£15 charity shop ring set to fetch thousands

A RING bought at a Midland charity shop for just £15 is set to fetch thousands at auction today after it turned out to be a rare 215-year-old royal treasure.

- STAFF REPORTER

The piece of jewellery was discovered among the shelves in a charity shop in Leicester before the buyer took it to be valued by experts.

And they were left stunned to be told it was a royal mourning ring from 1810, the era of King George III, which is now set to fetch between £3,000 to £5,000.

The 19th century ring was commissioned by the Prince Regent, later George IV, to honour his sister Princess Amelia, the daughter of King George III.

Only 52 of the rings were ever commissioned by her brother and distributed among family and close friends after her funeral at Windsor.

Auctioneer Charles Hansons said the discovery was “the most important charity shop find I've heard about in a decade.”