It is a classic rags-to-riches story, an ordinary man striking gold. A man from Illinois named John Carcerano was on a routine visit to a thrift store in October when he discovered a rare Chinese porcelain plate dating back to antiquity and bought it for $4.99.
However, later after a bit of research,h he came to know that the porcelain plate was worth thousands of dollars.
$5,000 Rare Chinese Porcelain Plate Bought for Just $4.99 By John Carcerano
Revealing his find in a conversation with media outlet Newsweek he said that he had bought an 18th-century Chinese armorial export plate at Goodwill for $4.99. He also said that the rarity was worth $5000.
The man bought the plate almost unnoticed at the second-hand store. The plate was lying under three other modern plates and when all the consumers moved on John Carcerano spotted the plate.
Wasting no time John Carcerano used Google Lens to search online and gauge its worth and its authenticity. Google Lens threw up the information that the plate was once sold for $4400 and that is when John realized its true worth. He also learnt that only two such plates have been sold in auction in the history.
John Carcerano told Newsweek,
“Sometimes it takes some digging, but I did a Google Lens search and found one that I had sold exactly like it for $4,400 and I knew within five minutes that I had something valuable. Only two of these have ever sold in the last 50 years of auction history.”
The plates are believed to have originated in 1755 during the Qing dynasty’s Qianlong period. It is a part of the Chinese export cutlery and is shaped like a shield in a rectangular pattern and is about 14 inches in length.
The plate is richly decorated with arms of Mendes Da Costa and as per an email from auction house Sotheby’s New York, is valued in between $4,000 to $6,000.
John Carcerano has a rich experience of purchasing and selling antiques for the past 35 years but owns a carpet cleaning business. However, he spends more time at the thrift stores especially after his health started failing. John Carcerano told Newsweek that he is seeking to sell the plate at an auction and get a higher price than trying to sell it online.