of WeBuyVintage)

Follow me on Instagram: @anniedavidsonwatson