In a client’s house two years ago amidst a huge pile of old papers, newspapers and random paperwork, not only did we recover his birth certificate but found a small pamphlet of poetry by an unknown (to me) Irish poet. On closer inspection it was a first edition print run.
Our book expert sent it to auction where is raised £3,500.00 for our client. We found dust covered boxes of board games going back to another client’s childhood in the 1950s to which he attached no value at all. Those in the best condition went to a collectors sale and earnt him £120.00.
It’s clearly not all “Cash In The Attic” by a long way, but there have been many other discoveries large and small, grand and not so grand found buried in piles of detritus that would never have been uncovered, were it not for our lack of assumption.