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A routine Goodwill visit turned into a viral discovery when one shopper walked away with a vase hiding an unexpected secret.
TikToker Callie Rose Bedford, known as @calrose5, stumbled on the vase during a shopping trip and shared what happened next in a video that has more than 7 million views.
Bedford showed off what looked like a plain metallic vase, but explained: “[I] found a gold vase in Goodwill but it looked a little weird.”
She got to work stripping away the paint, and the piece was revealed to be covered in intricate cobalt floral designs—instantly drawing comparisons to the iconic style of Chinese export porcelain.
Internet reacts
As the video gained more attention on TikTok, people shared their reactions to what was underneath the golden paint.
“Depending on the brand and if it’s authentic it could be hella expensive,” one viewer said. Another wrote: “This would change my life. I’ve been looking for a vase like that for YEARS and they’re always either plastic or $500.”
Other commenters referenced DIY home culture and said, “As a millennial I know it was one of us that did that.” While many were stunned that an object like that would have been painted over at all.
What could it be?
The vase appears to be in the tradition of blue-and-white porcelain, a style with deep roots in Chinese ceramics dating back to the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Genuine antiques from those eras can fetch eye-watering sums, as seen when a Goodwill shopper unknowingly picked up a rare Chinese porcelain plate for just $4.99 that later turned out to be worth thousands.
While genuine antiques from the Ming dynasty can fetch millions at auction, many later reproductions and export pieces from the 18th to 20th centuries still carry significant value. Even contemporary reproductions can retail for hundreds of dollars depending on craftsmanship and condition.
Without clear makers’ marks or provenance, it’s impossible to pin down the exact origin of the vase in the video, but people on TikTok urged Bedford to look into the item’s origin.
A thrilling find
Whether it turns out to be a museum-worthy treasure or just a well-made decorative piece, the discovery has captured people’s imaginations. Knowing how to spot the hallmarks that determine a porcelain piece’s value can make the difference between bringing home a decorative knockoff or uncovering a hidden treasure.
One commenter summed up the excitement of finding such an unusual piece and said: “I’d feel like an archaeologist uncovering this. That is gorgeous.”
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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