He refused to put a price on the item due to its links to the history of slavery and ivory trade.
During a visit to Cardiff on the BBC One TV show The Antiques Roadshow, something quite unusual happened.
Expert Ronnie Archer-Morgan came across an item with a troubling history, and he made a bold decision not to put a price on it.
Right from the start, he was clear about his stance, saying: “I want to make it absolutely clear that myself and we in The Antiques Roadshow wholly and unequivocally disapprove of the trade in ivory.”
As the camera gave us a closer look, it revealed an ornate ivory bracelet, perfectly preserved and sitting on a purple cushion, engraved with some text.
The lady who brought it in shared that she picked it up at a house sale for just £3, completely unaware of its dark past.
It was only after she did some digging that she uncovered the unsettling truth about it.
Ronnie went on to explain: “But this ivory bangle here is not about trading in ivory, it’s about trading in human life.”
“It’s probably one of the most difficult things that I’ve ever had to talk about, but talk about it we must.”
He described the bracelet as ‘amazing’ but quickly dove into its grim connection to the slave trade of the 17th and 18th centuries.
The inscription ‘Prince Jemmy of Grandy’ hinted at a likely African man involved in the slave trade, betraying his own for profit.
This bracelet and disc served as a twisted form of advertising his ‘honesty’ as a slave trader.
Ronnie didn’t hold back his feelings about the original owner: “I’d like to meet him and tell him how honest I think he is.”
When it came time to give it a value, Ronnie firmly stated: “I just don’t want to value it. I do not want to put a price on something that signifies such an awful business.”
“But the value is in the lessons that this can tell people. The value is in researching this and what we can find out.”
“And I just love you for bringing it in and thank you so much for making me so sad.”
This segment quickly made its way to Reddit, where many praised Ronnie’s decision not to value the bracelet.
One person commented: “Fascinating, disgusting, sad, maddening, surreal. Thank you for sharing this.”
Another said: “Very interesting artefact, it really belongs in a museum – bequeathed or donated.”
“This is how you recognize and talk about history. Taking these monuments of the past and putting them into the proper context of the era in which we come from,” another user added.
A historian chimed in: “As a historian who has to handle uncomfortable topics frequently, he handled this perfectly. I need to steal a page from him.”
And another user noted: “Props to this guy for clearly being so emotionally touched on so many levels and not being brought to anger or even raise his voice at her or anyone present.”
“Just saying what needs to be said, and making a statement in the end by not wanting to value it. What composure.”
